HEQ5Pro Mount

[Misplaced]

Hi All,

I am due to get my scope and mount tomorrow and I was wondering whether anyone has any good tips/links on setting up the mount correctly. I have had a scan around the net and found a few posts on the trials and tribulations of setting up the mount but alot seem to be for the Northern Hemisphere and are quite old. So any tips for the Southern Hemisphere would be appreciated.

Mis

PS - once aligned do you have to do it each time?

[astro744]

Each time you move it you will have to re-align. Most critical for astro-photo, less so for visual. Once aligned put some markers on the ground where the feet are and it makes it easier.

See http://www.ozscopes.com.au/How-to-Polar-Align-Equatorial-Mount-Southern-Hemisphere

Just search for "how to polar align an equatorial mount in the southern hemisphere".

[christian.ckr]

I am still fairly new to this but I found the best way to learn is to find someone who can help you use the polar scope, to show you exactly what you need to look for. I struggled with tutorials online and one night at the observatory someone showed me the trapezium which includes Polaris Australis and I have not struggled to polar align since. I know drift alignment etc makes it more accurate but when you first start out you won't be aiming for 5 minute subs anyway..

[Mark_Heli]

Hi Craig,

For drift alignment, there is a good simulator at the following site

http://astrophotographyonabudget.blogspot. co.uk/p/drift-alignment.html

I think is geared towards the northern hemisphere, but is it a good way to practice drift alignment on your computer.

Cheers,
Mark

[Camelopardalis]

First things first...Don't Panic :)

The first time I setup my EQ6 I pointed it the wrong way :lol:

But seriously, it might seem hard the first time you do it, but with practice it will become easier.

Much of the talk from the Northern Hemisphere about setting it up will hold true, with the exception of seeing Polaris through the polar scope, and that you need to point it south rather than north. Polaris was a big help when I lived up north, when I first got my mount, but since I've been here I've not looked through the polar scope once. The stars in Octans are too faint to see through it with my eyes.

So I start off by using a compass to point the tripod south, the side with the peg should be south. Remember that magnetic south and true south are not the same, so be sure to compensate for this - I use an app on my phone, for better or worse!
I moved the peg from the factory position to the side over the leg to make it easier to point. Then level the tripod well, keeping in mind this may alter the direction slightly...so to minimise this I start off with the legs extended so that the top of the tripod is level by eye, and then orient south. If you have a bubble level on the mount, don't trust it. Use a proper level.

Once the tripod is level and fairly accurately pointing south, put the mount on the tripod and secure it with the vertical bolt underneath. Familiarise yourself with how the altitude and azimuth bolts work in daylight. The latitude scale on the mount may or may not be close to reality...mine is at least half a degree out, but lacks resolution to be useful. I use another app on my phone that acts as an inclinometer, but a physical one would work at least as good. With the counterweight bar extended, use the inclinometer to measure (from the vertical) and adjust your altitude bolts to match your latitude.

With the altitude and azimuth bolts secured, ensure all the clutch levers are tight and add your counterweights. Make sure you do this before you add your scope! Double check the clutches are secured before adding your scope. Then slide the dovetail rail of your scope into the puck and secure it.

It's then important to balance your scope, but there's no easy way to do this other than trial and error. The important thing to remember here is NEVER release a clutch without having hold of your scope with the other hand (or another person even)... Otherwise your precious scope could swing around and crash into the tripod or worse. Add the accessories you think you will use to the scope, such as a diagonal and an average weighted eyepiece, a dew shield if you will use one (SCTs especially).

Start off by balancing in RA... RA is the direction where the chunky bit of the mount moves. Declination is the direction where only the puck (and a scope when on it) spins.
So grab hold of your scope, release the RA clutch and swing around by 90 degrees so that the counterweight bar is more or less level. Get a feel for which end is heavier, the scope end or the counterweight end. If it is scope heavy, secure the clutch(!) and then move the counterweight away from the scope a little more. Release the clutch and check the balance again. When checking balance, start off from the level, but also rotate away from level so the counterweights go lower, towards the ground. A balance point is where a nudge of the scope (or counterweight) results in movement followed by coming to rest quickly, and not being drawn one way or another by gravity.

With the scope balanced in RA, you can now balance in Dec. This is a little more tricky. With the counterweight bar at the level (like above), grab your scope and release the Dec clutch. If it is not balanced, you will immediately feel it pull in one direction or another. To balance it in Dec you will need to move it in the puck. I'm not very brave when it comes to this, so I secure the Dec clutch and return RA to the home position before attempting to release the puck and slide the scope. If the scope was front heavy, move it back slightly. If it was back heavy, move it forward slightly. Then move RA back to where the counterweight is level (secure the clutch) and then grab your scope and release the Dec clutch and see what happens. Then repeat the process until you are balanced in Dec.

Balancing your scope in Declination will depend on how the weight is distributed in the scope...for example, a refractor can be fairly evenly distributed or even front heavy, whereas an SCT or Newtonian are usually back heavy.

Having balanced in Dec, go back and check you still have balance in RA and adjust as necessary, as it may have changed.

That's pretty much all you can do in daylight, but do familiarise yourself with the clutches and bolts as you will most likely need to adjust the bolts in the dark. Actually, another thing you can do in daylight (although I would suggest you do this after sunset, and not pointing near any reflective surfaces such as windows...) is to align your finder scope and the main scope. Aim at a distant object and ensure they are aligned as the more accurately this is done the less pain you will feel when you are doing your star alignment in the dark...

Anyhow, that's how I setup my mount, but I'm sure other folk will have suggestions as to how to improve your (and my!) mount setup.

[Camelopardalis]

When it comes to polar alignment...for visual, so long as your mount is pointing more or less south as above, Synscan will calculate your mount polar alignment error during your star alignment and compensate for it. If an object doesn't seem to be in the FOV, use your finder scope (that you aligned earlier) and use the direction controls on the handset accordingly.

In the latest Synscan software versions there is even a polar alignment routine, that you can activate following a 2-star alignment, and it will guide you through adjusting your mount to be more accurately polar aligned. It's worth doing, and it gives you good experience with adjusting your mount bolts and seeing what difference it makes.

Unfortunately, unless you have an observatory and can leave your mount setup permanently, you will need to setup and takedown every time. However, it does get easier! There are little tricks you can do...for example, once your scope is balanced, use a marker pen to put a line on the scope dovetail so you know where the Dec balance point is, likewise with the counterweight on the counterweight bar, so you know where your RA balance point is. This only works with the same scope, accessories, etc, but you get the idea. It will take a long time the first time you do it, but it gets easier and quicker with practice :)

[Amaranthus]

Still a Northerner at heart, eh Dunk?

[Camelopardalis]

I'm easy, but my mount clearly knew all along that it wanted to be down here :lol:

[madwayne]

Dunk's reply is spot on. Exactly what I do. Dunk's advice is also spot on, be very patient and learn from any mistakes you make. I would also suggest having a note pad and pen handy and make some notes on what you did right and also what you did wrong. Next time out aligning you have some reference material that may just help.

Now for a war story, one of my first polar alignments I didn't even have the tracking set to sidereal. 4 hours later a mate walked past and said is your mount tracking? I can't hear the woosh woosh an EQ6 makes when it is tracking. And that was at SPSP a few years ago :rofl:.

I'd like to think I can move my gear to a completely different site and be imaging prior to twilight ending, and that is with drift alignment none of this fancy smanshy software ;).

Enjoy yourself and please post back how get on. If I lived closer I would come and help.

Wayne

[glend]

I agree the Synscan upgrade software (V3.35) is worth downloading to get the polar alignment routine, it has really helped me get my NEQ6 alignment tuned correctly.

[raymo]

One little thing to add to Dunk's reply. I find the P.A. feature much easier
to use than the polar scope, mainly because I'm old, and have trouble
getting down on my knees, but apart from that, you need to know that the error figures that Synscan shows you after doing a 2 or 3 star alignment are not the error, but the adjustments that you have to make
to correct the error.For example, if it shows Elevation + 3degrees, you
have to raise the altitutude by that amount.
raymo

[Camelopardalis]

Dunno about your age raymo, but I have trouble getting down to the polar scope :lol: I'm convinced you need to be a contortionist to be able to use it :help:

Which raises another interesting point...height. It largely depends on what scope you intend to be mounting on it, but even with something short like a SCT I found the first time I used it I was "unprepared" for the positions the eyepiece would end up in. Everything I'd read said the lower the better for stability, but I just found it impossible to get down to some of the positions comfortably.

[raymo]

Hi Dunk, You are fortunate; having an SCT on your HEQ5, you don't have to worry as much about stability as I do with my Newt. I have mine fully extended when using my 80mm on it's own, and it's steady as a rock.
The HEQ5 is a solid mount; I think you will be able to extend it enough
for your needs. Try it and see.
cheers raymo

[Misplaced]

Hey Dunk thanks for the comprehensive reply it is appreciated and I will be giving it a go tomorrow. The scope and mount are setup in the house at the moment and they look impressive.

Raymo as usual good advice and thanks.

Wayne that was a very kind thing to say.....and I wish you did live closer!

Well hopefully it will be clear skies over the weekend and I can get to use it.

[Camelopardalis]

Well, it didn't seem fortunate the first time I tried balancing it :lol: all the weight is at the back and once I added my diagonal and a nice eyepiece...it made finding the sweet spot harder :sadeyes: but I see what you mean, it does focus the majority of the weight pretty much on the puck rather than away from it which acts as leverage. I don't imagine I'd have any hair left if I tried a newt...

Anyhow, I'm told that balancing so the system is slightly west heavy is better for tracking, rather than being too well balanced. I haven't had a chance to put it to the test yet, just cloud and rain here today!

[Camelopardalis]

Excellent! What scope did you get for your HEQ5?

[Misplaced]

I got a Bintel 8" Newtonian reflector.

Where you mention a peg.....is that the 'sticking up bit' on the tripod? And what is the puck?

Sorry for my ignorance.

[Camelopardalis]

Yeah the peg is the sticking up bit. There should be a nut at its base. The azimuth bolts (on the bottom of the mount, that look like they oppose each other) push against this for adjustment, so loosen those on the mount before trying to stick it on top.

The puck is the bit at the top that accepts and clamps onto your dovetail.

Nice scope btw :)

[Misplaced]

Okay.....tonight has not been very successful!

Firstly, I got the scope setup and connected the Synscan and all was fine. Went into 3 star setup and selected a star and the scope moved beautifully to the region of where the star was. I then try and position the star into the centre of the finder but the Synscan doesn't move when using the directional arrows. So I try again and the same problem!!! Does anyone have any ideas why?

Anyway, I decide to have a look at the moon without using the Synscan. Now I am partially sighted in my right eye so it was a little difficult lining up the moon in the centre of the finder., but, I did managed it. Now is it me but should I see more detail than just a bright glow? Basically, all I saw was a larger moon than you would with the naked eye!!

I know I am probably coming across as a complete idiot but I thought that with a 8" Reflector I would see a bit more detail such as craters.....not in fantastic detail but so you could make them out.

Any help with this guys would be appreciated? I think I need to get to my local club or find someone who has a spare hour or two on an evening to take me through it and see what I am doing wrong.

Cheers,

Mis

[Kunama]

Hi Craig, if you select a faster slewing rate it will get there.
When you press the arrows it is probably moving but as it defaults to 2x sidereal it will be hardly noticeable. Press 'rate' then '6' and it will slew faster.

Sounds like it is not focused if you're just getting a glowing ball. You should definitely see craters etc.
Whereabouts in Canberra are you, I am in Garran and can drop by one evening next week.

[Steffen]

Yes, an 8" scope will show a lot of exquisite detail on the Moon.

However, I believe you bought an imaging Newt, so you may not be getting focus without an extension tube. A 35mm or 50mm one should do the trick. In the meantime, try to rack out the focuser all the way, and then the eyepiece out of the focuser tube as far as it goes (without dropping it!).

Cheers
Steffen.

[Misplaced]

Matt - Just found that after an internet search about increasing the slewing rate.....should read the guide properly:(

I'll try again tomorrow night.

I'm in Amaroo and that is a very kind offer which i would like to take you up on. Whatever day is best for you I will fit in with.



I did try putting a Barlow Lens in but that didn't do it either :( It could be my eyesight but my lad tried as well and didn't have much joy either.

So I tomorrow night I will try again with what you have suggested Steffen and report back.

[Kunama]

Craig, check your PMs.

[Misplaced]

A big thank you Kunama for coming round and sorting me out! I am truly astounded at the kindness of some people and Kunama you are one of the best.

Another couple of hours tomorrow night I should be getting a bit more savvy!

Mis

[Kunama]

:ashamed: Now you're making me blush :ashamed:

Here is what you will need to order:
http://www.bintel.com.au/Accessories/Extension-Tubes/Bintel-Extension-Tube-35mm--2--/414/productview.aspx
No rush with my visual back. Enjoy the views :thumbsup:

[Misplaced]

Well would you Adam and Eve it I was going through all the stuff that came with the scope and mount and what would be in there a 35mm extension tube!!

Let me know when I can get yours back to you Matt and I shall deliver hanging my head in shame!

Mis