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ASTRO-PHYSICS German Equatorial 1200GTO, Manual, Page: 34 / 38

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ASTRO-PHYSICS German Equatorial 1200GTO Manual Download Page 34

STANDARD PIER ADAPTER OF THE 1200 MOUNT  

 

The 1200 series mount is designed to fit into our 10" outside diameter pier, which is available in several heights. The pier 
adapter of the 1200 mount shown above fits into the post (aluminum tube) of the pier assembly and is secured with six (6) 5/16-
18 screws at the location marked C. 

If you want to make your own pier, you can either use these six (6) side holes (marked C) or you can use the four (4) 
countersunk through-holes (marked A) located on the top of the plate. You can also drill additional countersunk holes to fit your 
specific requirements. 

A.  Countersunk through-holes for ¼-20 cap screws – you can use these four (4) holes to attach the mount to a flat 

surface. These holes are on a 3.75" radius bolt-circle.  

B.  The rest of the mount attaches to these locations with hand knobs.  

C.  These six (6) 5/16-18 threaded holes are spaced every 60° on the circumference.  

D.  The screw that is installed at this location is used to help center the rest of the mounting during assembly.  

 

 
 

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Summary of Contents for German Equatorial 1200GTO

Page 1: ......

Page 2: ... Assembly to Pier or Tripod 12 Polar Alignment Part 1 Rough Alignment 13 Altitude and Azimuth Adjustments Rough polar alignment 13 Assemble Declination Axis 14 Removing Declination Axis at the End of your Observing Session 14 Attach Mounting Plate purchased separately 15 Attach Counterweight Shaft and Counterweights 16 Attach Mounting Rings and Scope purchased separately 16 Polar Alignment Part 2 ...

Page 3: ...G TEMPERATURES 27 MOUNT CARE CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE 28 Care 28 Cleaning and Touch up 28 Routine Mount Maintenance 28 ADDITIONAL TIPS AND SUPPORT 28 TROUBLESHOOTING 29 RECOMMENDED READING FROM OUR STAFF 32 STANDARD PIER ADAPTER OF THE 1200 MOUNT 33 CLUTCH PLUG REPLACEMENT FOR 900 OR 1200 MOUNT 34 Construct Your Own Clutch Plug Extraction Tool 35 CHARACTERIZING THE DEC AXIS MOTIONS 36 ASTRO PHYSIC...

Page 4: ... 1200RPA 10 O D pier Astro Physics has several heights and styles to choose from Counterweights 5 lb 5SCWT 10 lb 10SCWT and 18 lb 18SCWT are available Portable rechargeable 12 volt battery pack Several sizes and types are available from a variety of vendors Be sure that your battery pack can supply adequate power for an entire observing session see power requirements under Features and Specificati...

Page 5: ...nts pointer Declination 1 degree increments pointer Motors Zero cogging servo motors Power Consumption 0 4 amps at the sidereal rate 3 amps both motors slewing Power requirements 12 VDC range 11 5 to 16V higher than 12V recommended for very cold temps and heavy loads but DO NOT exceed 18V Weight of mount Equatorial head 81 lbs 36 7 kg Dec axis 31 lbs 14 1 kg R A axis 50 lbs 22 7 kg Counterweight s...

Page 6: ...ication that makes it easy to characterize and reduce periodic error PEMPro will analyze the performance of any mount that is equipped with a CCD camera and compatible camera control software PEMPro gives you powerful tools to program your mount s periodic error correction firmware to achieve the best possible performance for your mount PEMPro dramatically improves guided and unguided imaging resu...

Page 7: ...ase choose one as shown below 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 80 70 Counterweight optional Counterweight knob Counterweight shaft Declination axis housing Sight hole cover Dec Cable connector Dec Motor gearbox housing Dec Clutch knobs 4 Dec Lock knob 2 R A Clutch knobs 4 Right ascension axis housing Control box GTOCP3 Altitude locking knob Polar axis pivot screw Altitude adjustment knob Altitude adjustmen...

Page 8: ...ot with an instrument fully mounted 2 Loosen both altitude locking knobs about 1 turn 3 Locate the side of the polar axis that does not have the motor gearbox housing Loosen about 1 turn the polar axis pivot screw and altitude adjuster bar fixing screws on this side only With your hand push the polar axis upwards so that the altitude locking knobs are positioned at the top of the altitude slot thi...

Page 9: ...at the altitude adjustment knob is attached to a threaded rod that travels through the altitude adjuster bar Turn the knob so that the altitude adjuster bar is positioned approximately in the middle of the threaded rod You should see about half of the threaded rod protruding from both sides of the altitude adjuster bar This will allow you to move the mount fully within the altitude range 22º 38º B...

Page 10: ...ots when making azimuth adjustments The screw head has been machined to assure a close fit Please do not replace it with another screw Standard Pier Adapter 1200SPA This 1200 Pier Adapter is similar to those that we have included with mounts in the past however the azimuth adjuster block is slightly taller to accommodate the improved azimuth adjuster assembly on all 1200GTO mounts produced after J...

Page 11: ...like the Standard Pier Adapter and fasten it from the side with the six screws and washers provided Again make sure that the Azimuth Adjuster Block is on the north side Attach to a flat surface on your own pier The Precision Adjust Rotating Pier Adapter must fit inside another part and be bolted from the side It cannot be bolted through the top as you can with the Standard Pier Adapter We recommen...

Page 12: ...pole side and fasten from the side with the six screws and washers provided Attach to a flat surface on your own pier The Hi Lo Latitude Wedge must fit inside another part and be bolted from the side It cannot be bolted through the top as you can with the Standard Pier Adapter For custom installations we recommend our 1200 Flat Surface Adapter 1200FSA The Flat Surface Adapter bolts onto the flat p...

Page 13: ... assembly process you want to position the mount so that it points roughly north 1 Remove the four 4 pier adapter knobs from the Pier Adapter and keep them close at hand 2 Prior to lifting the polar axis assembly into place turn the fine azimuth adjustment knobs so that the space between them is wide enough to allow the pier adapter s azimuth block to fit easily between them Ensure both pier top a...

Page 14: ...to the other side 3 Azimuth adjustments To begin with move or turn the entire pier or tripod east or west until the mount is oriented approximately towards the pole an imaginary line drawn through the hollow shaft Use the two fine azimuth adjustment knobs one on each side of the mount to make adjustments You must back off the opposing azimuth knob in order to move the other knob in that direction ...

Page 15: ... downward direction arrow A will help to correctly seat the principle dovetail s and parallel guides 5 When both Dec and R A assemblies are fully seated hand tighten both Dec lock knobs 6 Thread the counterweight shaft into the Dec axis 7 Remove the Safety Stop from the base of the counterweight shaft Add sufficient counterweights 10 or 18 lb counterweights are purchased separately to the declinat...

Page 16: ...n Astro Physics mounting rings The plate weighs an amazing 9 5 lbs for its size This is a view of the rib structure on the underside of the 24 plate Attach this plate with six 1 4 20 x1 socket head cap screws 8 5 DOVETAIL FOR LOSMANDY D SERIES PLATE DOVELM2 This Astro Physics plate attaches to the 400 600E 900 and 1200 mounts If you already own one of the Losmandy DAP series fits Astro Physics ref...

Page 17: ...s on the mounting plate then open the rings lift the scope in place close the rings and tightened the knobs To balance the scope you can loosen the knobs enough to slide the scope forward or backward as needed Another approach is to attach the rings to the scope beforehand then lift onto the mounting plate However the rings must be spaced exactly the correct distance apart to match the holes in th...

Page 18: ... Adapter with Azimuth Bearing 1200RPA The Precision Adjust Rotating Pier Adapter consists of two plates that allow ultra smooth adjustments for critical polar alignment When using the Precision Adjust Rotating Pier Adapter tighten the pier knobs fully by hand It is not necessary to use a wrench These will remain tight during and after the adjustment procedure Also please note that the altitude axi...

Page 19: ...pages 7 and 8 if you are unsure about these parts It is also possible to make fine altitude adjustments by using the turnbuckle on the north leg of our pier if used One full turn of the altitude knob is approximately 0 5 degrees 30 arc minutes Tips for Adjusting the Altitude The mount s polar axis is held in place between the two side plates It is possible for the mount to shift slightly when the ...

Page 20: ...ope 3 How tight can the clutch be and can you do any damage by pushing against them The maximum tightness of this clutch system is 1 3 turn with a 5 32 hex key further in than the tension you can achieve with the knobs by hand You will see that each clutch knob has a 5 32 hex socket for tightening with a hex key With this extra 1 3 turn on each clutch knob the axis axes will be considered complete...

Page 21: ...obs Again be careful because if your scope is significantly un balanced it may swing rapidly in the out of balance direction 3 Move the counterweight s up or down to achieve the correct balance in R A Again movement back and forth about the R A axis should have the same feel in both directions 4 Re set the tightness of all 8 clutch knobs to the resistance you want making sure that each axis 4 clut...

Page 22: ...t You can see that the unit is machined of aluminum and is built to be rugged however it is not indestructible Lead Free Electronics Starting in 2006 we began phasing in lead free electronics for all of our mounts In the first phase all GTO mounts and other electronics shipped to customers in the European Union were built with lead free electronic components due to RoHS regulations that went into ...

Page 23: ...ftware to give instruction to slew to a new object the commands RA and Dec coordinates are sent to the mount We provide two serial port connections on the mount so that you can use two software programs simultaneously For instance you can use PulseGuide for advanced mount control while using TheSky as a planetarium program The telescope control functions of TheSky are more limited so using both in...

Page 24: ...rom your control box particularly useful on dewy nights Please do not plug these holes Removing the GTO Control Box From 1200 Mount The GTO control box can be removed easily from the RA axis It is secured by two 8 32 set screws located at the base of the GTO Servo Control Box Loosen the screws with one of the hex keys from the set included with the mount Lift the box up from the bottom and tilt so...

Page 25: ...ll native error significantly by loading the error curve from our extensive testing procedures into the servo system The resulting error that remains should be negligible and will probably be satisfactory for all but the most demanding applications You can however reduce the error even further to maximize performance without auto guiding by recording a much longer run with PEMPro that will average...

Page 26: ... CCD cameras and autoguiders focus motors illuminated guiding eyepiece reticles power cords for the Pentax 6x7 camera etc As you attach each accessory carefully assess the best position to assure complete movement as your telescope slews from one side of the mount to the other If an external power source is used determine the optimum location for the battery Beginning with the 2007 production run ...

Page 27: ... and scope with the wire loop containing all the cables from the CCD camera color filter wheel remote focuser and Kendrick Dew Remover If you look closely you will notice that the two clutch knobs were removed and replaced with special Allen head bolts This allowed the Dec cable to slide easily over the axis in all orientations and there was no snagging of the wire anywhere Please call Astro Physi...

Page 28: ... lubricate each of the spur gears and their sleeve bearings with a light machine oil When warmer weather returns this can be replaced with a light grease Lubriplate 105 which will reduce the wear factor in warm temperatures Third under very extreme temperature conditions below 20F it may be necessary to replace the grease on the worm wheel teeth with a lighter material The mounts use a special for...

Page 29: ...ay end up with scuff marks from repeated transport and assembly disassembly Most of the time these marks can be removed with a product like Color Back by Turtlewax automotive product Simply apply with a paper towel and buff out the mark If your paint becomes chipped touch up kits are available for purchase please call us NOTE Paint touch up kits can only be sold to U S customers because of regulat...

Page 30: ...ewing the two motors draw up to 3 amps from a 12 volt source This may increase when the temperature approaches freezing or below It is recommended that your supply be rated at 5 amps 12 volts DC minimum 18 volts max If you also power other equipment CCD cameras dew heaters etc from the same source you will need a supply capable of up to 10 amps The more equipment you have the more current capabili...

Page 31: ...he worm and worm wheel not being in mesh this is often the case when a used mount is purchased and the previous owner never ever adjusted the worm mesh or the mesh was altered during shipment When the worm is out of mesh it takes the motor many seconds to reverse the tooth contact from leading to trailing edge because it is running at the very slow sidereal rate One could simply dial in an appropr...

Page 32: ...en show some hidden problems when you try to keep the star on the crosshairs Alternately you can use PEMProAP or the full version of PEMPro to characterize your periodic error It will tell you things like the peak value and the smoothness of the error You can also characterize your mount tracking and guiding abilities using the Characterizing the Dec Motions test outlined in the Technical Support ...

Page 33: ...trated All About Telescopes Sam Brown Edmund Scientific Company 1975 Sky Pub Corp 5th edition June 1981 ISBN 0933346204 Excellent information regarding the principles of mount construction and operation using setting circles eyepiece projection etc Illustrations and formulas galore Many of the instruments pictured are outdated however the underlying principles are timeless Norton s 2000 0 Star Atl...

Page 34: ...ked C or you can use the four 4 countersunk through holes marked A located on the top of the plate You can also drill additional countersunk holes to fit your specific requirements A Countersunk through holes for 20 cap screws you can use these four 4 holes to attach the mount to a flat surface These holes are on a 3 75 radius bolt circle B The rest of the mount attaches to these locations with ha...

Page 35: ... to 1 pound hammer A light machine oil example 3 in 1 Replacement of old Clutch Plugs Removal of the old plugs will be done by hammering the special screwdriver into the old plug This will create a driving slot for the screwdriver blade Please follow the steps below Remove the clutch knob from the clutch plug hole Insert the screwdriver into the clutch plug hole and press down firmly make sure the...

Page 36: ...Construct Your Own Clutch Plug Extraction Tool 35 ...

Page 37: ...CHARACTERIZING THE DEC AXIS MOTIONS 36 ...

Page 38: ...00E 2 1 4 20x5 8 FHSCS for mounting to 1200 4 1 4 20x3 4 SHCS for mounting to 900 or 1200 DOVELM16 S 16 Dovetail Plate for Losmandy D Series Plate for 1200GTO S version for 900 or Mach1GTO 6 1 4 20x1 SHCS for mounting to 900 or 1200 4 1 4 20x7 8 SHCS for Mach1GTO 900RP 15 Ribbed Plate for 900 or Mach1GTO 6 1 4 20x1 FHSCS for mounting to 900 4 1 4 20x1 1 4 FHSCS for mounting Mach1GTO 1200RP15 15 Ri...

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