--- In ap-gto@y..., Chuck Hancock <cdh59@b...> wrote:

Mark-
Let us know when you get the scope, OK?

--
Best regards,
Chuck Hancock DMD

McDonough GA USA

Guys!

Got the polar scope today! The box was pretty smashed on one end but
luckily that was the end with the most bubble wrap on it!

I'll look through it tonight and see how it looks!

Mark

My new polar scope won't screw in all the way either; but I'm not necessarily
taking that as bad news. As tight as the threads fit, I'm thinking that the
polar scope is well aligned in its tunnel at the center of the RA axis. I
was able to center the reticule with the tiny Allen wrench to move the tiny
screws in and out. We have not had clear skies since the polar scope
arrived; so I don't know if the alignment will work with the GO TO.
My hunch is that it will work great. An added benefit may also be being able
to able to rotate the polar scope in the *tight* threads to attain the right
position to line up Polaris and the one or two other stars without having to
rotate the mount on the RA axis. The polar scope seems tight enough to
maintain concentricity in the tight threads. In some instances this may be
preferable to moving the whole RA around its axis. Maybe this problem is a
solution and a blessing in disguise. What do you think?

Joe Ewing
Conroe, Texas

PS: Roland, Marge, Christine, Alice, Melissa?, Wally and others, can you
give me a discount on my next A-P purchase for this great idea? ggg

Roland,

What is the outside diameter of the 65 mounting rings for the AP155 f7
Starfire. Or another way, will a AP155 fit on the LMDSBS (10" center to
center) with a Celestron C11? Can they be mounted side by side?

Thanks Andy

Thanks Tim. I think I found the source of my ring reflections. They appear
to be caused by a bright outer edge on one of the corrector elements. I have
made a small "baffle" out of a black piece of paper which will hide that
bright ring, but I have not tested it yet. .

"God doesn't play dice".........
Albert Einstein on blind chance
http://www.koyote.com/users/bobm/astro1.htm

-----Ursprungliche Nachricht-----
Von: oscarb57@... [mailto:oscarb57@...]
Gesendet: Sonntag, 10. Juni 2001 22:10
An: ap-gto@...
Betreff: [ap-gto] Re: 900 GTO case


--- In ap-gto@y..., "Wolfgang Valentin" <valentin@i...> wrote:

Hello Wolfgang and welcome to the group, I just got my AP 900GTO a
couple of weeks ago. It's really awesome.

Hi Herold,
thanks to you and everybody else for wishing me welcome. Thanks also for
your very clear descripton on the case, however, if you can manage, a
picture upload of your configuration would be fine.
Wolfgang

To UNSUBSCRIBE, or for general information on the ap-gto list
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Richard, (and others),
Could you take digi-pics and upload them so we can see how you laid out the
mount and scope in the various cases?

I was going put the two pieces of the 900GTO in a single 1650. But now I am
thinking, even if they fit, that's too heavy. I have a 400GTO head with
sliding plate adaptor in a Pelican 1650 (which has wheels BTW). In that same
case is the counterweight shaft, 5" rings attached to a sliding bar, the GTO
box, cables, and hand controller. That's just under my pain threshold. So
now I am thinking two 1600's or 1650's.

Ideas? Also, it looks like Orion's SCT tripod case (the one that lets you
keep the wedge in there as well) might work nicely to carry the 54 pier,
legs, turnbuckles, and center piece.

Clear skies,
Jeff

Hi Bobby,

Great images! Keep up the good work.

Your image taken on 10 June 2001 is close to my EP impression of Mars (AP10"
Mak-Cass) this past Friday night/early Saturday morning (local time).
Unfortunately, the seeing here was only about 5.5/10. Although the smallest
features were not quite as distinct as shown in your CCD image, the
difference in the contrast of the features w/in the Syrtis Major region was
really quite stunning in the EP.

It's been frustrating waiting for clear night skies here.

Clear, Steady and Dark Skies,
John

I finally got some good air; 7+ maybe 8 on seeing. This image is from last
night at 1:30 CDT from east TX; that's 6:30 UT. Syrtis Major is at the
meridian. The south polar hood has really diminished as has the limb haze
that has been present for over 1 month. Definately my best yet:
http://www.koyote.com/users/bobm/mars2001.htm

[snip]

Real nice images Bobby...

Did you ever get the astrograph working correctly?


Tim Povlick
San Juan Capistrano, CA

--- In ap-gto@y..., "Bobby Middleton" <bobm@k...> wrote:

I finally got some good air; 7+ maybe 8 on seeing. This image is

from last

night at 1:30 CDT from east TX; that's 6:30 UT. Syrtis Major is at

the

meridian. The south polar hood has really diminished as has the limb

haze

that has been present for over 1 month. Definately my best yet:
http://www.koyote.com/users/bobm/mars2001.htm

It's down at the bottom of the page. Check the other images for how

much

brighter the polar hood is on the earlier images.
st-237
12.5" f/7 newt at f/55 via EP projection
AP 1200 GTO mount
R = G = B =.12 sec one exposure each.
mild contrast stretching and color adjustments
Bobby Middleton

Hey Bobby,
Great image. Looks very much like the image in my 130EDT last night. I am
glad to read your observation regarding the dimishing polar caps and that
you also noted little haze on the limbs as that was my experience last night
as well and I was concerned that my viewing skills were not up to par.
Congratulations and keep up the great work.
Jeff Ball

I finally got some good air; 7+ maybe 8 on seeing. This image is from last
night at 1:30 CDT from east TX; that's 6:30 UT. Syrtis Major is at the
meridian. The south polar hood has really diminished as has the limb haze
that has been present for over 1 month. Definately my best yet:
http://www.koyote.com/users/bobm/mars2001.htm

It's down at the bottom of the page. Check the other images for how much
brighter the polar hood is on the earlier images.
st-237
12.5" f/7 newt at f/55 via EP projection
AP 1200 GTO mount
R = G = B =.12 sec one exposure each.
mild contrast stretching and color adjustments
Bobby Middleton

Jeff,

Congrats on the new mount. Very good about Big Bear; wonder if it got
cloudy there at nights?

Eight boxes, man that's alot.
I can imagine reading the manuals without the mount present would be
difficult. Thanks for the heads up concerning the clutch knobs!

We probably could swing something where we could get these APs side by
side and also do some astro talk, I'd be up for it.

Tim
potentate at home dot com


--- In ap-gto@y..., "Jeffrey D. Gortatowsky" <mrrockets@h...> wrote:

Tim,

The mount arrived in 8 boxes Wednesday night, all in good shape and

very

very well packed. Yours may be more or less depending on what you

ordered. I

got a 54 pier, some extra mounting plates, etc.

I was due for a well earned long weekend/getaway to Big Bear with my

wife.

So only the manuals went with me. Wednesday night I had only enough

time to

open the boxes and do a quit check that everything 'seemed' there. I

did not

have time to put it together or plug it in. I got home today (Sunday

June

10th). It's pretty hot in the garage right now so I will wait till

around

sundown to actually try and set it up and plug it in.

I took the manual(s) with me to Big Bear and read them while sipping

wine on

the lake. In fact I read the 900GTO's manual twice as the hand

controller

manual is the same version 2.6 manual as my 400GTO's as far as I

could tell.

So there was no point (AFAIK).

So far, the manual seems straight forward enough. There are a few

'weak

areas' where, without the mount in front of you, the descriptions

about

turning "this screw" and lining up "that mounting" hole, gets dry

and tough

slogging. Since you and I hope the mount arrives set for 30-45

degree

latitude range, and I think it does, we'll not have to play with the
altitude adjuster bar and such anyways. I suspect there is no

glamour way to

describe the adjustments. :)

The whole clutch/damper thing is a bit confusing without the mount

in front

of you and your scope mounted. Heads up, resist the urge to play

with the

clutch knobs until you read the manual. Supposedly they come "firmly

hand

tightened" to give you a feel for the mount's movement when properly

"hand

tightened". Like I said, read the manual before loosening them if

you are

interested.

The damper knob's pretty glossed over. I gather it's use will become
'apparent' once I have the scope mounted. I don't mean to imply

there is

anything wrong with the manual. It's fine. It's just there is five

or six

paragraphs on using and setting the 'clutches'. There is a single

three

sentence paragraph on the 'damper'. It's not clear why anyone would

use the

damper knob if one follows the clutch instructions, etc...

Otherwise, I suspect, unless there is an 'infant mortality' failure,

I'll be

as trilled with the 900 as I am with the 400. Bloody work of art if

you ask

me. Now I have to figure out how to case it and such. And now the

5.1" will

look small compared to the mount instead of the opposite! :)

It should be fun to get them side by side some evening.

Clear skies,
Jeff

Hi Jeff,

Congratulations on the new AP 900GTO!

Rich

Tim,

The mount arrived in 8 boxes Wednesday night, all in good shape and very
very well packed. Yours may be more or less depending on what you ordered. I
got a 54 pier, some extra mounting plates, etc.

I was due for a well earned long weekend/getaway to Big Bear with my wife.
So only the manuals went with me. Wednesday night I had only enough time to
open the boxes and do a quit check that everything 'seemed' there. I did not
have time to put it together or plug it in. I got home today (Sunday June
10th). It's pretty hot in the garage right now so I will wait till around
sundown to actually try and set it up and plug it in.

I took the manual(s) with me to Big Bear and read them while sipping wine on
the lake. In fact I read the 900GTO's manual twice as the hand controller
manual is the same version 2.6 manual as my 400GTO's as far as I could tell.
So there was no point (AFAIK).

So far, the manual seems straight forward enough. There are a few 'weak
areas' where, without the mount in front of you, the descriptions about
turning "this screw" and lining up "that mounting" hole, gets dry and tough
slogging. Since you and I hope the mount arrives set for 30-45 degree
latitude range, and I think it does, we'll not have to play with the
altitude adjuster bar and such anyways. I suspect there is no glamour way to
describe the adjustments. :)

The whole clutch/damper thing is a bit confusing without the mount in front
of you and your scope mounted. Heads up, resist the urge to play with the
clutch knobs until you read the manual. Supposedly they come "firmly hand
tightened" to give you a feel for the mount's movement when properly "hand
tightened". Like I said, read the manual before loosening them if you are
interested.

The damper knob's pretty glossed over. I gather it's use will become
'apparent' once I have the scope mounted. I don't mean to imply there is
anything wrong with the manual. It's fine. It's just there is five or six
paragraphs on using and setting the 'clutches'. There is a single three
sentence paragraph on the 'damper'. It's not clear why anyone would use the
damper knob if one follows the clutch instructions, etc...

Otherwise, I suspect, unless there is an 'infant mortality' failure, I'll be
as trilled with the 900 as I am with the 400. Bloody work of art if you ask
me. Now I have to figure out how to case it and such. And now the 5.1" will
look small compared to the mount instead of the opposite! :)

It should be fun to get them side by side some evening.

Clear skies,
Jeff

Mark-
Let us know when you get the scope, OK?

--
Best regards,
Chuck Hancock DMD

McDonough GA USA

--- In ap-gto@y..., "Wolfgang Valentin" <valentin@i...> wrote:

Hello Wolfgang and welcome to the group, I just got my AP 900GTO a
couple of weeks ago. It's really awesome.

The Pelican Case #1650 has wheels, too. The 1620 will definitely be
too small, as I used all the space available in the larger 1650 for
the components and there wasn't any space left over. You have to be
careful and take some time planning the space, however.

I purchased the tear-away foam insert. There are three layers, one
thin one on the bottom that's not divideable, and two more rather
thick foam sections, (the same width and length as the case but less
that half the depth) which allows for very nice placement of the
components. The RA axis went through both layers, but the dec axis
only needed the bottom layer cut out. Having said that, I had to cut
out the top layer to accomodate the electronics box on the dec axis
but by keeping the cut out portion, I was able to re-insert most of
this above the rest of the dec axis and secure a very tight fit once
the dec axis is in place. Similarly, the counterweight shaft only
sits down into a cutout in the top layer. My dovetail plate slips
into a nice small thin cutout through both layers.

Unfortunately, my digital camera is at my wife's office and I can't
take a .jpg for you.

It's a work of art when it's done, but only a whisper of the beauty
of the mount itself.

Good Luck

Harold Becker
Toronto

On my AP600 GoTo with the DEC Backlash set to 0, it takes aprox 10 seconds
for the mount to start moving at the 1x rate . Can any other owners tell
me how long their DEC movement takes after pressing the up or down button
with a 0 Backlash and 1x setting?




Mike Cook, AF9Y
http://www.webcom.com/af9y
mwcook@...

6-10-01
I have a AP 600E and just ordered the Pelican 1604 case with dividers last week.
I took my mount to a local camera shop and the 1604 was a nice fit with room for
the counterweight bar, counterweight, keypad, and electronics. I may order some
foam too to make a really tight fit. Scheduled to receive Monday. I ordered this
because its smaller size seemed perfect. I also use a Pelican 1502 with dividers
for my Stowaway, eyepieces, and all accessories.
Good Luck, Richard Lapides in California




Wolfgang Valentin wrote:

-----Ursprungliche Nachricht-----
Von: oscarb57@... [mailto:oscarb57@...]
Gesendet: Samstag, 09. Juni 2001 01:22
An: ap-gto@...
Betreff: [ap-gto] 900 GTO case


FWIW, I was able to fit my whole 900 GTO mount (Dec axis, RA axis and
counterweight shaft) very nicely into a Pelican #1650 case.

I have thought about the peli cases, too, but made no decision yet because i
have no local dealer around and therefore have to be very careful about
ordering the right case. I wondered if the #1620 wouldnt be better (has
wheels) - did you try this one, too? Is your #1650 with foam or with a
padded divider set?

grateful for help,
Wolfgang

Hi,
i am new around here and wanted to introduce myself shortly. The reason why
I entered this page is a 900GTO that i own since Nov 1999. I use it with a
6"/f3000 schaer refractor built in the 70ies with a Fraunhofer optics by
Lichtenknecker and a 4"/f10 Apo. The Schaer is quite a heavy construction
with a mass of 25 kg (60 lbs, if i am correct) but the mount can manage that
easily. I live in Vienna, Austria so i have to move out for my observations
which i do in 2 different ways:
1) i benefit from a location of my parents-in-law 1 hour away from Vienna by
car with very little light pollution but rather unsteady weather; i store
the schaer there permanentely and
2) going to certain places around Vienna with the Apo which is much more
transportable. If you travel westwards from Vienna you soon come to
elevations up to 1000 m and there are some good places known among the local
stargazers.
No need to say that i am very content with the mount, which outperforms
other i have tried before by far and in any respect (technically and
aesthetically, IMHO).
I have been watching the site now for 10 days or so because of a polar
alignment matter and found the ug be very useful and sometimes pretty
entertaining, too. hope i can make a positive contribution on occasion, too.

BTW, in my impression, most of the members seem to be from USA; is there
anybody out there geographically close to me?

Clear skies to everybody,
Wolfgang

Louis,

Was there ever any doubt? <VBG> I was in Richmond last night with a good
friend trying to image, clouds on and off, finally packed it in at 3 AM. I
called Martin around 5 pm yesterday and he said that two fellows had just
left with their AP900s, you must have been one of them. It is a great mount
and handles the C11 much better than I had hoped. The polar scope will ship
from C7 Mon. and should be in my hands tues. Good hunting and enjoy, you're
almost in heaven!

Steve

ps...if you find someone that needs 2 pier adapters, mine is available as
well!!

"Louis A. Mamakos" wrote: