Hi Dean,

One more thought to add to Rick's advice about cases, is that just as the
1.21x size scale increases going from an AP900 up to an AP1200, there is also
the additional weight scale, for the required cases - assuming you don't use
the AP shipping cartons.

To get the same level of protection for a 1200 that you would need for the
lighter 900, you need more foam. Then, cases such as a Pelican, don't scale in
their volume as easily, so the mass of the plastic case itself, escalates the
amount of weight you will have to lift out of the vehicle and carry to the
site. It could also be that the next incremental volume case, may be somewhat
larger than exactly what you require, so you then have excess case volume and
weight. Fortunately you might not need a trolley since you would be smart to
choose a case with wheels (perhaps a Pelican 1620 for the 900, and possibly a
Pelican 1650, for the 1200).

These would be fine, except in winter, when a short toboggan would perform
better in snow deeper than a few of inches. :-)
In the end, you have to consider if an observatory sized telescope is suitable
for field travel, and the choice of mount, or of two mounts, then follows.

The other thing to consider is that the AP mounts are well built, so the
load factors are conservative - I believe several people here have
satisfactorily exceeded the 70 lb limit on an AP900, but even an undersized
OTA load can become susceptible to wind gust loading. For that matter, even a
massive mount won't help if the wind flexes the OTA saddle attachment. It
really depends on your OTA choice at that point.

Joe