Meade LXD55 Mount Question

[67champ]

I am considering purchasing a Meade 152mm refractor on a LXD55 mount with the autostar tracking and it has Celestron stainless steel tripod legs. I intend to take digital pics (afocal-with a camera mount) of the moon. Any info about the LXD55 and taking pics would be appreciated! Is it strong enough and a good mount?

[Astroman (Andrew Wall)]

If you slew over to http://www.lxd55.com or http://www.lxd75.com You may get an idea on the mount. It is my understanding that Meade had quite a few problems with the LXD55 mount, so they bought out the LXD75 which is far better. The LXD75 is a better mount than the LXD55. I have thought about getting an AR-6 OTA and placing it on an EQ6 mount. Anyway hope this helps a bit.

[westsky]

Hi Champ , Andrew has hit the nail on the head with the LXD55, not as good as the LXD75 both of which are chinese copie's of chinese copies,
Another option for you is the Celestron 6" refracter on the CG5 Goto mount, a much better mount than both the Meades, the Meades are copie's of this mount.
The 6" refracter is still quite a load for all these mounts, not because of the weight but because of the length of the tube.The EQ6 is the better choice.
cheers
david.

Dont do it mate, they are rubbish, I have one and decided on getting a losmandy G11 for mounting my SN10 and TAK TOA130. It now sits in my garage gathering cobwebs. Once you have tried a decent mount you would NOT go back to the LXD155 mount.

They are cheap yes, but in all senses of the word. Honestly they wobble like jelly. Need to be worked on and generally definitely not suitable for a heavy scope. The only plus with the setup you are considering is the stainless steel legs.

I know I might cop flack here, but I am talking from my own personal experience.

[Astroman (Andrew Wall)]

Give you $40 for the mount hehehe

About all they are worth from all the problems mentioned on the websites above.

Seriously, look at a better mount than the lxd's you will hug yourself for looking elswhere. One major problem is the encoder wheels bend pretty easy making goto's nearly impossible.

[67champ]

THANKS Everyone. Well, my wife will be happy that I'm not spending any money Yet!!! lol I'll continue my information gathering and keep saving for that better setup.

[RAJAH235]

67champ, one of our members just bought,(first lighted last Sat.), the LXD75 with a 6" Newtonian, Autostar. After correcting the error he/we made with the installed polar alignment scope, it tracked beautifully all nite. Views were V/G. All for $1504.00 delivered to your door.
The Tripod/mount is very substantial & stable, & it has mounting rings, so you can rotate the tube easily.
More choices.
L.