Buying a used EM500 from Astromart

yltansg · Post by **yltansg** » Fri May 13, 2011 8:10 am

Hi,

I am considering buying a Takahashi EM500 mount (2005) from AM. Just the mount, no pier or tripod. It cost about US$7500. Would cost me another S$1500 to ship it in with insurance, not mentioning GST.

Does anyone have words of wisdom?

Thanks in advance.

Alfred

Post by **rcj** » Fri May 13, 2011 8:52 am

definitely need to double check on sellers credentials and ensure smooth transaction. 1.5k for shipping seems ok for the head. seen it in action before, lovely performance. usually owners will eventually upgrade to paramount class thereafter. need to then consider a very rigid pier. La Fleur, PWT, or Tak ones.

wucheeyiun · Post by **wucheeyiun** » Fri May 13, 2011 8:56 am

i think i will try get the Paramount MX if i have to pay 7500usd.

http://www.optcorp.com/product.aspx?pid=16015

if you are talking about 38kg payload...it could well carry a c14

yltansg · Post by **yltansg** » Fri May 13, 2011 10:48 am

Hi Remus,

Thanks. Thinking of building own pier. Got to decide concrete or steel.

Alfred

rcj wrote:definitely need to double check on sellers credentials and ensure smooth transaction. 1.5k for shipping seems ok for the head. seen it in action before, lovely performance. usually owners will eventually upgrade to paramount class thereafter. need to then consider a very rigid pier. La Fleur, PWT, or Tak ones.

mymoon · Post by **mymoon** » Fri May 13, 2011 11:22 am

Congratulations. You will love it. Best in a permanent installation.

Just make sure that the EM 500 comes with Elevation for 0-28 deg. Most Takahashi including the NJP Temma2 that I have comes for Elevation for 25-48 deg.

Although in the catalogue Takahashi do make mounts for the lower latitude it is a special order item.

otherwise you have to fabricate a 30 deg wedge.

BTW best used with TheSky software. For my case it is TheSky6 but now TheSkyX. No need to PEC training too.

be prepared; the ieq45 will be like a Ford Model T in comparison

cheers

yltansg · Post by **yltansg** » Fri May 13, 2011 12:57 pm

Hi Wu,

Thanks, the Paramount Mx is definitely a good choice. It has latest design and fantastic support. One of my concerns is there is fewer support group on the web for EM 500. On the other hand, I'm used a EM400 for 1 year plus and am impressed by it. A tough choice indeed...

wucheeyiun wrote:i think i will try get the Paramount MX if i have to pay 7500usd. :)

http://www.optcorp.com/product.aspx?pid=16015

if you are talking about 38kg payload...it could well carry a c14 :)

yltansg · Post by **yltansg** » Fri May 13, 2011 1:13 pm

Hi Mymoon,

Thanks for pointing it out about the need for a wedge. I need to tap on your experience here.

According to the seller, the manual mentioned that altitude adjustment is from 20-50 degree - not suitable for use in this location. On my request seller have checked and confirmed that it can be set to 1 degree. If it can be set to 1 degree do I still need a wedge?

mymoon wrote:Congratulations. You will love it. Best in a permanent installation.

Just make sure that the EM 500 comes with Elevation for 0-28 deg. Most Takahashi including the NJP Temma2 that I have comes for Elevation for 25-48 deg.

Although in the catalogue Takahashi do make mounts for the lower latitude it is a special order item.

otherwise you have to fabricate a 30 deg wedge.

BTW best used with TheSky software. For my case it is TheSky6 but now TheSkyX. No need to PEC training too.

be prepared; the ieq45 will be like a Ford Model T in comparison

cheers

cloud_cover · Post by **cloud_cover** » Fri May 13, 2011 2:18 pm

Congrats on the ability to pick up an EM500!

For me, even if I could afford one, I still probably can't make use of it!
I'm not sure what the weight of the EM500 is but if domestic shipping is included in the price, you probably can do better shipping with comgateway.com. GST alone will be US500+ but shipping should be cheaper than $1000. My full set of SXD with tripod and 20lbs of CW, hard case etc etc cost me about $400 to ship over, including the GST. Given that your mount (although heavy) doesn't include tripod (hence less volumetric weight), shipping should be comparable, I think

cataclysm · Post by **cataclysm** » Fri May 13, 2011 3:21 pm

Wow! This mount can haul some serious gear!! Lol...

Robin Lee · Post by **Robin Lee** » Fri May 13, 2011 4:49 pm

yltansg wrote:Hi,

I am considering buying a Takahashi EM500 mount (2005) from AM. Just the mount, no pier or tripod. It cost about US$7500. Would cost me another S$1500 to ship it in with insurance, not mentioning GST.

Does anyone have words of wisdom?

Thanks in advance.

Alfred

Yeah, do consider seriously for a robotic Paramount MX since it's so close to the price range you are looking at for EM500.

SingAstro

Buying a used EM500 from Astromart

Buying a used EM500 from Astromart

Re: Buying a used EM500 from Astromart