Lxd 650 questions

I recently purchased a used A LXD 650 WITH THE 102mm refractor.

I don't have experience with this type of mount, so please excuse the dumb questions.

Does the Dec motor connect to the RA plug (it shows it connected in the manual, and this is the only way the computer boots up, but this makes no sense to me).

Should the slewing noise sound like gears meshing ?
Should the drive have a less noisy, but still obvious gear meshing noise ?
It uses AC power - could someone recommend a portable battery pack ?

Thanks for any advice

Gary,

Regarding RA / DEC plus, Yes, it does...I never understood that but thats how it works.

The slewing noise should be noisy. "gear meshing" is relative. This motor and gearset is sort of primative, but it gets the job done. To make sure it works, pop the cover off, take off the green tape which covers the gearbox, and look at the gears while pressing the hand controller. If the all move with no skipping, you should be good.

The RA drive should be less noisy.

Power - do you have the 18v version? I think it runs on 18v, so I would plug the AC powercord into a powerpack battery with 110v outlet, and let the meade transformer bring it to 18v.