Last week I took delivery of my new scope. A Planewave CDK12.5.
I'd love to boast about its collimation, neat focussing set up, cool down times, resolution etc etc. Sadly, the clouds have been persistent since I mounted the scope last Saturday.
For those who don't know - its a LOT of scope. I have the STL11000 mounted on the back. Anything that makes that camera look puny is a big beast.
It will be interesting to see how the PMX copes with the weight. Slewing around on Saturday it seemed to cope well but only time and some imaging will really show how it manages.
I am one happy camper. Now all I need is some clear sky.
Last week I took delivery of my new scope. A Planewave CDK12.5.
I'd love to boast about its collimation, neat focussing set up, cool down times, resolution etc etc. Sadly, the clouds have been persistent since I mounted the scope last Saturday.
For those who don't know - its a LOT of scope. I have the STL11000 mounted on the back. Anything that makes that camera look puny is a big beast.
It will be interesting to see how the PMX copes with the weight. Slewing around on Saturday it seemed to cope well but only time and some imaging will really show how it manages.
I am one happy camper. Now all I need is some clear sky.
Pete
Pete, the MX and 12.5 are a superb combo and well within spec of the MX's carrying capacity etc. I've seen CDKPhil's setup a number of times - the same as yours - and the build quality of that CDK always catches my eye. Congrats.
Nice setup. It should be well within specifications.
Just one thing. You need to put you mount directly down onto the pier. Those bolts completely remove the rigidity of the pier and the mount. Just my opinion but having discussed this with several structural engineers they all say the same thing.
Well, don't want to be a party pooper, but don't be fooled that easy collimating a CDK 12.5 is a given.
My CDK was a nightmare, and my friend Josh above, is also suffering with trying to achieve acceptable results. Those with an APS sized chip slip through issues full frame users get plagued with. Mine needed heavy modification to provided balanced results in all viewing orientations. Soon as you do a camera rotation with meridian flip - collimation was different, and image quality suffered.
Watch out also for the arm chair advisors who insist your problem is CCD tilt. With a massive CFZ, it's often unlikely with quality fittings and an STL (but not impossible).
Good luck, and hopefully you got a good one, as its all in the assembly most of the time with these scopes, as individual parts are normally precisely made.
Beautiful looking set up Pete. Is your set up on a permanent pier? I always set up and pul down my scope and I wonder do you take the mount of your pier or do you cover it and leave it out. If so how does this go. I am thinking of setting up a permanent pier but wonder if it OK to leave out for a while?
Good luck, and hopefully you got a good one, as its all in the assembly most of the time with these scopes, as individual parts are normally precisely made.
For the moolah they expect, you'd hope every scope was lovingly tapped together by a master craftsman, and individually tested/certified.....
Well , that's a lot of scope , condratulations ! 
