need help/advice on repair

cliffchuah · Post by **cliffchuah** » Fri Feb 20, 2004 12:46 am

Chee Chian taught me how to setup my Meade ETX 70AT...I must say that he's very helpful and i learnt a lot from him. It's encouraging for newbie like me...

Unfortunately, we found that the mirror and the (horizontal) clutch are not working. I bought it brand new from the US!!!

I'd like to seek for advice or help to repair these 2 faults. Thanks in advance!

Post by **Airconvent** » Fri Feb 20, 2004 12:58 am

cliffchuah wrote:Chee Chian taught me how to setup my Meade ETX 70AT...I must say that he's very helpful and i learnt a lot from him. It's encouraging for newbie like me...

Unfortunately, we found that the mirror and the (horizontal) clutch are not working. I bought it brand new from the US!!!

I'd like to seek for advice or help to repair these 2 faults. Thanks in advance!

ooo...you learnt from the ETX Guru himself!
Beware of him...after 2 -3 visits, he'll be hinting for you to buy an ETX125 or LX90!

As was mentioned in an earlier post by another singastro member, you can get the clutch spare part from Dr Looi , the Meade dealer in KL, just be prepared to pay US$50!

What do you mean by the mirror is not working? The ETX70 is a refractor, so the mirror is simply a diagonal to change the direction of light ...I don't think there's any moving parts?

rich

cliffchuah · Post by **cliffchuah** » Fri Feb 20, 2004 9:43 am

Thanks, Rich!

I don't mind getting a more powerful scope when i learn more abt astronomy....

Ok, there're 2 issues based on observation :

1) the mirror (sorry, i don't know the technical term) just below the eyepiece holder dropped off, i believe it's due to the shipment/mishandling. I maybe able to glue it back, based on Chee Chian.

2) my scope can move vertically, but not horizontally. I could hear the motor sound horizontally. It means, the motor is working, but the scope is just not moving. We believe it's due to the clutch.

Before i jump into repairing it, i'd like to get as much advice as possible, because i really have no confidence doing it.

Any help, greatly appreciated. If you've any repair documentation guide, pls send to me via cliff_chuah@yahoo.com.sg. Cheers!

Post by **acc** » Fri Feb 20, 2004 12:36 pm

Hi Cliff
You can find some articles on ETX60/70 (the 2 scopes are essentially the same) repair at www.weasner.com/etx. Gluing back the flip mirror and adjusting the clutch should be a relatively easy task. Good luck.

cheers
Chee Chien

chrisyeo · Post by **chrisyeo** » Fri Feb 20, 2004 12:49 pm

Wow, makes me realise that I must have been pretty lucky to have my etx90 arrive in working condition.

Cliff, what kind of shipping did you use, how long did it take, and what dealer did you get it from?

Good luck on the repairs!
Chris

cliffchuah · Post by **cliffchuah** » Fri Feb 20, 2004 5:10 pm

ok, bought it from eBay, was told it's not used (i think it means new). It took about 3 weeks. The packaging was not optimal, i'd put more paper or airbag to reduce any impact, but it wasn't.

Also, I feel the Meade equipment is not built with robustness....

I think it's a good lesson learnt for newbie and i'd like to pass on this experience for your reference.

Post by **weixing** » Fri Feb 20, 2004 9:37 pm

Hi,
There are always some risk when you buy directly from oversea. Also, I think it is safer to buy from a Telescope store, because not everybody know how to package a telescope for transportation.

May be those "old bird" here can share with us what should we take note when buying telescope from oversea directly, such as shipping, insurance and etc.

Have a nice day.

Post by **Airconvent** » Sat Feb 21, 2004 1:01 am

cliffchuah wrote:ok, bought it from eBay, was told it's not used (i think it means new). It took about 3 weeks. The packaging was not optimal, i'd put more paper or airbag to reduce any impact, but it wasn't.

Also, I feel the Meade equipment is not built with robustness....

I think it's a good lesson learnt for newbie and i'd like to pass on this experience for your reference.

hi cliff,
from your description, it would appear that the clutch is the problem after all.
I have seen the fork mount disassembled once but have no confidence to do it myself. perhaps you can seek Vin Snr's help. He has a habit of disassembling all goto scopes he buys to supercharge them!

I see that the mirror you are referring to is actually the built in mirror diagonal. Normally, its looks quite robust and you probably have to drop it like 10 stories for it to pop off. That's how its built on the ETX90 anyway.
I suspect the scope may not be all that perfect when it was being put up for sale...you ought to write to the guy to ask him to get a spare clutch from Meade. Meade is more likely to entertain such requests within the US...

cliffchuah · Post by **cliffchuah** » Sat Feb 21, 2004 2:06 am

Thanks for all your comments and help.

I managed to fix the mirror and I'm very happy as I could see something now!

Also, i disassembled the base and tried to fix the clutch issue....however, when i tried to put it back, it's not tight-fitted. I don't know what went wrong. Here're what i did :

1) open the base cover
2) unwind the screw on the shaft
3) take out all washers....
4) slide out the base cover

I did nothing but it looks ok to me.....i think i figure out the clutch is actually what i was dismantling.....dun know if i'm right.

Then, the nightmare starts....as i tried to assemble them together, it just didn't work out for me.

Please help me!!! Please call me at 96354559 if you could offer me any kind of help.

Post by **Lee** » Sat Feb 21, 2004 12:25 pm

Dear Cliff,

As spoken to you sometime back, we can check your ETX70 for S$80
and service/repair for S$ 120. (excludes spares & transport) If it is
the clutch * Azimuth gear train then we normally only replace the complete module + board. It would cost you another S$200-S$300.

You can contact me if you are still interested.

Lee
The Physical Space
HP: 96192273

SingAstro

need help/advice on repair

need help/advice on repair

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