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I'm a recovering attorney, Jim (19 years without lawyering), not an EE. My dad left Pratt after 2 years of ME and returned to the farm, so some of that rubbed off.?

I recommend Losmandy products quite frequently, based on their quality and support. However, I've never been a great fan of the Gemini systems, if only on the basis of cost. A system that adds a grand or more to a mount when?the competition asks half or less for theirs leads to folk opting for a lot of bad mounts and buggy systems.

I have always championed used equipment for anyone getting into the hobby. First, if one buys intelligently they can usually bail out without too great a financial?loss. Buy new and you are always going to lose at least 25% of your outlay. Second, the stuff that is more durable is going to be pretty well known after the free field testing by early adopters.

Used Losmandy equipment usually commands a premium on the used market. I've never purchased an unused Losmandy mount. Nor one with an original Gemini. A recent purchase was a "mature" G11 head with the 492 system for $900, a fairly typical price. I sold the system parts for $175. So now I have a $725 G11 with no drive. Should I shop for a Gemini 1? Drop $2K on a new Gemini? Or should I just spend $150 on an OnStep goto controller and the system's drive components?

You raise the issue of support. I doubt I can email Losmandy and get the almost instant support that I can get from the OnStep community or even the chief programmers? Does the Gemini firmware?get constant testing and frequent upgrades??

I'd estimate there are about a thousand OnStep systems in use. I have shipped about 500 in the last 18 months and Paypal tells me my shipments?are up 24% from last year and order value is up 49%. This is in spite of my decision to drop my biggest seller due to what I felt was its limited features and ability to handle future upgrades as similarly priced options.

An additional argument for non-proprietary systems is that they restore functionality to? deceased equipment with proprietary systems. Think ASCG-5GTs. This out of production goto mount that sold for $700, as much as a used 492 GM-80, has a fairly high failure rate. A motor control board, if one can be found is about $200. It also has experienced troubled servo encoders, bad power panels and electrical connectors. With OnStep it can be put back to work with a few more features for less than $100. Just saves me a few more trips to the scrap yard.