D2R2
newbie
Reged: 08/12/09
Posts: 4
Loc: Phnom Penh
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Hi all,
Despite the fact that I can not see Polaris, I am planning to buy a wedge but am leaving in South East Asia (low lat).
I am hesitating between the 2 wedges Mitty and Milburn( I don't trust the Celestron one). Anyone can advise me? Is there any other manufacturer?
Thks
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Rick Woods
Postmaster
Reged: 01/27/05
Posts: 5684
Loc: Inner Solar System
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Both are good, from what I read. Mitty, sadly, is no longer available new due to the passing of Frank Sperl, the guy who made them.
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- Rick
14" LX200GPS
Dyslexics Untie!
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btieman
sage
Reged: 07/24/08
Posts: 482
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I *love* my Milburn  The only complaint I have is that it took 6 months to get it. I ordered January 2 this year and got it first week of July. These are *not* mass produced items.
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CPC 1100
Orion 120st
Milburn Wedge
QSI 520i
Meade DSI Pro
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Starhawk
sage
Reged: 09/16/08
Posts: 427
Loc: Tucson, Arizona
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The Celestron wedge works fine, though.
-Rich
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I lost count of my scopes. Now I just want mobility.
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antimorris
sage
Reged: 08/16/09
Posts: 245
Loc: San Antonio-ish, TX
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really? from what I have read on here its not worth the materials it is made out of as its not easy to adjust, doesnt hold more weight than just the scope itself (so if you add on anything like guide scope, camera setup, etc its no longer stable), and you basically have to buy the upgrade kit to even get it aligned which makes it almost as expensive as the Milburn, so for a little bit extra why not go for the better wedge ..... are my impressions wrong? Just what I have read on here
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Anna
CPC 800 XLT w/FeatherTouch micro-focuser
Orion EON 80ED
unmodded Nikon D40
Meade DSI II Pro with ATIK Filter Wheel & Outback Razorback Cooler
---------------
Morris Astronomy
My Astro Blog
"sic itur ad astra"
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Starhawk
sage
Reged: 09/16/08
Posts: 427
Loc: Tucson, Arizona
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I've been using the HD wedge for a few years. It holds the scope + piggyback scope + camera + counterweights just fine. I do have the upgrade kit for it, which makes polar alignment pretty easy. I've even left it outside on a tripod and found it held its alignment perfectly. I tend to wonder if the HD wedge's detractors have ever used one. It's not as heavy as the other wedges, but we are talking about a telescope here; not a cannon.
The only mods I have made to mine have been to put flower handles on the clamping knobs to make setup a little easier in total darkness.
-Rich
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I lost count of my scopes. Now I just want mobility.
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David Knisely
Postmaster
Reged: 04/19/04
Posts: 8280
Loc: Beatrice, Nebraska
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Quote:
I've been using the HD wedge for a few years. It holds the scope + piggyback scope + camera + counterweights just fine. I do have the upgrade kit for it, which makes polar alignment pretty easy. I've even left it outside on a tripod and found it held its alignment perfectly. I tend to wonder if the HD wedge's detractors have ever used one. It's not as heavy as the other wedges, but we are talking about a telescope here; not a cannon.
The only mods I have made to mine have been to put flower handles on the clamping knobs to make setup a little easier in total darkness.
-Rich
The first time I tried my NexStar 9.25GPS on my Celestron "Heavy Duty" wedge on the stock tripod turned out to be the last. The scope bounced like a pogo stick with over a minute of arc of pogo and a fairly slow period. The wedge/tripod simply wasn't stable enough and the setup was next to useless. I have put the wedge in a testing mode bolted on a large heavy wooden work table I have, and it helped, so perhaps the stock tripod simply wasn't large enough in its head footprint to properly support the wedge. I have thought about building a large wooden pier to support the wedge to re-test the setup in the field, but so far, I have just continued to run the NexStar in the altazimuth mode for the most part. However, the experience made me go to the APT Astro wedge on a Pier Tech adjustable pier as the recommendation for Hyde Observatory's Nexstar 11, and it has worked like a champ. If I had it to do over again, I would have gone with the APT Astro wedge, as it is built like a tank and performs very well. Clear skies to you.
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David W. Knisely
Hyde Memorial Observatory
http://www.hydeobservatory.info
Prairie Astronomy Club
http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org
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Coco
Vendor (Orbit Engineering
Reged: 02/12/09
Posts: 21
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try this one, its in stock..
www.orbit-engineering.com
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CPC 800 XLT
Orbit Wedge www.orbit-engineering.co.uk
ZS66 APO
Astro track TX300
Modified 40D
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antimorris
sage
Reged: 08/16/09
Posts: 245
Loc: San Antonio-ish, TX
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The orbit one looks great, but it is more than twice the price of a Milburn (as a Milburn for my scope would be $469, with the pound to dollar conversion, the orbit would be almost $1000!) It may be in stock, but for that price, its not worth having it now.
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Anna
CPC 800 XLT w/FeatherTouch micro-focuser
Orion EON 80ED
unmodded Nikon D40
Meade DSI II Pro with ATIK Filter Wheel & Outback Razorback Cooler
---------------
Morris Astronomy
My Astro Blog
"sic itur ad astra"
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btieman
sage
Reged: 07/24/08
Posts: 482
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The Milburn is a solid wedge. The wait time was annoying but well worth it.
One other tidbit about the Milburn worth mentioning: The CPC tripod does not have a mount point to put the bracket that the AZ adjustment pushes against. Ken sends the hardware for the bracket--including the screws to mount it plus isntructions on where to drill/tap to mount the bracket properly. The wedge base is cast alluminum--not my favorite material to blind tap into. So far I haven't bothered to do it. With the bolts that hold the wedge on the tripod just past finger tight, I've been able to hand push the wedge into alignment without too much fuss. Once close, tightening the right tripod mounting bolts will bring it dead on. Once rough aiming at the pole and using a CCD for alignment, I can align my wedge in 1-2 minutes and have it aligned well enough that I get only 2-3 arcseconds of drift per hour without drift alignment.
Brian
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CPC 1100
Orion 120st
Milburn Wedge
QSI 520i
Meade DSI Pro
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D2R2
newbie
Reged: 08/12/09
Posts: 4
Loc: Phnom Penh
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Thks to all the orbit one looks great, Thks coco, but can I use a wedge if I can't see polaris?As I said I am not sure which model I have to choose, the fact that I am living in Cambodia reduce my choie.. Anyone can help me to select right angle for South East asia?
whoua 6 months for the Milburn.. and you need to modify the tripod um ..What about the latiwedge?
http://www.optcorp.com/product.aspx?pid=9121&tb=8&kw=wedge&st=2 It look likes for a fixed pier , am I right?
thks again to all!
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btieman
sage
Reged: 07/24/08
Posts: 482
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The wedge modification for the Milburn is no big deal. If you don't feel comfortable drilling and tapping, some hard set epoxy would also due the trick--that's like;y what I'll do if I every need it. For now, nudging the wedge by hand instead of using the AZ adjustment knob works well enough.
With Celestron's HC software V4.18 you're not supposed to have to see the pole star. Theres a thread in this forum discussing that. Search for "new firmware 4.18". The firmware just came out and I haven't seen anyone post their experience with it yet but you're supposed to be able to pick a wedge alignment star similar to how you pick a scope alignment star. The difference being, when using a wedge alignment star you don't touch the scope controls--you align with the wedge adjustments!
The correct angle is your latitude. The scope will sit on a base tilted the angle of your latitude when properly aligned. I'm at 41N and the scope looks pretty secure sitting at that angle. It starts to look pretty scary to me when you get up towards 60 degrees or more (north or south doesn't matter) as the forks start to point more horizontal. The Milburn stock wedge should go 20-50 degrees but Ken states that other ranges are available--custom machining and all I assume other vendors have similar options.
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CPC 1100
Orion 120st
Milburn Wedge
QSI 520i
Meade DSI Pro
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D2R2
newbie
Reged: 08/12/09
Posts: 4
Loc: Phnom Penh
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HI Bieman
Thks for all these info, I think I am going tfro the Milburn, low lat, Anacortes seems to have some in Stock. Can you send me more data about the modification such as pictures?
thks
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btieman
sage
Reged: 07/24/08
Posts: 482
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I haven't done the modification on my mount--so no pictures handy. It's easy enough to push the mount into place by hand--easier if you're was off as you don't have to turn the AZ adjustment forever.
The modification, if you decide to do it, is to drill/tap two holes in order to mount an L bracket with a slot. The wedge has a tongue that fits into the slot when mounted properly. The tongue is on a truck that rides a threaded rod that is the AZ adjustment. If you don't have access to or are not handy with tools, some hard setting epoxy would probably hold the bracket quite nicely.
Brian
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CPC 1100
Orion 120st
Milburn Wedge
QSI 520i
Meade DSI Pro
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astrovienna
super member
Reged: 12/04/06
Posts: 131
Loc: Vienna, VA
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Quote:
I've been using the HD wedge for a few years. It holds the scope + piggyback scope + camera + counterweights just fine. I do have the upgrade kit for it, which makes polar alignment pretty easy. I've even left it outside on a tripod and found it held its alignment perfectly. I tend to wonder if the HD wedge's detractors have ever used one. It's not as heavy as the other wedges, but we are talking about a telescope here; not a cannon.
I used the HD wedge on my Nexstar 8 GPS for a couple years, and when I went to a CPC1100 tried to use it. It was adequate for the 8", but the 11" is too much, even on my pier. The HD wedge wiggled like wild every time a breze came along or I changed a filter in my wheel. I Amarted up a Milburn, and it's like a rock in comparison. OTOH, it weighs a TON - if you setup and break down every night, it may eventually kill you, even if you don't drop it on yourself. 
- Kevin
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The Hole in the Trees Skybox
CPC1100 on a Milburn wedge
C8 Phoenix (1985 Super C8+ remounted on a Nexstar GPS fork)
Meade DSI II Pro
DMK 21AU04.AS
Edited by astrovienna (10/13/09 01:37 PM)
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nickatnight
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 04/14/08
Posts: 1751
Loc: Santa Clarita, CA (LA Suburbs)
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Hello. I have a Mitty wedge made for the CPC. (use it with my CPC925). Someone is continuing production of the Mitty wedges, including the one made for Celestrons. I picked one up at OPT near San Diego. It's rock solid. Not one complaint.
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nickatnight
Celestron CPC 9.25" GPS
Lumicon 2" LumiBrite Diagonal
Meade s5000 18mm UWA, Meade 6.7mm UWA,
Parks G.S-5 10mm, Celestrom 40mm Plossl
Parks 2x Barlow, Meade Tele-Extender
Celestron f6.3 Focal Reducer
Lumicon UHC Filter and Deep Sky Filter
Canon Rebel XTi (prime)
Canon Powershot G9 (afocal)
Canon EOS T-Ring and Parks T-Adapter
Lumicon Univ DigiCam Adapter
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Coco
Vendor (Orbit Engineering
Reged: 02/12/09
Posts: 21
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Quote:
Thks to all the orbit one looks great, Thks coco, but can I use a wedge if I can't see polaris?As I said I am not sure which model I have to choose, the fact that I am living in Cambodia reduce my choie.. Anyone can help me to select right angle for South East asia?
whoua 6 months for the Milburn.. and you need to modify the tripod um ..What about the latiwedge?
http://www.optcorp.com/product.aspx?pid=9121&tb=8&kw=wedge&st=2 It look likes for a fixed pier , am I right?
thks again to all!
Give Orbit an email and your coordinates. they will modify the Orbit wedge for you.
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CPC 800 XLT
Orbit Wedge www.orbit-engineering.co.uk
ZS66 APO
Astro track TX300
Modified 40D
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flymanwms
member
Reged: 07/06/07
Posts: 29
Loc: Mississippi
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I've also just recently purchased a Mitty wedge for CPC from OPT. It costs a couple of hundred more than a Milburn but I can't see anything else being any better. Rock solid with ultra-smooth adjustments. Even a newbie like myself assembled it together with no problems. It does make the tripod/wedge/telescope combo very heavy, though.
http://www.optcorp.com/product.aspx?pid=10826&kw=wedge&st=2#
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Celestron CPC1100
Mitty wedge (CPC)
Orion EON 80mm refractor
Hyperstar 2
Meade DSI II monochrome
Meade DSI color (one-shot)
Nikon D90
http://astrophotography.ezwebplans.net/
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flymanwms
member
Reged: 07/06/07
Posts: 29
Loc: Mississippi
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Here's a one-minute, unguided, non-processed exposure of M42 from last night with my CPC1100 & Mitty Wedge.
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Celestron CPC1100
Mitty wedge (CPC)
Orion EON 80mm refractor
Hyperstar 2
Meade DSI II monochrome
Meade DSI color (one-shot)
Nikon D90
http://astrophotography.ezwebplans.net/
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Rusty
Postmaster
Reged: 08/06/03
Posts: 17727
Loc: Brooker, FL
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I have the APT - also now extinct, and in the $1,000 range if you can find a dealer with one in stock - but it's an excellent product.
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N11GPS Fastar
TOA-130S
MK66 Std
Vintage C5
Megrez II 80mm ED Triplet APO
SolarMax 40
NJP Temma II
Sirius EQ-G
ST8XE/CFW-8(LRGBHa)/AO-7/DF-2/STV Dlx/ST237a/350D (Unmodded)/Mallincam Color Hyper Plus/DSI III Color/DSI II Pro
Two not-spoiled Golden Retrievers - Maggie and Casey
Sometimes I think we're alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we're not. In either case the idea is quite staggering. - Arthur C. Clarke
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Astro Sky
Vendor (Astro Sky)
Reged: 05/06/06
Posts: 240
Loc: Louisiana USA
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Had hard times find a Mitty or Milburn wedge.I gave up.
Decided to build my own pier without wedge.I use on my CPC1100 mount on. Save me big money not buy wedge. 
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b1gred
Enginerd
Reged: 04/01/04
Posts: 15711
Loc: Castle Rock, CO 6677' MSL
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That's some spiffy welding.
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"Dark Skies & Great Viewing"
RandyR / W0RDR
GPS 9.25 XLT/Sky Align /FeatherTouch
TV85 w/FeatherTouch
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antimorris
sage
Reged: 08/16/09
Posts: 245
Loc: San Antonio-ish, TX
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This might be a silly question (in fact I am sure it is, but I still have to ask) ... say I buy the Mitty Wedge from OPT linked a few comments ago. Does it come with screws of some fashion to put into the holes on the bottom of my CPC to mount it to the wedge? Also, the bottom is already drilled for the CPC tripod right (assuming I get the CPC version)? Thanks.
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Anna
CPC 800 XLT w/FeatherTouch micro-focuser
Orion EON 80ED
unmodded Nikon D40
Meade DSI II Pro with ATIK Filter Wheel & Outback Razorback Cooler
---------------
Morris Astronomy
My Astro Blog
"sic itur ad astra"
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flymanwms
member
Reged: 07/06/07
Posts: 29
Loc: Mississippi
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Yes and yes! It comes with a plate that connects to the tripod with 6 included bolts. The plate has pre-drilled holes which allow for these bolts to be counter sunk past the plates top surface. Once you have the wedge attached to this plate, there are 3 included bolts (each with two metal washers and one nylon washer) which will connect the CPC to the wedge.
If you take your scope on and off the wedge frequently like myself, here's the easiest way I've found to do it when alone. Loosen the RA clutch and rotate the scope until one of the underneath bolt holes is underneath where the control pad is located (in other words later when you're holding the scope up by its two handles and looking down at it the chosen underneath bolt hole would be in the 9 o'clock position). Re-tighten the clutch and then place the scope on the edge of a table or countertop overhanging just enough to be able to screw one bolt with the washers into your chosen bolt hole, but not overhanging enough to where the scope could fall. Insert this bolt with only a few full turns. Now pick up the scope and walk to your wedge approaching from the east side (assuming you're wedge is already pointed north). Now you should be able to rotate your scope clockwise in your hands, parallel the scope to the elevation plate, and carefully slide the partially inserted bolt into the acceptor slot on top of the elevation plate of the wedge. Now move the scope around until the other two holes and bolt holes line up. Insert the other two bolts fully and tighten up the first. [Reverse to take off]
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Celestron CPC1100
Mitty wedge (CPC)
Orion EON 80mm refractor
Hyperstar 2
Meade DSI II monochrome
Meade DSI color (one-shot)
Nikon D90
http://astrophotography.ezwebplans.net/
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rice224534
member
Reged: 06/29/08
Posts: 30
Loc: Tokyo
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The Mitty Wedge seems to be very stable and look nice. This wedge sold by OPT is for CPC. Is this compatible with NexStarGPS? I wonder if the CPC mount size or the screw/bolt positions on the tripod and mount do not completely agree with NexStarGPS.
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NS8GPS / Orbit Wedge
DSI Pro II / Outback Cooler Razorback
12.5" FRP Dob (Kasai Ninja-320)
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flymanwms
member
Reged: 07/06/07
Posts: 29
Loc: Mississippi
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I wouldn't know and I'm at work away from the wedge at the moment. It does have a variety of other pre-drilled holes in the elevation plate. I'll try to remember to take a picture of it next chance I get and post it here!
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Celestron CPC1100
Mitty wedge (CPC)
Orion EON 80mm refractor
Hyperstar 2
Meade DSI II monochrome
Meade DSI color (one-shot)
Nikon D90
http://astrophotography.ezwebplans.net/
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flymanwms
member
Reged: 07/06/07
Posts: 29
Loc: Mississippi
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Finally got around to the mount pic. I've added the three numbers which show where the CPC1100 mounts to. Hope this helps!
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Celestron CPC1100
Mitty wedge (CPC)
Orion EON 80mm refractor
Hyperstar 2
Meade DSI II monochrome
Meade DSI color (one-shot)
Nikon D90
http://astrophotography.ezwebplans.net/
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rice224534
member
Reged: 06/29/08
Posts: 30
Loc: Tokyo
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Very helpful! This base plate seems to be compatible with not only Celestron CPC and NXGPS but also Meade something scope.
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NS8GPS / Orbit Wedge
DSI Pro II / Outback Cooler Razorback
12.5" FRP Dob (Kasai Ninja-320)
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