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Bob I have yet to get into auto guiding seriously...for various reason ( quick setcups and poor polar alignment) I would go for short subs to avoid star trails..which worked..however I found some advantage over seeing with shorts subs ( 30 seconds) and high gain.
All my recent posts are 30 second subs and high gain...it isn't not perfect but it really is working for me...my recent helix I said was three hours but it was actually 2 hours ( I made a mistake) ....the last trifid was 600 subs at 30 seconds...I have three guide scopes and cameras and sure soon I will incorporate them.
The other advantage of no auto guide is you will get to know your mount much better...note which way yourctrails go..most likely East West ie RA and so you adjust balance which can e tedious but very worthwhile...if it is North South almost certainly it will be poor polar alignment...
But I suggest seeing you are doing so well with your images so far to try shorter exposes, better balance and spot on polar alignment....with 30 seconds it is easier to throw out not so good subs, which I believe is the key...and you will notice how things change over just 30 seconds.
The number of subs you take should only be limited by what your computer refuses to stack...pick a number higher than usual and each night try to go higher ... the more you get the move chances of 3nding up with a near perfect batch.
Good luck and keep posting I love watching your progress.
Alex
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