Star Discovery Pro mount..

[dbowie]

Hi I've just purchased a SkyWatcher Star Discovery Pro goto mount from Cris at Astronomy Alive and I gotta say he really looked after me with price inc shipping, has anyone had any experience with these? I will mainly be using it for a between clouds quick lite setup for my new Sharpstar 65Quad around 3kgs I think (thnx FlashDrive) and possibly some Solar Terrestrial work, Chrz Brenton...

[netwolf]

Brenton congrats, I am cosmdiering this mount as I saw Andrews Comms has it with a 7" Mak. I have the Mak already on my Evolution mount but due to length it can't reach near Zennith. but looking at the specs it suggest very low capacity for the the Star Discovery pro so am wondering how it has been combined with the larger Mak. From what you have now do you think the little mount can handle it? the arm being on an angle is the key change I like.

[dbowie]

Hi mate yes it was the arm position I was looking for Zenith and goto of course. I considered a Porta but expensive then need to add motors etc. The 65quad comes in around 3kgs and the mount rated just over 5 so I can add a finder if needed. Appareantly you can adjust the gears for heavier loads and some actually ride a C8 on them Prob only good for visual at that. I've seen some great shots with the Mak combo but this should suit my needs for quick setup and view. This link has some useful info..Chrz...

http://www.waloszek.de/astro_sw_star_disc_2_e.php

[dbowie]

I've had my Star Discovery Pro mount with Sharpstar 65Q out a few nights and I gotta say it's a great little grab & go. After a quick plonk down 2minute 2 star alignment, accurate eyepiece centering is a must, go to was spot on and it kept objects tracked well within. And responded flawlessly thru Nexus WiFi IPad SkySafari Pro5, it all just works very nice smooth op. One criticism the version 4 Handset menu seems a bit counter intuitive on startup compared to version 3 but I'm probably just not used to it yet. I did want the Porta with DSC but at around $1000 for the Porta and $550 delivered for the SW I'm more than happy. I'm still sorting out my AP and this is a great way of getting to grips with gear exposures etc without heavy long setup ducking clouds of the HEQ5 and 9.25 reserved for worthy nights..