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Subject: Re: vote by tbonanno By: Anonymous (xxx.xxx.143.177) Date: 06/02/2004 06:11:49 am PST >I bought this mount in early November, 2003, to replace a Meade LXD55 mount which was junk. The AS-GT mount does the job right out of the box. The only real issues I've had with it was re-adjusting the worm gears and moving the mounting peg on the base to a different hole so that the counterweight is over a tripod leg for greater stability. I found that the NexStar Hand Controller software does some weird things once in awhile, but overall works pretty well. I'm concerned that the firmware is not upgradeable by the user like the Meade AutoStar. I think that was a big mistake on Celestron's part, but time will tell. Also, don't waste your money on Celestron's polar scope or their GPS add-on. The GPS add-on doesn't interface with this model (at least not as of this writing) and the polar scope is junk and not worth the effort. Fortunately, most users of this mount find the polar scope is not needed. Just eyeballing polaris through the RA axis bore works fine for good GOTO's and there is also a polar align utility in the Hand Controller that seems to work pretty well if you want to improve tracking. > >This mount appears to be a "synta" chinese CG-5 that has a significantly upgraded tripod base and tripod (2" tubular steel legs) which results in excellent stability. Celestron seems to have also upgraded the specs in other regards, especially the GOTO motors, encoders, etc. I think Celestron got this mount RIGHT, probably knowing full well the disaster that Meade was having with their LXD55 mount. The unit seems to work well in cold weather as long as your power source is up to par. I use a 7 amp/hr battery pack. The mount does not come with any battery pack, only a 12V cigarette lighter type power cord. The lubricant on the bearings looks to be a conventional, good quality grease, not the "glue" that plagued older CG-5 mounts. > >I've found that the mount performs very well whether using my 22 lb. 6" mak-newt or my 12.5 lb. 6" mak-cass. Dampening times are incredibly fast for a mount in this price range - usually between 1 and 2 seconds with either of my mak OTA's. Focusing is "jiggle free". The mount appears to track well, at least for visual use (I've not tried to do any imaging). The mount does have an autoguider port and it will be interesting to see how it works for astro-imagers. > >Each time I've set this mount up, the GOTO electronics has always put the target in the FOV of a 60x eyepiece. For the price, I'm not sure there is anything else on the market that gives you the combination of a stable, solid platform for OTA's up to 25lbs, good GOTO performance, reasonable portability, and a two year warranty. The fit, finish, and materials are not in the Losmandy class, but overall, an excellent value. > >Tony Bonanno Tony I bought this mount some months ago and agree with you this is an all around good mount, with good goto abilities.I love using it with my TV102(they seem to be made for each other). I have an eight inch F4.5 Cave, but with the extra 21Lbs of counter weights needed I feel it is to much for the mount.I stick with the Teleview and always have a good time!I contacted Celestron about the GPS problem . They told me to use a 6 prong line splitter, that you would use on a high speed conection not a 4 for a phone. IT WORKS!!! I have GPS now all I need do is align three stars. There is one ceveat,when going to an object north of the zenith you must watch that the declination housing does not hit the line splitter. I have also found that Orions polar scope fits #7330 in their catalog. AS you said it is not necessary. John Kenney Page 1 of 1 | ||||||||
