I agree. The Meade "standard adjustable" field tripod has been a marathon runner when it comes to tripods. They are tough and very stable for their size. I would never replace steel legs with aluminum simply because steel is much stronger, dampens fast, and adds stability due to the weight being low in the center if gravity. As far as the struts go, cast aluminum is cast aluminum. And if you don't abuse it, it'll last a lifetime. Heck, I have 2 tripods I use all the time that are at least 20+ years old. No cracks, but plenty of battle scars!
I've had a few so-called "heavy-duty" tripods from Celestron. All but a few don't hold a candle to the Meade. One I had with a C-11 (older one) was very nice and was as good as the Meade.
The 2" SS tripod for the CG-5 is a very nice tripod for it's size, but it's a little small for my liking. But I would take it over any aluminum-legged tripod any day.

Just my

Jeff

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The Celestron mounts use a much better spreader design.

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Some may. That Meade tripod has in continuous service with some of the best-selling telescopes in the market for well over 20 years, beginning in 1980. There's no telling how many thousands of them are out there with very few failures. Celestron has produced a far smaller number of instruments and has changed their design every few years so a broad generalization is difficult.

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18" F/5 Home-Built Dob. with Mike Dudley Mirror
Highly Modified Meade DS-16 in Roll Off Roof
6" F/15 Brass w/ D&G Lens on DS-16 Mount
DS-10 10" F/4.5 Newtonian
LXD650, LX200 Classic
Orange Tube C11
DayStar 0.45 with multiple ERFs
Vixen ED80sf
10" LX200 GPS SMT
11x80 Meade, 20x80 Celestron binocs (Japan Made).
Lots of Naglers and 8mm and 13mm Ethos.
Gadgets and parts everywhere.
And a Wife that loves it as much as me!

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