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Hi Hemi,
I’m a retired newbie , only had my HEQ5 Pro with a 6” newt 6 months and can get my PA error down to 12 arc seconds on my Synscan handcontroller after 4 or 5 iterations ( half an hour to an hour ) and only do a 2 Star alignment , you don’t need 3 Star it’s all in what’s Stars you select inside the same side of the meridian. My mount always ends up within cooee of the object through the finder.I do both visual and astrophotography
To find true south or SCP I ditched my expensive Silva compass and used the good ol’ Sun ( solar noon meridian method ) never fails and gets me very close to SCP meridian line ( I can post a separate procedure if you are interested , costs $10 and takes 10 minutes )
Then level the mount using a good Stanley boat type bubble level ( I have a digital inclinometer but only use it for altitude setting on the mount , I found better results using the bubble level )
Balance the mount in both axis
Power up, enter data in Synscan, 2 star align and PA align using the Synscan PA routine as I have no view of SCP ( I use an Orion 20mm 70deg illuminated reticle eye piece with a 2.5 x Televue powermate and defocus the Star into a small donut for really good accuracy) I have tried drift aligning but it takes so long and you have a limited selection of stars near the meridian and celestial equator, I get quicker a better results using the Synscan PA routine. Eventually I will PA on my laptop
Anyway clear skies and good luck ( it’s never easy but eventually you nail it )
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