astro tech alt/az

[roccodm]

i have been looking at the astro tech alt az mount which has recenlty become available - it says it is rated to 20lbs i am considering it for my AR5 weighs 15 lbs - i like the slow motion controls on this mount - has anyone tried a refractor similar in length and weight to the AR5 with this mount- clear skies rocco WB9QPU

[Starkler]

I believe you are talking about the GSO alt azimuth mount?

I had a look at one at Bintel the other day. Whilst heavier duty than the porta mount its simply not high enough to use with a refractor as the eyepiece height at zenith has one nearly sitting on the ground. It would be fine for a mak or small sct.

Another example of what could have been a decent product let down by a simple design mistake.

[roccodm]

thanks for the info stark- i really would like to get the AR5 on an alt az mount as i want to put an 8in ota on the lxd55 mount- i guess i will look around for something used since i dont wont to spend a lot of money on the alt az mount- there is a fella here in the states that makes a nice looking custom mount (wooden ) for about 385 including the plate but no slow motion controls-clear skies rocco WB9QPU

[Starkler]

Thats the frustrating thing. For a reasonable sum you could buy a complete HEQ5 eq mount to carry your scope, which is orders of magnitude more complex than an alt-az mount, yet you cannot buy the same load carrying capacity in an alt-az mount for a similar price.