Hi,
I'm new to telescopes / astronomy and I read that EQ mounts are difficult to use in Singapore because we can't see Polaris. So is it worth buying a telescope with EQ mount here (without motor)? Anyone have any experience or recommendation? Or if I have misunderstood, please feel free to correct me and let me know.
I'm trying to use this with my 4 year old son, so I want something that is easy to follow the star/planet movements or else every 3 second I need to reset it and I might need at least 10-15 seconds each time which he probably won't be patient enough to wait for me...
Thank you very much.
EQ vs AZ Mount (New to Telescopes)
Re: EQ vs AZ Mount (New to Telescopes)
HI,
If you are going to do visual observation or even short imaging sessions (for bright objects like planets), an AZ mount might make more sense. They are a lot more intuitive to move around and Celestron has nice goto models (Nexstar 6SE, 8SE, etc). I also own an Ioptron Cube which is a nice if slightly flimsy AZ mount. They are cheap-ish though, and good for small scopes. If you want to go the non-motorized route you will probably need slow motion cables, and a mount that can take the cables. I am not familiar with these so I'll leave someone else to answer you. On the other hand, if you want to do imaging, Equatorial mounts will be more useful. You can use them here in Singapore, but you will need to be aware of possible problems with the counterweights hitting the tripod. Not seeing Polaris is not a huge issue, since many mounts allow you to perform some form of polar alignment using other stars.
Cyrus
Edit: Since you don't want to consider goto (i.e. computerized) Eq mounts, it might be a bit more difficult to use them in Singapore.
If you are going to do visual observation or even short imaging sessions (for bright objects like planets), an AZ mount might make more sense. They are a lot more intuitive to move around and Celestron has nice goto models (Nexstar 6SE, 8SE, etc). I also own an Ioptron Cube which is a nice if slightly flimsy AZ mount. They are cheap-ish though, and good for small scopes. If you want to go the non-motorized route you will probably need slow motion cables, and a mount that can take the cables. I am not familiar with these so I'll leave someone else to answer you. On the other hand, if you want to do imaging, Equatorial mounts will be more useful. You can use them here in Singapore, but you will need to be aware of possible problems with the counterweights hitting the tripod. Not seeing Polaris is not a huge issue, since many mounts allow you to perform some form of polar alignment using other stars.
Cyrus
Edit: Since you don't want to consider goto (i.e. computerized) Eq mounts, it might be a bit more difficult to use them in Singapore.
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Re: EQ vs AZ Mount (New to Telescopes)
Manual mount don't need to move every 3 second.
About every 30-60 seconds to keep it at the center.
A good comfortable finder device (bought separately) is important to realign after the target drift out of eyepiece.
Pick telescope and mount separately if possible , don't be forced into buying an EQ just because it is bundled with the telescope you want.
About every 30-60 seconds to keep it at the center.
A good comfortable finder device (bought separately) is important to realign after the target drift out of eyepiece.
Pick telescope and mount separately if possible , don't be forced into buying an EQ just because it is bundled with the telescope you want.
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Re: EQ vs AZ Mount (New to Telescopes)
Ditto what the above posters said.
AZ mounts are the best, especially if they have those slow motion cables (or knobs). They would be more lightweight as well, vs. the counterweight with the EQ mount.
AZ mounts are the best, especially if they have those slow motion cables (or knobs). They would be more lightweight as well, vs. the counterweight with the EQ mount.
Thanks.