This EQ Platform was custom made by
Round Table Platforms, in about July 2005.
It's made for 33deg South, +/- 5deg. So make sure you're within 28-38deg latitude otherwise you might need to customise it in some way?
The top plate is approx 57cm wide, and would suit anything from 6", 8", 10" and probably a 12" dob. It has a variable speed controller for RA, no adjustment in DEC or autoguiding. It runs off 8 AA batteries, or 12V battery.
Simply plop it down facing South, base level, and put the scope on top. It will track for approx 45 minutes before needing a reset, which simply involves pulling it back to starting position.
I've used this platform for solar system astrophotography using my 10" dob (
also for sale), and have also done widefield astrophotography with a tripod and camera sitting on top of the platform. It's not really designed for deep-space astrophotography as the tracking is not accurate enough.
When paired with my 10" dob, a 5x powermate and a webcam, this platform has helped to produce some amazing images of our solar system, see below for some examples:
Jupiter Animation (250k gif)
Jupiter Animation (250k gif)
Plato Mosiac (600k jpeg)
Straight Wall Mosiac (500k jpeg)
From these examples, you can see that the platform can track well enough for long focal length short exposure astrophotography.
Widefield example (with Canon350D + 18-55mm lens, on a fixed tripod, sitting on top of the platform):
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/a...2&d=1146273610
Due to size, pickup only (Gosford, on the Central Coast of NSW. 1 hr north of Sydney). I'm happy to drive to about 2 hours outside Gosford to meet. I'm also happy to give you some tuition if you need it/would like it.
I'm selling it because I've bought an EQ6, for my imaging pursuits.
Price: AU$400, direct deposit. Paypal add 3%.
Enquiries via PM please.
Thanks for looking.
)
