What mount?

Simple - AltAz or Dob
Equatorial non-GoTo
GoTo (Equatorial or AltAz)

I have an AltAz, two GEMs, two GoTos and a number of scopes with objectives from 66mm to 152mm. What I find is that I'm not always available on the best nights and I often find myself stepping outside several times a night when I am to see whether it's worth getting something out for thirty minutes or an hour. On those nights, which are far more common than others, I take out one of three scopes - the original Bresser Lidlscope if there's likely to be lots of dew, the Scopos 66 ED if there's little or no dew or occasionally the C5, which does require about 20 minutes cooldown.

I find that the old NexStar 4 takes a little too long to set up for short sessions and the LXD75 takes longer. I haven't had a chance to use the latter properly since last April because of the prevailing weather, so I'm seriously considering either selling it on and getting a purpose built Dob or keeping the mount for occasional GoTo use and building a Dob mount for the tube.

What I've learned is that for me, because I don't have a permanent observatory set up in the back yard like some of our more illustrious members and the prevailing weather conditions are so unfavourable simplicity is more important than bells and whistles, and I don't think that I will ever buy another GEM or GoTo mount. Up to now I've spent too much time and money on mounts that don't suit my observing patterns and too little time observing and learning the night sky, which is what I'm interested in. Grab & go is where it's at for me and that means an AltAz or a Dob mount.

What are your views and experiences?

Hey John

For myself personally when the shorter nights come in around mid May the CG-5 gets retired until around late August or early September, due to the length of time it takes to set up and the shortness of the nights. I used to prop my 80mm on a Manfrotto photographic tripod, recently I purchased a Vixen Custom D alt-az mount and also a 127mm refractor so for the summer months the alt-az wil be the mount of choise.

Outside those months, when there are many more hours of darkness, the CG-5 will gain precedence, unless I just want to grab an hour or two.

I had a dob in the past, a 10", and I found it bulky and awkward, so I sold it.

In my opinion I would keep the alt-az and one of the computerised mounts, sell the others, that way you get both options.

By the way, what size dob were you thinking of?

Hi John,
I would have though a CG5 was a handy grab and go scope. A dob is the best choice if you want aperture, there is less setup time with them, but they are bulkier and more difficult to transport, but if you are able to just wheel it out of the shed and start pointing with it, then its a good choice. I would not consider anything less then an 8" when it comes to a Dob, then again such a sized mirror requires cool down time which seem to be the crux of your initial problem.
Sounds like to me you need a shed for the scopes you have.

Unfortunately my existing shed also houses the central heating unit - so it gets warm on cold nights - and I don't have room for another.

The C5 is a handy grab & go but you may be confusing mine, which is the spotter version and intended for AltAz or photo tripod, with another package. I use it on the AltAz, which I've strengthened and stabilized by replacing the original wooden legs with a set from an old GEM mount.

The LXD75 came with a 6" Newt (N6AT) and was bought at Lidl. That's the tube I'm considering building a Dob mount for so it would be relatively compact. The LXD75 mount I could hang onto for occasional GoTo use with any tube or a camera - all of my scopes can be mounted on it except of course the NexStar 4. I've advertised the NexStar 4 in the past and didn't get any expressions of interest, since GoTo and scope are irrevocably joined at the hip that's the one I'd like to let go.

I live in Kildare Town where seeing almost never allows better than 200x and even that is unusual since we're eurrounded by bog and fen, and because of my schedule I seldom have time to head out into the countryside. I'm not convinced that a bigger objective would buy me much more in these conditions but I'm open to hearing the arguments.

The C5 and Scopos 66 ED are not just handy grab & go scopes - they also serve as extreme telelenses on my Nikon DLSR (much cheaper than the real thing) - so I'm getting the most value out of them of late, particularly during the rainy season.

I have a similar dilema with my Lidl LXD 75 and 6 inch scope. So has anyone worked out the logistics of how to convert the Meade 6 tube to a Dob?
I see Paul evens reverse enginered the problem quite nicely by buying a regulat dob and then used the appropriate rings to mout the 'dob' tube on the LXD75 saddle plate.

Regards

Hi Donal,

I forget who pointed me to this website, but bless 'im anyway: scopemaking.net Dobsonian .

The plan for the 6 inch f/8 should be adaptable for the N6AT. The page includes links to a printable PDF file.