I have a TV-85 and a Televue panoramic mount. I am thinking about getting a good tracking mount. Orion has some that seem real reasonable. The Polaris seems to be a favorite but its like 10 times the price. Is it worth it? Any suggestions on other mounts that track for photography?
Bill
Mount
Started by
Guest_**DONOTDELETE**_*
, Nov 02 2003 02:28 PM
6 replies to this topic
#2
Guest_**DONOTDELETE**_*
Guest_**DONOTDELETE**_*
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topic starter
Posted 03 November 2003 - 01:11 AM
I just got my second Vixen mount. Love it. I have a Custom-D alt/az and now a GP mount (yes, the mount cost more than my Mak). Losmandy mounts are also highly regarded. A lot of people use CG-5s with various labels. I don't know how well they'd do for photography, but they seem to be okay for visual work. However, a friend's CG-5 mount has gotten so sloppy that it won't track well for visual work anymore either. There are pages devoted to CG-5 repairs.
The Orion mounts are, I believe, Chinese sourced, as are the CG-5s. If I was to go with an Orion mount, I'd probably get the SkyView Pro since the steel tripod would be much nicer than the aluminium tripod of the AstroView, and I believe the head is more robust as well. This was one of the mounts I considered. I also considered the Atlas mount before I got my Vixen, but I thought it would be SERIOUS overkill for my Mak (and I wasn't too keen on built-in motors).
The SkyView pro looks a lot like the new Advanced Series CG-5, which, with the CG-5, is more or less a copy of the Vixen GP. I believe the Vixen uses ball bearings while the copies use bushings, and there are other detail differences that may affect performance/durability.
I actually use Celestron motors on my Vixen as they were several hundred dollars cheaper, though they only go up to 8x tracking rate. I do major motions by unlocking the clutches and slewing by hand, and fine control with the slo-mos. I only use the drive corrector for tracking and fine centering. Doing a quick polar alignment with the included polar alignment scope and illuminator is fairly easy, and it will track objects for hours with only very minor recentering. I will say I'm not disappointed with the GP.
Figure $329 for the SkyView, plus $100 for dual-axis drive corrector, plus $50 for a polar alignment scope, $30-$50 for an illuminator, and your at about $529. That's against $800 for a GP on a good aluminium tripod, plus $100 for motors. Less than twice as much. Is it twice as good? Probably not, unless you are doing long-duration photography, and then the GP is considered by many to be the minimum.
Warpd
The Orion mounts are, I believe, Chinese sourced, as are the CG-5s. If I was to go with an Orion mount, I'd probably get the SkyView Pro since the steel tripod would be much nicer than the aluminium tripod of the AstroView, and I believe the head is more robust as well. This was one of the mounts I considered. I also considered the Atlas mount before I got my Vixen, but I thought it would be SERIOUS overkill for my Mak (and I wasn't too keen on built-in motors).
The SkyView pro looks a lot like the new Advanced Series CG-5, which, with the CG-5, is more or less a copy of the Vixen GP. I believe the Vixen uses ball bearings while the copies use bushings, and there are other detail differences that may affect performance/durability.
I actually use Celestron motors on my Vixen as they were several hundred dollars cheaper, though they only go up to 8x tracking rate. I do major motions by unlocking the clutches and slewing by hand, and fine control with the slo-mos. I only use the drive corrector for tracking and fine centering. Doing a quick polar alignment with the included polar alignment scope and illuminator is fairly easy, and it will track objects for hours with only very minor recentering. I will say I'm not disappointed with the GP.
Figure $329 for the SkyView, plus $100 for dual-axis drive corrector, plus $50 for a polar alignment scope, $30-$50 for an illuminator, and your at about $529. That's against $800 for a GP on a good aluminium tripod, plus $100 for motors. Less than twice as much. Is it twice as good? Probably not, unless you are doing long-duration photography, and then the GP is considered by many to be the minimum.
Warpd
#3
Bill Grass
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Prince Regent
Posted 03 November 2003 - 10:10 AM
I have the SkyView Pro mount, and I highly recommend it. If I could afford a GP or a Losmandy mount, I wouldn't hesitate to buy one of those. However, for the price, the SkyView Pro mount is hard to beat! It's really a solid piece of equipment. Vibrations dampen in a second or less on my unit, even at 150-200x. I bought the dual axis drive for it, and that made me notice that the declination axis had a very slight amount of play in it. I was able to remove the slack, and now there's no play in it. However, it still takes a couple of seconds for the motors to engage the gears when slewing. But this is a pretty minor annoyance for me. When using the slow motion knobs, everything works perfectly.
Good luck with your decision!
Good luck with your decision!
#4
Trever
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Gemini
Posted 03 November 2003 - 10:45 AM
I dunno..I figure if I paid 529 for the Skyview pro maxed out with drives and polar scope. I would wait until i saves 799 and buy the Atlas from Orion. It already comes with dual axis drives, polar scope, and 2 11 lb weights and will support a 50lb OTA... But that may be overkill depending on your OTA.
#5
jrcrilly
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Refractor wienie no more
Posted 03 November 2003 - 12:31 PM
Hi, Trever.
I suppose it depends on future plans. That Atlas mount is a heavy bugger to set up if you don't need the extra capacity. That's the only reason I let mine go.
I suppose it depends on future plans. That Atlas mount is a heavy bugger to set up if you don't need the extra capacity. That's the only reason I let mine go.
#6
Trever
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Gemini
Posted 03 November 2003 - 01:48 PM
Thats true. I need something like the Atlas for mine but it will be awhile before I can afford one. I will probably upgrade to a astrosky pier with my CG5...
#7
Guest_**DONOTDELETE**_*
Guest_**DONOTDELETE**_*
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topic starter
Posted 06 November 2003 - 06:19 PM
Hi All. I've been visiting this site for a while but this is my first post.
I am interested in buying the GP. I already own the Astroview and was wondering if it would be possible to attach the GP mount to the Astroview Tripod. My plan is to buy or make wooden legs in the future and would like to save the expense of the AL150 for now.
Your comments are appreciated.
Regards,
Sam
Borg 100Ach, 76ED
I am interested in buying the GP. I already own the Astroview and was wondering if it would be possible to attach the GP mount to the Astroview Tripod. My plan is to buy or make wooden legs in the future and would like to save the expense of the AL150 for now.
Your comments are appreciated.
Regards,
Sam
Borg 100Ach, 76ED
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