Preparing for the arrival of an AP mount - any tips?

[Logieberra]

As the title states.

Any links to drivers, ASCOM stuff, power requirements for GTOCP3 etc?

Any other general, new starter advice to get up and running on arrival?

Cheers,

Logan

[RickS]

Lots of useful stuff here: http://www.astro-physics.com/index.htm?tech_support/tech_support

Also join up for the Yahoo ap-gto group.

Cheers,
Rick.

[Logieberra]

Thanks Ric

I'm already with the group. Lots of 'Park 4-type' talk, and a bit of impatience around APCC release etc.

How do you find the clutches? I hear that even in balance mode, there is still quite a bit of friction? Different to my MX.

Also, I keep reading that balance doesn't matter. The motors just power through?

Cheers.

[strongmanmike]

Niiiice, new mount hey? an AP too, can't go wrong :thumbsup: Which model and what's going on it...?

Mike

[RickS]

Logan,

Yes, there is a bit of friction with the clutches on my AP900 and it has increased over time. The clutch design is different on the AP1100 and AP1600 so YMMV.

Balance doesn't seem terribly critical. I'm several Kg over spec on the AP900 and it doesn't mind if the balance isn't perfect.

Cheers,
Rick.

[Logieberra]

Thanks Mike. I'm real excited.

AP1600GTO. Rated to 100KG, and that's conservative. I'll add the user installed homing/limit switches down the track, once available in kit form, and in years to come - the high res RESOLUTE encoders from Renishaw on both RA and Dec axis providing superb pointing, the option for unguided work and unbelievably smooth, straight-line PE, in the .1 to .2 realm.

TOA-150 on top, for now, until sold. After that? TBC. I'm building my setup from the ground up, starting with mount. Imaging is the long term goal.

Cheers.

[Logieberra]

See "Roland Christen's Sponsor Speech at AIC 2012" on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tuIDUm_IpU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
The sound is poor. Turn it up loud.

With the same motors as used on their big mumma 3600GTO El' Capitan, I'm all set!

[multiweb]

I'd get a lot of kleenex to wipe the drool in anticipation of delivery.

[leon]

I go with Marc, and make sure you have fun, lol.

Leon

[Logieberra]

Are APs water (drool) proof? I bet they are, being military grade and all that :)

[Logieberra]

Thanks Ric. Amazing amount of torque produced by those 13.8v motors!

[strongmanmike]

Oooooh a new, improved and beefed up AP1200 :eyepop: :prey2:

Will it be permanently mounted? I recon the illuminated right angled polar scope is a must have accessory, the polar scope in my NJP is amazingly accurate and is all I have ever used to get within 2' of the pole or better (enough for 10min unguided (http://www.pbase.com/strongmanmike2002/njp_unguided_exposures) at around 1200mm FL) in just minutes and I am sure the AP polar scope is just as accurate plus the much better viewing angle would make PA a breeze! Sure beats the complicated PA routines so many PME users seem to have to go through to get accurate PA :shrug:

Mike

[DavidTrap]

It'll just work. Nothing to worry about.

If you don't have a native serial port, I suggest keyspan adapters.

DT

[gregbradley]

Wow, an AP1600. Sounds awesome.

Can you post your impressions of the mount once you've used it a bit?

That's great there is an upgrade path. I like the sound of the encoders.

Greg.

[Logieberra]

During design and pre production, Roland wanted to see how much weigh he could put on the mount and still guide very accurately. Here's over 200 lbs (91kg) of equipment: 2 X 12" astrographs, a 7" refractor and a whole bunch of counter weights, whatever they could scrounge up. I count 11 of them! :eyepop:

[Logieberra]

Yeah, permanently mounted, but I've also got a 10" portable pier to suit.

The 'Sweet 16' replaces the venerable 1200. As he said in the vid, it had to come, to address the needs of users (like you) with very high-res imaging equipment.

Re PA, she comes with a software suite from Ray Gralak, Pempro2 etc. I think there is a neat little PA feature in that, to adjust PA in real time. Otherwise, the PA scope does look nice.

[Logieberra]

Thanks David. Got 2 of them handy. Software Bisque also recommend them for their mounts, from memory.

[strongmanmike]

If permanent then once aligned all is ok but of you want to go portable at any time (or just don't want to be stuffed with all the software palava) I can thoroughly recommend having a good accurate easy to access polar scope, makes PA very easy, fast and very accurate :thumbsup:

Mike

[Logieberra]

Will do Greg. Full pics n' vid.

FYI, the AP encoders can also be user installed, in kit form. That's what set this mount apart for me, from the SB ME2. You need to ship that mount back to SB in Colorado for factory install. Shame :(

[DavidTrap]

I did have an issue with mine parking in weird positions - turned out I was using an old version of the ASCOM driver. Not sure where I had downloaded it from, but the latest one works perfectly.

DT

[TR]

I have an AP mount. The thing just works. It is the only thing that never faults. When I take it bush, it takes about 20 min to get it spot on pole using PEM Pro - included. I do this a just before sunset, and finished before the guys can use their polar scopes. The trick is to get it within a few degrees of pole with a compass, and use Pem Pro to dial it in. Or, you can use the daytime alignment function explained in the manual. I use the Keyspan USB to serial adapters - they work perfectly.

Terry

[Geoff45]

Somewhere I read a statement by Roland that went something like "try for balance, but don't stress about getting it perfect"

Worst thing about an AP mount is that you get bored watching a flat line guiding graph. Doesn't provide the excitement my Losmandy G8 did.
Geoff

[Geoff45]

How much over spec Rick? I wanted to mount my Televue 101is and 12.5" Plane Wave side by side and George (from AP) suggested it wasn't a good idea. However, Roland didn't seem fussed about it when I raised the matter on the AP Yahoo forum.
Geoff

[RickS]

Geoff,

My Ceravolo/U16M set up weighs in around 37 Kg or so vs. the 31.8Kg capacity in the manual. I had to get a longer counterweight shaft and a few extra weights but the mount handles it with ease.

Cheers,
Rick.

[RB]

:lol:

[multiweb]

I can come and boot your pier on demand to keep the blood flowing. Or maybe you want to swap? You won't get bored. Guaranteed. :P

[Logieberra]

Followed Ric's advice and downloaded the 1600GTO manual. Just read the RA/Dec gear meshing chapter, if you could even call it a chapter! Essentially: loosen three screws, then tighten them. Wow!!! I love this mount already!!! :P

[Logieberra]

AP mounts seem to revolve around this central 'Park' concept. Can you demystify it? And what's this new Park 4? Coming from a MX, w' start up homing in both Dec and RA, software programmable park positions in SkyX, and very repeatable pointing night after night, I was spoilt...

Mainly, does starting from a pre existing AP park position guarantee the same superb, repeatable pointing; subject of course to underlying modeling, accurate site data, PA and all that, without the need to Recalibrate each time?

P.S. When the 1600 homing/limit switch system is available, I'll jump on that. For now, the 3600 H/L system gives a good indication of what it may include: http://www.astro-physics.com/products/mounts/3600gto/Limit-switches.pdf

[DavidTrap]

Essentially yes!

Once polar aligned and synced to the sky, I park the scope at night and the next night just unpark it and slew to the target. I don't bother with modeling as my setup is temporary - pointing is usually accurate enough for plate solving in Maxim with pinpoint LE. Accuracy after a meridian flip is obviously dependent on how orthogonal your OTA is to the RA axis.

I don't believe this sort of behaviour is exceptional when compared to other mounts, but it's definitely reliable.

DT

[Logieberra]

Terry, I look forward to using that Pempro2 PA feature. I think I read somewhere that it's like 'drift alignment on steroids!' It's a real time, on screen, iterative adjustment process isn't it? I'd like to use my STi if possible, via MMOAG pickoff prism.

[TR]

Yes, it's like a drift alignment on steroids. I made a cheat sheet of instructions located on my desktop that helps me dial it in quickly. It has stuff like to move mount west in Az, turn knob X. I also have what each graduation represents on the adjustment knobs. The exact measurements of what the short and long marks represent are in the AP manual. I have the same for Altitude adjustments, ie, to lower mount, turn Alt knob clockwise. Again, the graduations are in the manual. The graduations are so accurate, that if it says to move mount west 10 arc min in Azimuth, then I move it just short of the mark and measure again. I find that if I shoot for just 2 arc min short, the graph usually says, you need to move it another 2 arc min. I prefer not to overshoot. It only takes me a couple iterations to hit the mark. The cool part is one you hit 0 – and nothing moves, you are spot on pole. It’s a good feeling :)

A few tips, wait about two min to get an accurate measurement on the graph. Restrict your dancing around the mount with joy, because you will pick that up in the graph. Write stuff down and create a cheat sheet of instructions, so when you go remote, polar alignment is an easy 20 min job. I always have the camera in the same orientation on the scope for polar alignment. The calibration routine creates star trails at first to determine your camera angle and image scale. You can use these trails to determine if you are way off pole buy the orientation of the star trails across the frame. Consistency is good thing for this task. Once you have been through it a few times, it really doesn’t take long at all.
I use my STi as a guide camera, but with a small guide scope. Works well. Having a shutter on a guide scope is great.

Terry

[Logieberra]

Terry, it sounds fantastic. Drifting stars don't lie. Other software programs, with intricate PA routines, have so much going on in the background, that I'm often left wondering - can I really trust the software calculated PA recommendations...

Also, I'm guessing that your PA can be off by heaps with this program? You'll just see massive drift, in real time?

P.S. I'll look into the daytime routine, to bring it somewhere close to PA to begin with.

[DavidTrap]

Daytime routine is great to approximate altitude, but doesn't help with azimuth.

DT

[RickS]

I usually get a rough azimuth by pointing at the Sun and sighting down the outside of the scope (optics covered, of course...)

I used to use Pempro for polar alignment but these days I use PoleAlignMax which I find quicker. It uses plate solving and slewing to calculate the alignment error. The only thing I don't like about it is that it still points you at the J2000 pole so I have to use a spreadsheet to compensate.

[TR]

One word of caution, if you are too far off pole, wacky things will happen. To avoid this, I use a compass and take into account the magnetic offset to the pole. That way, I’m pretty close before I begin. Anything less than 5 degrees has worked well for me. Over 10 degrees and stuff just doesn’t seem to make sense. I line up on the pole and lay a piece of wood or alloy channel on the ground pointing to the pole before I move any big steel bits nearby. I can’t trust the compass once everything is around me. I then set up over the stick being careful not to bump it, and remove the wood after setup. From here, I check my GPS and set my alt angle with my tablet. Now you’re ready for twilight, just as you see the first stars visually. Pempro will lock on stars at this point, and you have a good starting position.

If you have a look in the manual, Roland (Mr. AP) uses the daytime alignment technique, and fine tunes with Pem Pro. Before PemPro, it was hard. Tried all the stuff everyone mentions in the forums. This method has worked for me. I think the main reason is knowing how to translate the graduations on the adjustment knobs to how far PemPro reports you are off pole. I tried it with a Vixen GPDP and it drove me nuts. Did not know how far to turn the Alt / Azimuth adjustments. I was always wrong and it was truly just a guess. Frustration would be an understatement. With the AP Mount, that all changed. It’s almost like it was made for it.

Terry

[PRejto]

I've used PEMpro to drift align my MX and it is a very nice aid. But to say one is "spot on the pole" is not exactly correct as there is no such thing. There are various "poles" depending on what one wants to do and where one images in the sky (refraction), etc. It seems that all polar alignment is a compromise.

Now, with my MX (perhaps partly because of the issue it had with the polar axis) I had various difficulties with the T-Point polar alignment recommendations.** But, suffice to say, if one is close enough to PA, T-Point will do the rest regarding tracking corrections and will deal with flexure and mount inaccuracies (if repeatable). Anyway, the critical thing is that once PA is set, and a T-Point model constructed it is not OK to move the PA unless one re-calibrates back into the model and reestablished the ME and MA terms. (To do that one re-calibrates as a portable mount even if the mount is permanently set up.)

What I like about the PEMpro routine is that it gives a no drift situation at and near Dec = 0 which may be in the region of the sky where one wants to image. I personally found it faster to use than T-Point (for PA) as it doesn't need multiple iterations. It seems to be a reasonable compromise for PA and a reasonable PA to start a large T-Point run from. This is what I've done. I just ignore the PA report from T-Point once I'm happy with the PEMpro result. The large T-Point run then will give terrific pointing and excellent tracking.

Logan, are you still intending to use TSX/T-Point with your AP mount or are you changing all?

Peter

** In my experience T-Point can give some vexing results if one's view is restricted east or west. Mine is very restricted to the east but unrestricted to the west. Even though I collected points on both sides of the meridian there were far more points to the west. This seemed to skew my PA recommendations strangely. If I restricted collection of points to be equidistant E and W of the meridian I ended up with a polar alignment that was pretty close to the PEMpro drift alignment. I'm sure there could be a multitude of factors at play here so it is difficult to draw a conclusion from this. I will just say that given my conditions, and my particular MX this is what worked best for me.

[Logieberra]

Thanks Peter.

After full on, high end robotic control of the MX via TSX and CPU, I'm interested in going back to basics for a season. The brains of the AP, the GTOCP3, are fully controllable from the supplied hand controller alone. It's a rugged unit, military spec and reaches deep into mount control settings, e.g. the user can turn PEC on or off from there.

I would also like to utilise the (free) AP software supplied with mount before returning to the SB subscriptions. I do love TSX, so we'll see how long that can last!

Oh, and the upcoming APCC, AP's equivalent of TSX which includes their take on Pro-Track, with large pointing models which correct for flexure, refraction etc. I'm pretty sure that's a paid add on.

We'll just have to see...

Like you, I'm just hanging out for mount arrival! ;)

[Logieberra]

Here, at 11:40 mins into the video they discuss the AP1600 encoders and a bit later they take a tour of APCC, if anyone is interested:

Watch "Astro-Physics at NEAF 2013 -- Sky & Telescope" on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qBMBqoh9WI4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[stevous67]

Hi Logan, just seen this thread. What a great purchase. I love the control functionality of the AP mount, and do you notice how many threads exists where AP users have problems? Nope, rarely see any. As for Terry's comments, the notches on RA / DEC adjustment knobs are for "Pemming" the mount in. Doing two mounts at once in the field as sun set approaches, we are normally are done before you can see the Octans (15-25mins for both, 1 arc min or less). By the way, this not done with the OAG, but your main camera.

Doing automation with the AP is also great, with it understanding all standard command instructions issued by executive program's like CCDAP. Meridian flips just happen when instructed, and thats just great.

You will love it.

Steve :thumbsup:

[PRejto]

Hi Logan,

Ah, you will have a lot to unlearn and learn. At least I have some consistent things between the software and mount (which I'm hoping to still receive this afternoon).

I happened to read this article today about a remote setup at Coona. with an AP mount. You might find it interesting (see #10) re some tracking issues relating to balance. The entire site is worth having a look around at and very good to get an overview of the difficulties of remote telescope control. PS I want that TEC180!

http://www.jadescope.com/Articles/Annual-Review-2012-Part-I/29451120_hhV32p

When do you expect your mount?

Peter

[Logieberra]

That's a solid write up.

The homing/limit switches which he refers to are an optional ad-on for the 1600. They're not available in kit form, yet, but when they are I'll jump on them. The precise homing of the SB mounts in RA and Dec was perhaps my favourite feature of the MX. Thankfully, the AP isn't too far behind.

Re balance, I've seen references to 'fish scales' on the AP GTO Yahoo Group. It threw me at first, but after reading the comments above re the friction in the newer mounts (namely, the 3600, 1600 and 1100), they sound like an invaluable (and cheap!) tool to find the balance sweet spot.

According to the AP website, 1600s will be available in February! I also note that the 1100s have been bumped back a few months to June. So delivery in early March for me, perhaps? Then the inevitable taxes/import duties... ouch!

I'll bookmark the site for future reference. Cheers.

[Logieberra]

Thanks Terry, I looked into this. According to the 1600 manual:

AZ
* One full turn of the azimuth knob is approx. 0.3733 degrees (22.4 arc mins)
* the small graduations are 0.74 arc mins and
* the long graduations are 3.7 arc mins.

ALT
* One full turn of the altitude knob is approx. 0.41 degrees (24.6 arc mins)
* one half turn of the altitude knob is approx. 0.205 degrees (12.3 arc mins) and
* one quarter turn of the altitude knob is approx. 0.1025 degrees (6.15 arc mins).

I'll keep these handy! Cheers.

[Logieberra]

Thanks Steve, I'm sure I will :)

Re Dec adjustments, are there notches with long and small graduations? I was under the impression that there's just a large, 4-way knob? The MX had graduations built into the dec knob. It was a beautiful thing and very precise-

[frolinmod]

Even the early Paramount mounts way back in the late 1990s had homing switches. Have A-P mounts not had them until now and if so, how did they ever get along without them? I find this difficult to believe.

[Logieberra]

Back to your comment Geoff, I've also seen Roland's advice on the AP GTO Yahoo Group that balance doesn't matter with an AP mount. Re the link that Peter provided and the 3600 user's tracking issues with an out-of-balance mount, it does seem strange for such a measly load (7" refractor + 8300cam) on such a whopping big mount! He must have been way out?

Any of you AP 1100, 1600 and 3600 guys employing the fish scales?

[Logieberra]

Frolimond, I'll have to defer to the long-term AP users on this. I'm very new to AP, and learning as I go.

[Marke]

Unless you physically move the mount against its clutches , it will always know where it is . Even if you turn the power off it automatically stores its last position and picks up where it left off.

[Logieberra]

Does anyone here understand how AP delivery timings work?

[Logieberra]

Not sure how you long-term AP waiting list refractor/RicHonders people do it!

[DJT]

My home made app for delivery of an -ap130 starfire.is 9 years, 15 weeks based on sign up date.

..get over it :P

[Logieberra]

:mad2:

I don't do patience very well. Must be a generational thing... :)

[niharika]

Nope, I was tempted but I don't see any issue with mine being roughly balanced by hand. May be it will perform worse if I balanced it properly :p. Honestly I think balance matters but the tolerance level is very high so unless you are trying to run in totally out of balance intentionally you should be fine.

Raki

[Logieberra]

1600GTO mount is shipping today! Looks like I'll have a nice toy to play with at the IIS Astro Camp! Yay :)

[Logieberra]

Thanks Raki. I did buy some cheapy digital fish scales off ebay, probably unnecessary, but for $8 shipped, why not :)

[Kunama]

Hey Logan, does this remind you of anything?

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

(Looking forward to seeing the AP at her berth)

[Logieberra]

Matt

Thanks for the offer to 'shore up' my pier with an extra weld (or two) before the arrival of my 1600GTO mount. As you can see, it hardly supports the colossal Mr Meow! During pier production, my father in law said something to the effect of, 'is that for the QE2?' I can't imagine why... :)

[strongmanmike]

Awesome pier, that ferocious cat may well make it sway a tad :question:... but I am sure the mount and scope won't :P

Mike

[Peter Ward]

My cat's called Caesar.....and I suspect jumping atop of a new pier is something cats can't resist....as he did the same with my PME pier while it was being installed and still not quite vertical...it was promptly dubbed " the leaning tower of Casear" :D

[Logieberra]

Thanks Mike, we designed the pier with larger mounts in mind, thankfully!

As for Meow, every observatory deserves a good cat :)

[Logieberra]

Amen. I'm preaching to the converted :)

[Gem]

Best tip would be to start doing all the work around the house so that your wife isn't annoyed when you spend all that time with the new mount/scope! :)

[Logieberra]

Grant, that's an excellent idea. Check. I've also cleaned the observatory.

On a sad note, we lost Mr Meow on Sunday morning. Two dogs mauled him at the front of our house. I'm real upset. A horrible way for my little mate to go :( I only mention it here, after my earlier posts regarding him :(

[Logieberra]

My mount & bits have arrived in Sydney.

FedEx brought the mount in country, and Emo Trans Australia are the domestic freight forwarding company on this occasion. They are arranging for a customs broker to clear the GST/duties on my behalf.

Not long now :)

[Logieberra]

For any potential AP mount owners following this thread, it goes without saying, but be sure to factor in BIG coin for tax disbursements on arrival in Sydney:

Case in point, for my 8 boxes @ 116KG:

-- clearance/brokerage fees: $99
-- import gst: $1,520
-- customs entry charge: $137
-- bank fees on disbursement: $8
-- merchant surcharge on credit card usage: $35

Hope this info helps with your future AP planning :)

[Logieberra]

The mount found its happy home :) Now I'm knackered. This is one big mount!

[Logieberra]

And a few more-

On the 2nd pic, a single counter-weight is almost too much for a measly 8" SCT! The mount screams for bigger scopes!

Thanks for the pics Dennis :)

[Joshua Bunn]

Congrats Logan, thanks for the pics. That is a beautiful piece of engineering. And yes... you need a bigger scope haha.

[PRejto]

Looking really great! Now get ready to really spend some $$$$$ on a "proper" scope.

Peter

[Marke]

Mate that is absolutely awesome grats again
It's bigger than I thought ! the c8 should make a good
finderscope now :P

[Logieberra]

Thanks guys, Marke in particular. Your AP MACH1GTO tour a few years back set this train in motion :)

Re the Meade 8". You've got it wrong. It's not a telescope. It's the AP's polar scope!

[WingnutR32]

Awesome photos, Logan. I was worried you were going to drop it in one of those photos!

[Logieberra]

You and me both. It's whopping big & bloody heavy! The 2nd pic (below) gives a good idea of scale.

[Logieberra]

Scopes come and go. I'm a mount guy :)

This one is available, here: http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=116061

[LewisM]

Damned thing wouldn't even know my Tak FSQ was there...

I knew they were big, but not THAT darned big! You need one of the special order 8" Tak fracs...

[Logieberra]

During a break in the clouds earlier this week I managed to collect some periodic error (PE) data.

AP warrants that their 1200/1600 sized mounts will be 5 arc-seconds peak-to-peak, or less, BEFORE any correction.

1st pic. My raw data. It looks like 1.6 peak-to-peak.

2nd pic. The correction curve that AP flashed into my mount before shipping.

3rd pic. Corrected PE? TBC...

N.B. I shoot from the suburbs, over rooftops and a main road.

[strongmanmike]

Wow Logan, great pictures, that's one big mount, looks very impressive and is sure to provide performance to match - as your PE curve suggests already :thumbsup: Loved the photo of you bear hug carrying the mount.. reminded me of my past (http://www.pbase.com/strongmanmike2002/image/68904452/original) An El Capitan 3600 would have been a cinch then :lol:

What scope do you plan on anyway?

Mike

[Logieberra]

Mike, I'm with you! Anything above an EQ6 mount does require some level of athleticism! These sorts of mounts aren't for the Mr Burns, 60mm refractor types out there :P

As for your '170kg Husafel Stone' weight class of mount, that would be an El Capitan at the bare minimum! More like a Planewave CDK700!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tasgpoUUa3c

[Logieberra]

Hey guys, another positive AP experience to share. Here's my guide graph. It's a 5 min guided exposure @ image scale of 1.419 arc-sec/pixel. Again, I've got dodgy seeing from the Canberra burbs :)

[Joshua Bunn]

Guide graph? :)

[Logieberra]

Graphed.

With errors bouncing between +0.2 and -0.2 of a pixel on both x and y, with my image scale @ 1.419 arc-sec/pixel, would this equate to an error in x and y of around +0.28 and -0.28 arc-sec/pixel?

[Joshua Bunn]

It would equate to around +0.28 and -0.28 arc-sec, not +0.28 and -0.28 arc-sec/pixel. smooth tracking :)

[Logieberra]

Here's a YouTube video that I put together to capture the excitement around the arrival of my AP. I hope you enjoy it :) Watch "Astro-Physics 1600GTO German Equatorial Telescope Mount": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoCfxMawBAA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[Marke]

You dont need fancy software or gimmicks when its engineered to perfection :D:D

[Logieberra]

Ah, there he is. I have you to blame for this AP fascination! It all started after seeing that lovely MACH1GTO of yours a few years back :)

[strongmanmike]

He he nice :thumbsup:

[Joshua Bunn]

Cool Video Logan, Thanks for posting it. The mount tracks like a gem.

[Logieberra]

I picked up a lovely, used AP Portable Pier this weekend from nickb00 in Geelong, Victoria. The optional shelves are a great feature. I'm all set for darker skies, but I'm not sure that I want to part with near-perfect polar alignment! :mad2:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNSb4VPPZ0s&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[strongmanmike]

Wow man, you are amasing a great kit :thumbsup:

Mike

[niharika]

The turn buckles allow few degree of level adjustment and this feature is not very evident from online specification. I know a few individuals including me were very reluctant to get a portable pier which can't be leveled on a slight slope. I can assure this pier works perfectly alright on a reasonably uneven field.