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Hello, I am a new member to the list, glad for the opportunity to talk about the Losmandy mount. Has anyone changed the main gears in the losmandy head to something like Byers or another quality manufacturer?? Would I also have to change the worms? I am wondering just how difficult of a process it would be. Thanks and take care out there, Gregory david Stempel FIREFRAME

Hello Group, There seems to be some less than accurate comments about the Losmandy GoTo system so here is a quick summary of what it can do: The Gemini system comprises 2 new servo's, hand paddle and a control box. Estimated street price around $US1500.00, much of the tooling has been done, with final software testing being done at present. Northern hemisphere opertaion seems to be pretty bullet-proof, the multi-star alignment being the only current major bug for S.H. users. The test control electronics have all the databases as listed on our web site http://www.ozemail.com.au/~atsscope/goto.html However, there may be database changes/software upgrades with the commercial EPROM release. The system points well with a single star alignment and a polar aligned mount, but using 2 to 4 stars the mount does not need to be polar aligned. Multi star alignment in the N.H. accounts for poor polar alignmnet, atmospheric refraction, flexure etc...but only as well as 4 stars can allow. I'm told it works very well in the N.H....a new EPROM (yet to be tested) is on its way to the S.H. to fix the multi star errors currently seen here. Using T-Point (Bisque) I could get the system to be "dead-nuts" on every time when driving the mount with The Sky. LX200 protocol works well, with only the SYNC feature disabled. Users can set date, location and PC time from the PC to the Gemini controller. With encoders attached the mount can also be positioned manually, yet still be electronically slewed (you go back to 4096 encoder accuracy after a manual move, but re-aligning on one star/object after the move puts you back to several million counts per rev resolution) Noise level....not as quiet as the Astrometrics GOTO system, but then again if slewed at 800x the system is significantly quieter than say a Meade LX200. Tracking accuracy...yet to be quantatively tested, but on visual inspection, the drive seems very smooth, with no hint of "jitter" sometimes seen with the current stepper drive. The menus are accessed with a standard Losmandy 4 button paddle. Press N or S to go up and down through Menus. Press West to execute to go deeper into that menu, press east to go back. After 10 minutes you'll be a wiz. The motor torque is impressive. With 12.5" RC and 55 pounds of counterweight the test G-11 did not stall at 1000x This is not however a recomended payload ;) Given the Gemimi system does not need a PC, but can be PC driven and T-Point modelled, I'd say at the price the new GoTo will be pretty hard to beat. Regards Peter Ward (Losmandy's Australian dealer)

Don't know what happened to my previous post, Dam e-groups, and web-tv. I have to post from my e-mail to get on these groups with any success. Milton. Rockett's recommendation is also a very good one. The grease he is referring to is most likely used in bicycle cranksets, and surely has outstanding properties. Very similar usage/conditions IMO. I started using Castrol Syntec Grease at first. Now I use another full synthetic grease, made by Permatex, called "Super Lube", which has Teflon added. Mark

Hi Milton There are so many types of grease to choose from. (Most will work just fine) My reasoning is to look for greases that are designed to operate with a wide Temp range. This usually applies to most synthetic greases. A simple trip to an auto-supply store will most likely stock brands such as Castrol, or Mobil. Those such as Lithium, Teflon, Moly, etc. should all work just fine. Under High summer temps some greases can separate/run, so choose one that has abilities not to liquify, and run. Naturally, the Losmandy mounts don't rotate at 5000 RPM, so you won't have to worry about heat damaging the bearings, or shaft surfaces. :-) The greases involved here should be designed for bearings, handling loads, and inhibit corrosion. The most important thing as I have brought up previously, is to get into the habit of periodically inspecting, and lubing the mount. WIth good common sense, and care, they will perform flawlessly for many, many years. Sure hope I haven't confused you more! Mark

I'm just about to finally order my GM-8 and was wondering about counter weight recommendations. I'm putting a M603 on it. It's weight is speced at 12.5 lbs on ITE's site. Markus, with his usual saracsm assures me his 6kg (13.4lb) weight is correct, and I've been told by one who has weighed it that it is 13.2lbs *including* the dewcap which is supposed to be about 2lbs itself. So taking the worst case scenario (Markus's weight) of 13.4lbs + 2lb (dewcap) + 1lb (2" diagaonal estimate) + 1lb (eyepiece) = 17.4lbs. I'm also going to use the G-11 saddle plate which is about 1.25lbs heavier than the standard saddle plate (although very close into to the axis so shouldn't add too much torque). So I have a total of about 18.5-19lbs I'm also thinking of putting my 80mm f6 piggyback and it weighs 6lbs including 2" diagonal and eyepiece. I was looking at adding another 7lb weight, but I'm not sure how much extra leverage the counterweights get being further out from the RA axis compared to the scope so I don't know if 7lbs would be enough or if I should get the 11 lb weight. Anybody with these kinds of OTA weights on the mount who can give some suggestions? TIA P.S. Has anybody seen the GM-8, G-11, and GP-DX dovetails? If so could you give me some idea of the relative sizes of the cross sections (i.e. is the G-11 2x the size of a GM-8 for example). I'm trying to get a handle on how much more weight the two Losmandy dovetails are going to add compared to the standard GP-DX dovetail that comes with the M603.

Hi Karl, It's good to hear from another GM100 owner. How do you find the tracking accuracy of your mount? Any tricks that have improved it? Any tricks to improve (remove slop from) the DEC tangent arm? Paul Sterngold --- Karl Moll <karlmoll@...> wrote: > I also have the GM100 and ST-4 and do not use the PEC. It seems to > work fine without it. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Kick off your party with Yahoo! Invites. http://invites.yahoo.com/

With all the hoopla about the new GOTO Losmandy system I wondered if anyone else used one of the other aftermarket Losmandy GOTO retrofits like "AIM Control" (http://www.qei-motion.com") or Skywalker"(http://www.astrometric.com) They talk about servo based vs "brushless" motors..etc. What about accuracy, easy of use and alignment procedures? Thanks Jay

Finished processing more of my images from the last week at ARGO. I have arrived at the conclusion that there is no escaping the need for lots and lots of exposure at f/8. Some of the newer images are composites of 6-8 10 minute exposures, and they could have used lots more. Just have to learn more patience. You can tell that I really enjoy the fields of galaxies, but tonight I plan on trying the barlow trick, which will make my 4" f/8 Tak about f/20 (2.5X barlow). Hope the mount is up to the task. I also took the mount apart and cleaned and regreased the bearings, as suggested by nearly every Losmandy owner I have heard from. I'll report results soonly. Latest images are at http://www.proaxis.com/~carrico/ Scroll down to the Takahashi section to see the NEW images. Thanks Tom Carrico

Boys! Take a look at this page: http://www.ozemail.com.au/~atsscope/goto.html It looks lovely (at a price. :p) When will it be available? Edward Tam

Secondary system question please: already own a DM10 plate for the G-11, but would like to use it for double duty with 6" A-P rings. Other than the whole pattern, is the DM10 identical to the DAP6 for thickness & strength? Thanks - Otto

I've recently ordered an Intes MK66 Mak-Cass scope and hope to mount it on a GM-8 mount. I've been told that the universal dovetail plate doesn't match up to the MK66 and has to have minor modifications in order to work. Does anyone know if this is still an issue, or has the problem been corrected? I'd hate to spend that much money on a mount and still have to attack it with a drill to get it all together! ;-) Thanks, and Clear Skies! Carl

A couple of questions and hopefully some recommendations from the group. It's been quite a while since I've had a scope for observing, but the bug has bitten again. Years ago, I had a Cave Astrola on a GEM and a few years after that, a C-8 on a fork mount. Currently, I'm most interested in a Celestron 9.25, but I don't like Celestron's mount. Question 1. Would the Losmandy GM-8 be adequate with the 9.25 or is this overkill for visual use only? Question 2. Are there other mount options for this instrument? Actually, I always thought the fork mount was fine for visual use, but it's no longer available for the 9.25.

Years ago, I was a subscriber to the APML list. Most folks there suggested that I leave PEC turned off when autoguiding- let the autoguider take care of all corrections. That's how I currently use my GM100 mount and ST4. Paul Sterngold --- Julie and Tom Carrico <carrico@...> wrote: > Hi Greg, > I do not use the King tracking rate. My impression was it works for > low to the horizon shots. Since I do not have a complete understanding > of it, I have never tried it. > I have not tried the PEC, but I am thinking about giving it a try to > see if it provides any help. I am a little bothered by the fact that I > would have to retrain it every time I use it, but if it works, it > would be worth it. > > Tom C > > > > Greg Crawford wrote: > > > > Tom, > > > > After another night fine tuning my G11 I still have not achieved your > > guiding error rate. > > > > So I'll keep trying. :-) > > > > Two more questions: Do you use the King tracking rate? Do you find that > the > > PEC helps? > > > > Greg Crawford > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > > From: Julie and Tom Carrico [mailto:carrico@...] > > > Sent: Saturday, 5 August 2000 12:53 AM > > > To: Losmandy_users@... > > > Subject: Re: [Losmandy_users] Recent 4" Tak Images from last > > > weekend at > > > ARGO > > > > > > > > > Greg, > > > The delay after correction (usually about .8 seconds) is absolutely > > > required. Until I did that, my corrections were always in the .5 to 1 > > > pixel range. The mount was still responding to the prior move when > the > > > next guiding exposure was started. > > > If I use a tracking rate of more than 2 seconds, and there is a > change > > > in RA and DEC (my minimum move times are usually .2 to .25 seconds), > > > then it can be up to 2+.2+.2+.8+.8 = 4 seconds between corrections. > > > This now starts to get kind of long. I have noticed that the way my > > > drive works is that it hums along pretty well, and then has a jump of > > > .7 or so pixels that is usually guided out on the next correction. If > > > I wait too long between corrections, it will be too long before the > > > error is guided out. > > > I am still working with the drive. Since it is brand new, I have not > > > yet taken it all apart for a cleaning as recommended by so many other > > > G-11 motors. For the most part, I am very satisfied. The DSC are just > > > great and the mount is well built. > > > > > > Tom C > > > > > > Greg Crawford wrote: > > > > > > > > Tom, > > > > > > > > +/- .2 pixels is excellent. Would you have obtained the > > > same level of > > > > guiding accuracy ifyou had exposed the tracking CCD for > > > say, 2 secs, without > > > > any delay? > > > > > > > > Greg Crawford > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > > > > Losmandy_users-unsubscribe@... > > > > > > -------------------------------------------------------------- > > > ------<e|- > > > Free Conference Calling with Firetalk! > > > Click Here! > > > http://click.egroups.com/1/5480/5/_/_/_/965400714/ > > > -------------------------------------------------------------- > > > ------|e>- > > > > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > > > Losmandy_users-unsubscribe@... > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: > > Losmandy_users-unsubscribe@... > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Kick off your party with Yahoo! Invites. http://invites.yahoo.com/

Signing off for 10 days ...going to look at some property near Bishop Cal for my 30inch observatory site...OK, actually looking at retirement property, but with the 30 inch in mind. Clear skies Bill

Howdy I just joined this group. I have a G11 mount. One of the annoyances I initially had was stiction, especially in the dec axis, when the mount was moved manually to use the analog setting circles or sweeping the field without using the axis motion paddle. The dec axis is especially prone to this stiction because the weight of the saddle and load is supported by the nylon washer in the clutch assmbly rather then the roller bearings as is the case on the RA axis. It gets noticeably worse as the temperature drops. THE SOLUTION: I replaced both axis nylon washers with teflon washers fabbed out of 0.030in sheet. This has completely solved the stiction problem and made the motions buttery smooth. Also I found the green grease used to lube bicycle bearings to work well for lubing the rollar bearings. A little goes a long way. Bill Faatz

Hi all, We had some okay nights at our observatory in central Oregon this last weekend. 3 nights were clear with reasonable seeing, but some high clouds. Two other nights had us chasing holes in the clouds. Still, any night under the stars is wonderful. Continuing to work out all the bugs on the G-11. When it is all tuned up, it works just great. However, it seems to be very sensitive to balance in RA. During guiding, the mount is kept heavy to the east. This means that with the RA clutch loose, the scope will move and you must pay attention when moving from the sky. If it is not that heavy, the RA tracking suffers. I have also found that the tracking rate that works best is 1.3 to 1.5 seconds with a delay between corrections (as set in MaxImCCD) of 0.8 seconds. If the delay is not set or is set too low, the mount seems to chase corrections all over the place. With the mount balanced and the guiding rate and delay properly set, and when used with my 4" Tak (820 mm focal length), the tracking error is usually +/- 0.2 pixels with an occassional flier of .7 or .8 that gets corrected immediately. The camera is an ST-7E. My latest images are: http://www.proaxis.com/~carrico/bubble_tak4.htm http://www.proaxis.com/~carrico/cocoon_tak4.htm http://www.proaxis.com/~carrico/n1530_tak4.htm http://www.proaxis.com/~carrico/n5905_tak4.htm The bubble nebula has been retouched to remove the blooming, as has the cocoon. Tough images that will get another look next month. I have learned that imaging at f/8 just requires lots of exposure. The galaxy images could have used 2x the time I used here. That's also for next month. There will be more images posted later this week. Thanks Tom Carrico http://www.proaxis.com/~carrico/

Hi Gil, To get at the dual Roller Bearings inside the Dec. Assembly, you must first remove the Saddle Plate, which is held on by 4 Allen Cap Screws. (You may have to tap the allen wrench with a hammer to break the bolts loose, Mine were tight.) Then you will need a large set of Snap Ring Pliers to remove the Snap ring that is present under the Saddle Plate (I found a pair at Sears, Small snap ring pliers will not do the job adequately, it is a large ring) There are a couple of washers then I believe to come out. (Don't lose thier orientation0, Then the Large Dec.Clutch Wheel will unscrew from the shaft. You will then be able to lift the Sub-Saddle Assembly (What the Top Saddle Plate bolts to) completely off the Dec Shaft. Clean the two Rollers Bearings very well with a solvent like Turpentine/Naptha/Gasoline (Don't smoke!), and then repack the bearings with your finger with a high quality grease. Reverse this order for reassembly. The difference will be dramatic! (Two finger movement at the scope once it's balanced) If you have any questions feel free to e-mail me, Mark

OK, enough of the teflon washer. I wonder if anyone has a solution to this problem. Over the course of an evening's observing, I notice that the front leg of my G11 starts sinking into the dirt (according to the bubble level). This is the one directly below the dec counterweights, so it sees the bulk of the weight distribution. The other legs are probably wandering too. This causes my initial alignment to wander off, and consequently makes it harder to locate objects with the setting circles. The ground out here in northern California where I observe is largely adobe. Anyway, I wonder if there is some aftermarket product like a shoe that would slip into or over the ends of the existing legs and help distribute the weight over a larger area. Another observer with a G11 uses old TV Guide mags under the legs, but I was thinking of a more elegant solution. Bill

List, As it turns out, the HGM 200 has the same stiction problem. I had the mount out for its shakedown cruise this last weekend in Chiefland, FL. The HGM 200 uses a large (~7") diameter nylon pad between the RA head and the DEC head. Should this be greased to allow better control over pointing? Also, after the weekend, I noticed that this nylon pad was scored from the screws on the back of the RA encoder gear. Apparently, this was due to burrs on the holes for the bolts that hold the RA encoder gear in place. Is this a problem? What should I do about it? The DEC axis uses two large thrust bearings. I'm not sure how to get to these to properly lubricate them. The RA axis uses two large thrust bearings as well, but they're easy to get to, once the DEC head has been removed. Also, there's a RA clutch bearing that's also easy to get to... simply remove the RA clutch on the front of the DEC head (make sure you have a counterweight on) and the bearing sits between two circular "washers", each about 4" diameter. The mount is an absolute brick house, and experiences little induced vibration, but is a real bear when its time to pack up. -- Gil

Hi List, With all the talk about GoTo on the G-8 and G-11, I took a look at the Losmandy web page and found that only the G-8 and G-11 are specified for use with the GoTo system. Does anyone know if the HGM-200 will have a GoTo available? -- Gil