EQ6 mounts

Hi there,
With all this bad observing weather I decided to look at the possibilities if I went about upgrading my existing LXD 75 mount. My searching to date keeps on finding very good references to the EQ6/HEQ6 GEM mount with the full GOTO control Sky Scan V 3.xx. (Those familiar with the mount will understand the various titles). Mechanically the specifications look impressive for visual use (my current interest) and dabbling in Astrophotography. The latest versions of the GOTO control system seem to be almost on a par now with the Celestron/Meade offerings and are easily upgradable.
So specifically has anyone on these boards any experience of operating these mounts?
Thanks in advance for your time.

Donal

Hello Donal, I believe the eq6's are very good mounts, as you say visually they are very good, but I don't know about photography as I've never used one.

Is the LXD 75 a bit shaky?

Keith..

Hi Donal

I had an EQ6 pro skyscan for a while and for the money it is a great mount, I got it to replace the LXD75 mount which I got with the 10" Schmidt Newt. The LXD75 mount was just not heavy enough to take the scope it came with but the EQ6 took the 10" easy, it was rock solid. That said I am just a visual observer and never did any photography with it but I sold it to another guy in our society and he uses it to take some lovely photos.

The controller is very easy to use, I think even easier and more intuitive than the meade autostar. The EQ6 also has a great polar alignment scope which I found very accurate and the goto was very good after a 3 star alignment. It is supposed to be even better now because the new handsets have a sync function which mine did not have.

The mount is heavy and power hungry, if you get it also get a 20Ah power pack. I think if you are looking for a pretty heavy duty mount the EQ6 is the best value around, some guys have 50lb payloads on them. Quite a few people who have them have changed the mount head to take losmandy plates which can make it even more stable.

The EQ6 is also a good mount if you have light sleeping neighbours, it slews very quietly and makes an almost musical sound while doing it. If you do get one I would also recommend changing the grease on the gears, skywatcher seem to use stuff like tar.

Neil

Hey Donal
I'll point out first that i have no experience with other mounts, however i have used the EQ6 with basic controller (no goto). I mount a 10" netwon on it.

I suppose the best way to describe the mount is in list form:

Build: The EQ6 is a very solid mount with 3 bearings in the RA axis alone.
Neil is correct about the grease, its very tacky stuff, i replaced mine with a lithium grease, however for visual use this may not be necessary. The standard motors and very basic controller are not upto long exposure astrophotography, upgrade controllers do correct for errors in the drive train but i dont have any experience with these. The rest of the mount dovetail holding plate, setting circles, counter weight rod, tripod and polarscope are more then enough for visual use.

Portability: There is no doubt that the EQ6 is on the edge of portability, any bigger then this you would need a more permanent arrangement. I beleive it is a 25kg head so try lifting something that weight without appropriate handling and you'll see what i mean. However you will be setup and viewing within 10minutes.

Ease of use: Compared to other mounts i can't comment, from reading articles i would say its no more difficult to setup then any other equatorial mount.

Information and Support: I always find this point inportant when purchasing anything because if you run into a problem chances are someone else has and they have a fix. Because the EQ6 is such a popular mount you will find endless amount of information on the internet, everything from setting up, dedicated forums, other user issues questioned with solutions, I know two websites that provide electronic upgrades, one of these will do it for alot less then the cost of the native controllers. People have ,literally taken this mount apart and upgraded it with some technical know how, and used it to take some excellent astro shots using step by step guides you will find online.

Cost:
Again same as Neil, i would say getting good value for money, and you have the option to start with just the basic mount and build on that.

i hope i haven't confused or put you off with this post, IMHO i dont think you can go wrong with the EQ6.

Mike

Hi Donal,

I have been in the same boat as you for the past 6 months in mount searches, and I also keep coming back to the same mount/GoTo (SkyScan) combo. It seems to be the biz, with the perk that the firmware on the latest SkyScan series updatable via PC. If I had the disposable money, I would have had it by now.

Seanie.

Everyone, thanks for your replies. You seem to confirm what I have been thinking.

Keith, my LXD 75 does not seem to be shakey at all for visual use. Rock steady out on the front garden. Brilliant when it works, but it needs lots of TLC out of the box. So before Seanie gets a chance, anyone want to buy a well behaved LXD 75 and help me upgrade.