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I find that basic polar alignment is best done by sight. I suggest you become familiar with the asterism around sigma Octans, and learn to recognise it in binoculars. With the mount roughly pointing south, stand behind it and sight this asterism with the binoculars. This will give you an idea as to which way the mount needs to move to align in azimuth. Shift by lifting the whole tripod or just use the adjusters. If you have already set the altitude by the scale, you may find that the south pole asterism is already in the polar scope (if fitted). Then make adjustments to zero in the alignment. Remember - accurate alignment is not necessary to enjoy good viewing and hold objects in the scope using the RA axis only!
As for the setting circles, if the mount is aligned with the SCP, the Dec circles will be accurate and ready to use. Just set the circle to the Dec of the object. To use the RA circle, first set the scope on a well known bright star. Take Canopus as an example. Once the mount is polar aligned and Canopus in the field of view, the Dec circle (which should be fixed on the EQ3) should read close to 52.7 degrees. The RA circle can read anything as it can slide around the axis and be locked. So to use the RA circle set this on the RA of Canopus - 6h 24m and lock it at this. Your mount is then set for the night. You can by knowing the RA and Dec of any object, be fairly sure of having it in the finder scope field.
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