Hello all. My first intervention in this group.

I am the proud owner of a Edge HD14 since 2011. It is currently mounted on a Paramount MX+ because I tried for 7 years to tame the infamous CGE Pro for astrophotography, and I lost. I am now in heavens with my new mount. Not in the same class. And yes, it is still mounted on the original dovetail.

I must say I am very puzzled by the statements about the "orange noodle". I am currently producing quite acceptable quality astrophotos, contributing to the Kilonova Catcher program for potential optical counterparts of gravitational waves, contributing to the ExoClock project for the timing of exoplanet transits, etc. All this to say that I am doing science work with the "orange noodle" and I am wondering what I am missing here. If the original dovetail is causing problems, I am simply unaware of them. My astrophotography sessions usually involve 6-minutes subs in broadband and 10-minutes subs in narrowband without autoguiding. 10 minutes is about the limit where I begin to see elongated stars. I just installed an Optec FastFocus and am in the process of installing the ONAG system from Innovations Foresight, just waiting for some parts. This will enable me to autoguide efficiently as well as continuous autofocusing.

What more could I acomplish with an upgraded craddle and what problem should I be looking for that I don't seem to detect at this time? This is not a critic of your post, just a need for clarification from my part.

Thank you.