Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO
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Has there ever been, or will there ever be, consideration in developing an alt/az version of the Mach2GTO mount? Perhaps remove the wedge and mount the Mach2GTO proper into an alt/az configuration. Or update the wedge to rotate to 90 degrees. The Skywatcher AZ-EQ6 does this but a Mach2GTO version of this would be a much higher quality option. There are surprisingly few offerings of this caliber out there, meaning only one or two from 10Micron or PlaneWave. I’ll keep dreaming until something comes along. Seriously, I need a high quality high capacity alt/az mount, the sooner the better!
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Are there RA axis stops that would prevent access to 360 degrees of coverage? With the through the meridian tracking capability, perhaps there is full 360 degree coverage?
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Roland Christen
I can't say for sure, but we probably won't make an Alt-Az mount.
Roland Christen
Astro-Physics Inc.
-----Original Message-----
From: Mel <hxpii@...> To: main@ap-gto.groups.io Sent: Tue, Jan 24, 2023 1:33 am Subject: [ap-gto] Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO Has there ever been, or will there ever be, an alt/az version of the Mach2GTO mount? There are surprisingly few offerings of this caliber out there, meaning only one or two from 10Micron or PlaneWave. I’ll keep dreaming until something comes along. Seriously, I need a high quality high capacity alt/az mount, the sooner the better!
-- Roland Christen Astro-Physics |
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Roland Christen
There are RA and Dec axis stops that prevent 360 degree operation. It was necessary because of the internal wiring of the 12 volt and USB connections to the top of the Dec axis.
Roland
-----Original Message-----
From: Mel <hxpii@...> To: main@ap-gto.groups.io Sent: Tue, Jan 24, 2023 1:48 am Subject: Re: [ap-gto] Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO Are there RA axis stops that would prevent access to 360 degrees of coverage?
-- Roland Christen Astro-Physics |
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Nathan Myhrvold
Can I ask the obvious question – what would the advantage be for an alt-az mount similar to a Mach2GTO ? I realize that there might be multiple points of view here, I am just curious as to what drives the perceived need.
Very large telescopes might find alt-az to be structurally better – I think most 8-meter and larger professional telescopes use alt-az for that reason. I think the Palomar 200 inch telescope is probably the largest equatorial mount on earth. But this size related thing can’t really be a factor at the size range of Mach 2.
Planewave mounts are a bit of a special case – they are designed for telescopes more or less of the aspect ratio of Planewave scopes – a long refractor couldn’t see the zenith on most of them (two long refractors on their gimbal mount might be able to).
The 10micron alt-az mounts are a bit of a mystery to me. A bit lighter perhaps, and they might be mechanically simpler in the mount but you then need to depend on a rotator
Naively speaking, I think that the fact there are very few offerings might be related to the demand.
Nathan
From: main@ap-gto.groups.io <main@ap-gto.groups.io>
On Behalf Of Roland Christen via groups.io
Sent: Tuesday, January 24, 2023 9:31 AM To: main@ap-gto.groups.io Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: [ap-gto] Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO
I can't say for sure, but we probably won't make an Alt-Az mount.
Roland Christen Astro-Physics Inc.
-----Original Message----- Has there ever been, or will there ever be, an alt/az version of the Mach2GTO mount? There are surprisingly few offerings of this caliber out there, meaning only one or two from 10Micron or PlaneWave. I’ll keep dreaming until something comes along. Seriously, I need a high quality high capacity alt/az mount, the sooner the better!
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Roland Christen
I believe that for most visual users an Alt-Az mount is more intuitive. The eyepiece stays in one place and doesn't need to be rotated when going from one side of the pier to the other. You can swing 360 degrees around the sky with no change in scope orientation. Some people also claim that setting up and aligning an Alt-Az is easier than polar aligning an equatorial. You can also use an Alt-Az more effectively for daytime terrestrial observations and imaging (birds, large ungulates in Africa, etc.)
The disadvantage of an Alt-Az occurs when trying to image. First, you need 3 axes to be driven at a very precise rate versus one for the equatorial. Second, there is a hole near the zenith where precise tracking becomes pretty much impossible. The zenith is where some of the best imaging takes place because that's where seeing is always better than lower down. So, losing that area during imaging is not ideal.
Rolando
-----Original Message-----
From: Nathan Myhrvold <nathanm@...> To: main@ap-gto.groups.io <main@ap-gto.groups.io> Sent: Tue, Jan 24, 2023 11:51 am Subject: Re: [ap-gto] Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO Can I ask the obvious question – what would the advantage be for an alt-az mount similar to a Mach2GTO ? I realize that there might be multiple points of view here, I am just curious as to what drives the perceived need.
Very large telescopes might find alt-az to be structurally better – I think most 8-meter and larger professional telescopes use alt-az for that reason. I think the Palomar 200 inch telescope is probably the largest equatorial mount on
earth. But this size related thing can’t really be a factor at the size range of Mach 2.
Planewave mounts are a bit of a special case – they are designed for telescopes more or less of the aspect ratio of Planewave scopes – a long refractor couldn’t see the zenith on most of them (two long refractors on their gimbal mount
might be able to).
The 10micron alt-az mounts are a bit of a mystery to me. A bit lighter perhaps, and they might be mechanically simpler in the mount but you then need to depend on a rotator
Naively speaking, I think that the fact there are very few offerings might be related to the demand.
Nathan
From: main@ap-gto.groups.io <main@ap-gto.groups.io>
On Behalf Of Roland Christen via groups.io
Sent: Tuesday, January 24, 2023 9:31 AM To: main@ap-gto.groups.io Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: [ap-gto] Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO I can't say for sure, but we probably won't make an Alt-Az mount.
Roland Christen
Astro-Physics Inc.
-----Original Message-----
From: Mel <hxpii@...> To: main@ap-gto.groups.io Sent: Tue, Jan 24, 2023 1:33 am Subject: [ap-gto] Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO Has there ever been, or will there ever be, an alt/az version of the Mach2GTO mount? There are surprisingly few offerings of this caliber
out there, meaning only one or two from 10Micron or PlaneWave. I’ll keep dreaming until something comes along. Seriously, I need a high quality high capacity alt/az mount, the sooner the better!
-- Roland Christen Astro-Physics -- Roland Christen Astro-Physics |
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Exactly what Roland said. I have a 45lb payload and I want a high quality tracking alt/az mount to use it with for VISUAL only. The point of my post is there are not many options out there for this purpose in this weight class. All current options seem to max out at 45-48lbs weight limit, which doesn’t leave much room overhead. Something affordable in the 60-80lb weight capacity alt/az is needed. The Losmandy G11 is the first mount I’m aware that will attempt to fill this space without it costing an arm and a leg. TTS-300 and RST-300 are also options in the $8-10k price range. However, if I had to spend $10k+ for such a mount, I would rather it be an AP mount! I am hoping others will join in. Settling for less is not an option!
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Mel
I assume the reason is there is not enough demand to justify the development, it’s not financially feasible, or a preference for EQ mounts?
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Mel
On Tue, Jan 24, 2023 at 12:33 PM, Roland Christen wrote:
Makes sense. Thanks |
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Woody Schlom
Mel,
If you have big-bucks, there are those fork mounts by another American mount company that likes to paint their mounts red. Their “400” model has a 150 lb. capacity. And I believe they can point straight up.
Woody
From: main@ap-gto.groups.io <main@ap-gto.groups.io> On Behalf Of Mel
Sent: Tuesday, January 24, 2023 12:28 PM To: main@ap-gto.groups.io Subject: Re: [ap-gto] Alt/Az Version of Mach2GTO
I assume the reason is there is not enough demand to justify the development, it’s not financially feasible, or a preference for EQ mounts? |
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Mel
Too big me too expensive. Looking for something portable and affordable. Thanks for sharing.
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On Tue, Jan 24, 2023 at 04:23 PM, Woody Schlom wrote:
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Chris White
I'm an imager, so my question is certainly naive. Why would you need an ultra-precision mount for visual? It's not like imaging where there sub arc-second tracking for long exposures is required. Just curious here....
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Mel
On Wed, Jan 25, 2023 at 08:47 AM, Chris White wrote:
I'm an imager, so my question is certainly naive. Why would you need an ultra-precision mount for visual? It's not like imaging where their sub arc-second tracking for long exposures is required. Just curious here.... Ultra-precision isn’t needed for visual observing. The stability and weight capacity are the most valuable features, not the encoders. However, the encoders would be nice for push-to tracking. Again, my point is there are very few mounts in this class with a higher weight capacity range. All relevant options are in the $8-10k+ price range. Most lower priced options have weight limits of 40-45lbs, not enough for my needs.
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weems@...
For visual, I like to hunt down small galaxies and other small, faint objects with my C14, which has a small field of view. A mount that points precisely makes that much easier. The AP hand controller is also much more tolerant of cold, and easier to use than other systems. I’m happy to deal with the discomfort of an equatorial, but having a C11 on an alt-az, I can appreciate why someone would want that. And yes, it is easier to set up an alt-az. As long as I carefully level the C11, and it gets its time and location from GPS, it only needs to sync on one star, including the sun, and it will point with good accuracy. I’ve used it to look for doubles in the daytime, after a sun sync. I can also completely understand why it isn’t a market that AP would want to invest R&D on Chip |
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