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Old 04-01-2010, 08:26 AM
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g__day (Matthew)
Tech Guru

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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Sydney
Posts: 2,902
Here's a suggestion.

Get two laser pointers.

Build a holder for one you can mount it somewhere adjustably rigidly but easily removable in your backyard that has a view of the SCP - say attached to a balcony or a fence. Mount the second on your telescope's SCP alignment viewer (if your mount has one - else mount it to the OTA aligned to the light path).

Do a really carefully drift alignment once - even if it takes you all night.

Now once your mount is well aligned if the laser is on your OTA - point it to the SCP then switch on its laser. Finally turn on your second laser pointer and adjust it so it points where your aligned mount is showing the SCP to be.

Now on any other night when you want to roughly align your mount - you simply do the procedure in reverse. Switch on your seperately aligned laser sight that is pointing to the SCP then switch on your mount's (or OTA's) laser sight and adjust the mount until the two lasers "touch at infinity".

This should give you pretty good alignment (within a few arc minutes) night after night in just a few seconds.

To improve things - can you put pegs or some sort of permanent markers in your backyard where you want your mount's tripod legs to go? - Like surveyors pegs if it's grass or even chalk or paint circles if you're on hard ground? Because once you've drift aligned well - and really nailed the lattitude setting for your (I suppose German Equatorial) mount - then provided you keep the mount absolutely level on each set up - you should only have to adjust its East / West orientation.

Hope this helps,

Matt
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