Hi all,
Thought I'd share my own CPC 1100 mount single arm mod after being so suitably inspired by Tony's (casstony) work! Thanks mate
The arm that is removed from the mount contains no motors, but it does hold the GPS antenna. If you want to keep the GPS capability of the mount, of course you need to keep the receiver. Where my mod differs from Tony's is the case I made to house the receiver is made out of 15mm marine grade ply and shaped to simulate the profile of the arm's coupling face. I also made the plywood box so massive/stout/strong in order for it to act as a "handle", or a point on which I can hold the mount, and because the mount weighs close to 20kg, this box needs to be sturdy in order to deal with the load. When carrying the mount, this "stump" is really practical!
,
The clamp is a dual Losmandy/Vixen clamp that comes from Astroshop in Queensland. Another difference between my mod and Tony's is I only used two M6 bolts on the outer edge of the clamp, and did not use the M5 threads that are machined into the crappy aluminium casting that is the coupling surface of the mount - cast aluminium is brittle so careful consideration of its mechanical properties need to be considered. These M5 threads provide nothing structural to the mount, and the threads cut into this cast aluminium is not strong enough to be loaded & trusted with an expensive scope. These M5 bolts if used exclusively, would also flex when loaded with a hefty scope - not good for mount accuracy or scope over time! If you do contemplate a similar mod, YOU NEED TO ALSO USE THESE M6 BOLTS! Do not only use the M5 holes! The M6 stainless steel bolts held by nuts provide all the structural capacity needed. This anodized clamp also doesn't bind with the dovetail plate, which makes shifting the scope so much easier when doing small position adjustments when balancing the scope in the clamp. Painted/powder coated clamps and dovetails are a real pain in the neck!
The main reason why I got this CPC 1100 fork mount was to carry my Intes 715 Deluxe Mak. The forks of the 8" and 9.25 SCT's do not provide the necessary clearance with a balanced scope using either a 1.25" diagonal or 2" diagonal. Also, this Maksutov is a heavy bugger, 9kg, and that's without finder, diagonal or EP, so it also needs a suitably strong mount. I certainly have the necessary clearance & muscle now!
,
,
,
I'm very happy with the result. The mount works really well and I have a very easy mount to set up and use, especially for my lunar and planetary sketching - the NEQ6 mount I have is not the nicest thing to use with sketching.
Thanks again Tony for your inspirational work.
Cheers,
Alex.