(warning, the following message should be considered to be full of subjective opinion and anecdotal information and not to be taken as objective fact at this...
All I can say is I spent $169 on an Apogee EQ5 mount and added the Autostar with my own pulley and bracket design and it works fantastic. Goto's are all half a...
... Not that i'm aware of... unforttunately i don't anything GEMmish to test with, so questions about PARK on the LXD's i can't directly investigate. I can...
Tom - you are not the only one. I always park my scope (LXD55) after using it, however, its utility is pretty much limited to putting the scope to bed neatly...
I hadn't heard about that. How do you do this? I still only get the 1 or 2 star alignment options. Perhaps this is only for polar alignment and not alt/az? ......
Tom, Well, at least I'm not the only one. It doesnt seem like it should be a problem... I mean, how hard can it be for the computer to figgure out. It is...
Chris, I value your opinion, and thanks for taking the time to write such a detailed response. I will certainly take that into consideration. I didnt know...
Hi, Russell, The Autostar II is a 'dumb' handset, relying on further computing power within the LX computer base. So on its own it will not work with the 492...
Tom, Ah! Thanks for the information. That is a good idea. I do have an extra toucam. It is even modded, but has the original lens. I will look at your...
I happended to have a short bit of metal tube that fitted over the end of my Meade finderscope. I attached the tube to the toucam using my "fireplace"...
... (a) use Meade's Remote Handbox function which is part of Autostar Suite (came/comes with the LPI and the DSI). Full Autostar functionality (plus a bit) on...
Dick, Thanks for the ideas. I think I will try Tom How's idea of hooking up a webcam to the finder, so I can do the entire align from inside. Otherwise, I will...
Ok, someone mentioned re-syncing on stars,etc and how it improves accuracy in the local area but adversely impacts accuracy on the rest of the sky. Has...
Losmandys don't have an overall rep for poor PE as such. They have a rep for higher than expected PE and RE on older mounts and for a few mechanical quirks on...
Translated does this mean your OTA and mount are on a perpendicular plane? As in your OTA and mount both are "seeing" in the same direction. So that's what...
The OTA optical axis and DEC axis need to be perpendicular to each other. Any error between the two will be doubled when you cross the meridian. For example...
... SYNCing is nothing more (or less) than another alignment star. Using SYNC adjusts the coefficients of the equations used to figure out where the motors...
I'll add that things get a bit more complicated when using a GEM mount, where orthogonality error comes into play. It is my understanding from Meade's...
I've been trying to get a handset past the "Motor Fault" error and am having a tough time. All the connectors are original and the connection point is a Meade...
Chances are the optical encoder inside the motor itself is not working right. It may have even got grease on it like one of mine did. They need to be clean...
Thanks for the reply. I checked the encoders - that's not it. What I'm wondering is whether or not a problem with the handset electronics could enter into the...
Well, does one motor work and not the other? If so chances are the handset is ok. Have you swapped motors to see if the problem follows (connector issue) ?...
Hi all, I couldn't track down any white litium grease locally, the best I could find is Maplin's "white spray grease". No details as to what it contains...
