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J S H
journeyman
Reged: 03/10/09
Loc: Colorado
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Need some help with new CGE mount
#2979679 - 03/12/09 01:25 PM
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Hello,
There seems to be some knowledgeable people on this forum, so I was hoping to find someone who might be able to help me solve a problem.
I recently upgraded from an older GP mount to a brand new CGE. The first thing I did was install the latest firmware updates to the Motor controls and hand control. Everything worked fine after the firmware updates, and I was able to do a 2 star align and polar align. the alignment provided good tracking for 1 minute exposures, and I was happy.
A few days later I moved my telescope back outside and started the alignment process again. I immediately noticed a problem - if the chosen star (in this case, Rigel) was west of the meridian, the mount would slew to the end of it's RA travel and stop. In order to center the star, I had to slew the mount all the way around to the other side of the meridian and center the star. When I tried to add another alignment star, the mount would then slew all the way back and still try to get to it from the west side. Of course, it couldn't, so then I had to slew the mount back to the other side and center the star. If the star was east of the meridian (for instance Sirius) it would find it just fine. No matter how many alignment stars I added, for any star west of the meridian, it always went to the end of it's RA travel and stopped. I finally gave up for the night and figured it must be a setting that I overlooked.
In the course of my investigation, I saw that the CGEM mount has a menu setting to tell it which side of the meridian to favor, but apparently this is not the case for the CGE mount, even with the new firmware.
I'm sure I'm missing something obvious, I just don't know what it is...
Thanks for any help,
Josh
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Alph
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 11/23/06
Loc: Melmac
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Re: Need some help with new CGE mount
[Re: J S H]
#2979818 - 03/12/09 02:50 PM
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Did you forget to switch to the daylight saving time?
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J S H
journeyman
Reged: 03/10/09
Loc: Colorado
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Re: Need some help with new CGE mount
[Re: Alph]
#2979820 - 03/12/09 02:53 PM
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No, That was my first thought, so I double-checked the time settings. I've gone through this routine twice in the last week, with the same results each time. I'm sure that I'm overlooking something simple...
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Alph
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 11/23/06
Loc: Melmac
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Re: Need some help with new CGE mount
[Re: J S H]
#2979843 - 03/12/09 03:12 PM
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Reset the HC to the factory defaults and choose alignment stars that are at least 1hr past the Meridian. You can do this test indoors.
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J S H
journeyman
Reged: 03/10/09
Loc: Colorado
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Re: Need some help with new CGE mount
[Re: Alph]
#2979850 - 03/12/09 03:15 PM
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Thanks, that's a good thought. I have not yet tried a factory defaults reset. I'll try that tonight and get back to you.
Josh
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David Pavlich
Transmographied
Reged: 05/18/05
Loc: Mandeville, LA USA
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Re: Need some help with new CGE mount
[Re: J S H]
#2980671 - 03/12/09 11:29 PM
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Quote:
Thanks, that's a good thought. I have not yet tried a factory defaults reset. I'll try that tonight and get back to you.
Josh
What Alph said. When I had a hiccup, that's the first thing I did. Then reset everything and start the alignment.
Question; Have you replaced the Dec axis cable with a Marty cable? If not, I HIGHLY recommend that you do so at youre earliest convenience. 90% of the problems with the CGE are due to the Dec axis cable.
I don't have the link for the cable, but if you do a search in the mount section under Marty cable, you'll probably find it. Very inexpensive. The huge advantage with this cable is its flexibility. It will keep stresses to a minimum on the Dec cable socket. The socket can be another point of aggravation. I had to replace that board on the last CGE I had.
David
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J S H
journeyman
Reged: 03/10/09
Loc: Colorado
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Re: Need some help with new CGE mount
[Re: David Pavlich]
#2980726 - 03/12/09 11:58 PM
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Yes, I have replaced the cables. I did some research before I even started to use the mount, and the new cables seemed like a good way to go, so I ordered them (certainly the cheapest astronomy related item I've ever purchased).
I think my problems are solved for the moment. I reset everything to factory settings and did an alignment indoors (it's snowing here), and everything seemed correct.
I won't know for sure until the weather clears, but it seemed promising.
Thanks to everyone for all the help...
Josh
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