Hi Wayne. I myself never did have any problems with the fit of the Polar bearings to the Polar shaft concerning assembly-disassemly other than the fact that you had a hell of a lot of weight to handle once you were free of the shaft. I did occasionally have a problem having the DSC encoder gear mesh properly, and would have to slightly live the Dec Assembly, and then drop it on again. One thing for sure, is you have to firmly "Hold the Dec Assembly before loosening that Clutch! Otherwise, it could be a trip to the Hospital! I banged my head directly on the end of the Counterweight Shaft once when getting up from a kneeling position.
Yep, I was bleeding, and all the cussing in the world didn't help ease the immense pain! Had quite a lump too!
I also never noticed any ill effects of vibration with the stepper motors, regardless of magnifications used.
In regards to the AP1200, the ease in which these assemble/disassemble is remarkable. I was permitted 2 years ago to personally disassemble Roland Christen's own 1200GTO at an Astrofest Meet. What a joy vs the HGM-200. Also, to watch one in virtual silent operation go from one object to another, slew across the sky effortlessly with large OTA's and see CCD images come up on a screen with pin-point accuracy is remarkable!
None the less, the HGM-200 is indeed a fine, solid mount, and IMO worth the asking price.
I also have high hopes of one day having my own C-14 OTA on my 1200GTO. I even already have bought a brand new, still in the box Feathertouch focuser ready to go, that has the large 3-1/16" Back specifically for the C-14. Now all I need is the OTA! Mark
