how much car do you need for an EQ6 plus scope plus guidescope
can you get all the imaging gear you need with an EQ6 into a small sedan?eg a laser
ie
mount
imaging scope
guide scope
imaging cam
guidecam
counterweights
laptop
table and chair
power supply-eg battery and inverter
associated cables
yourself plus warm clothing
food and drink
I fit all my gear, EQ6, TV85, SBIG case, batteries, accessories etc into a Hyundai Excel. Until I sold it I could fit the 12 inch dob in the back as well.
Everything will fit on the back seat, boot, broken down. The only issue is how many passengers you wish to take.
A few years back I had a Laser and I managed to fit in:
4" Vixen Fluorite
Vixen GP mount and cwts
Eyepiece case
12 Volt Car battery power supply
3 man tent
observing table
observing chair
camping table
camping chair
air bed
sleeping bag
Car fridge
gas stove
20 litre container of drinking water
Overnight bag with 3 days of clothes
And then one night it rained so hard that the tent leaked and I had to sleep in the back of the car with the scope, mount etc. etc.!
If you can afford it get a bigger car like a station wagon or a 4WD that way you can take your family and not be seen as such a lonely nerd or an impoverished amatuer astronomer. "Dad, not the Lada, I'd rather walk"
Not sure what the exact answer to your question is, but see the pic below for what I managed to cart around in a Charade. (by the way the boot has my eyepiece box and charts laid out, esky for food, and my bedding is out of shot setup on my bunk for the night as well)
I fit all my gear, EQ6, TV85, SBIG case, batteries, accessories etc into a Hyundai Excel. Until I sold it I could fit the 12 inch dob in the back as well.
Everything will fit on the back seat, boot, broken down. The only issue is how many passengers you wish to take.
Not sure what the exact answer to your question is, but see the pic below for what I managed to cart around in a Charade. (by the way the boot has my eyepiece box and charts laid out, esky for food, and my bedding is out of shot setup on my bunk for the night as well)
that is ridiculous-do you drive with one foot hanging out the window????
that is ridiculous-do you drive with one foot hanging out the window????
Well I am not the smallest bloke going around, so just having me in a Charade is a sight - so your comment about the foot isn't far from the mark. I remember taking a couple of photos of the packed car when I arrived at the site ... just incase I forgot how to put it all back in (If I can find the pics I will post them).
You guys are nuts . Have you ever considered one of those small trailers with the fibreglass shells? I am sure both the ecel and charade would pull them (motor bikes do) and that way if you had to stop in a hurry your scopes wouldn't end up as a permenent part of your skulls.
I know a bloke (he's an IIS member) who used to carry a 33cm truss-tube dobs in a Honda Prelude. It was home made and he used a very low profile mirror box and base, so he needed about 25kg of counter-weights , but it worked.
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, but it worked.
