Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)It really is heavy. When you see the shipping weight you know it's going to be heavy. You don't really appreciate the mass till you actually lay hands on it. My first impression was utter disappointment though. The moment I powered on the mount it moved about an inch and began making horrible grinding noises.
After a few minutes I found the problem. The motor drive for the RA axis had moved. the gears were just barely touching. It seems the factory had left the bolt for the RA gearbox loose. Yes I said "bolt" there is just one and it is carefully hidden.
OK, after that scare I got the motors properly bolted in place. I went over the whole mount. I found lots of loose bolts. This doesn't speak well for Meade's QA. These mounts are Chinese made and allegedly inspected by Meade before shipping. Evidently that inspection doesn't get past counting the parts in the box.
The manual mostly covers Meade's scopes that can be included with this mount. If you are getting the mount only it's pretty unlikely one of those scopes are going to be sitting on the mount. The assembly directions are fairly complete but there nothing covering the actual operation of the mount. It's basically a component identification and good luck. Nothing on how to configure the polar alignment scope or any maintenance instructions. How to adjust the motors would be really nice since they were shipped basically unbolted.
After the initial trouble I got my scope (8" Newt) mounted and a clear night. I was really impressed with the tracking and GOTO accuracy of the scope. Even with my feeble attempt at polar alignment the mount performed very well. The mount really is heavy duty and bumping the scope is not going to knock it out of alignment.
The mount is very quiet when tracking but when slewing it's pretty loud. The noise doesn't bother me but some may find it annoying. There is an option to make the mount slew more slowly and therefore more quietly.
Pros: Really is heavy duty. Polar scope included. Quiet when tracking. Accurate tracking and Goto.
Cons: Really is heavy, wear a back brace! Initial quality, Look out for loose bolts. Documentation it pretty weak.
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Sturdy Mount with Heavy-Duty Castings Designed by Meade\'s engineers and manufactured for high-performance observing and astrophotography.Shaft & Bearing System The sturdy German Equatorial Mount is accurate and precise. The RA and Dec axes move effortlessly on four high precision stainless steel ball bearings. High-Precision Worm Gears Located on both axes for smooth tracking and slewing. High-Precision Pointing (HPP) For even more precise pointing use the HPP function. HPP puts objects in the center of the field-of view which allows you to confirm deep sky objects at the faintest limits of the telescope\'s capability. Periodic Error Correction Corrects periodic errors on the RA axis over the course of one or more training periods, thereby minimizing guiding corrections during long-exposure photography. 9-Speed Drive Controls From a rapid slew rate of 4.5°/sec. to 1x sidereal—it\'s all controlled from the AutoStar controller. 3-Star Alignment Ensures precise alignment. It eliminates the need for a complicated optical/mechanical alignment process. Heavy-Duty Tripod Variable-height field tripod with spreader bar brace provides the stability and vibration damping required for visual observation and astrophotography. Illuminated Polar Alignment Viewfinder For quick, precise polar alignment. Power Supply Powered by 8 D-size batteries. Can also be powered by optional car cigarette lighter or AC wall adapter. MEADE AUTOSTAR The AutoStar controller helps you quickly find, and GO TO over 30,000 objects in the night sky. View planets, stars, galaxies, nebulae, and comets\'all at the push of a button. AutoStar is pre-programmed with several guided tours, including the popular Tonight\'s Best. Input date, time and location—then let AutoStar take you on a guided tour of the best objects that particular night.
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