Quote:

---

What seems to keep coming up in the research I have been doing is “Buy the best mount you can afford.” The Atlas is just that. I hope to grow with it into possibly a 120 apo at some point. If not I will still have a very stable mount on a pier. The Celestron Advanced GT does not have PEC. How important is that with this mount. It is one of my deciding factors.

---

Hi Perry,

You will get a lot of divergent opinions on the question of which mount. I think it boils down to a couple of things. What load will you be putting on the mount and what focal length are you going to be imaging at? The suggestion of a CG5-GT is very supportable if you will be carrying loads less than about 20-25 lbs and imaging at focal lengths under 1000mm. The physical length of the OTA is also a consideration. I use a CG5-GT with a 6" SCT and a 66mm APO as my main imaging scope. SEE HERE.

The point Al is making about costs is an important one as well. I have over $3000 worth of gear in my setup not including my DSLR and the notebook computer I use to run my autoguiding software (an additional $2800). Here's the list:

1. C6S-GT 6” SCT and CG5-GT mount $800.00
2. Telrad $40.00
3. Meade DSI Color CCD Camera $100.00
4. 2” Visual Back for SCT $40.00
5. 2” Diagonal $150.00
6. Astrozap Dew Shield $80.00
7. Dew Buster Dew Heater Controller $160.00
8. Telrad Dew Heater $25.00
9. Dual Dovetail Saddle Plate $140.00
10. Astro Tech AT66ED APO Refractor $340.00
11. William Optics 0.8 Field Flattener $150.00
12. Astro Tech 90mm Guide Rings $70.00
13. 12 Volt 33AH Battery $80.00
14. Mount AC Power Adapter $30.00
15. APO Dew Heater $40.00
16. Extra Mount Counterweight $30.00
17. Shoe String Astronomy GPUSB Cable $66.00
18. Battery connectors $15.00
19. Reticle Eyepiece $70.00
20. Stiletto Knife Edge Focuser $240.00
21. Canon AC Battery Adapter $80.00
22. Canon TC80N3 Remote Control $135.00
23. Images Plus Software $180.00
24. Guide to DSLR Astrophotography $40.00
25. Noel Carboni Astro Tools $20.00
26. Misc Cables & Adapters $100.00

Total $3,221.00

You may already have some of these items or can find less expensive ways to accomplish the tasks they perform, but I've found each item necessary for my own workflow. I bought my C6S-GT used.

The question of PEC is a good one. I don't have PEC on the CG5-GT, but I don't need it because I autoguide and I've been able to get excellent tracking up to 5 minutes at 320mm f/l(I haven't tried to go longer...no particular reason not to...just haven't). Unguided, I've only been able to go for 1 minute at 320mm f/l. The question for you is...are you planning on autoguiding? If you are then PEC is not that important. What is more important is to get a good polar alignment.

If you're planning on going with longer focal lengths above 1000mm and/or are going to use heavy OTA's than go for the Atlas. Otherwise, you might consider the CG5-GT as a starter setup to develop a work flow. All the gear I've purchased to support my astrophotography platform now can be transfered to a larger setup down the road should I choose to do longer focal length imaging.

Regards,

Patrick

--------------------


Discovery 10" f/6 Split Tube Dob
Celestron C6 SCT
Denk Binoviewers
AT66ED Refractor
Oberwerk Ultra 15x70 Binocular
475B Geared Tripod & 501HDV Head
Oberwerk 9x60 Binocular
Celestron Regal 8x42 Binocular
Canon 30D DSLR
Mini EQ1


My Astronomy Pages

Post Extras