Tak Teegul or DiscMount DC6 for TEC140

Dear Evan

I read a posting in TEC/Yahoo group about putting the Tec-140 on Tak Teegul Mount which has slo-mo function. I got my TEC-140 #117. It is such a gem! I love to play around with the focusor and the rotator. Fun fun fun! So it is understandable that I want to get the best Alt-azu mount to mate with it. The choice I narrow down to is DiscMount DC-6, that is until I read the TEC/Yahho posting about the TEC-140/Teegul combo. That put me into 2nd thought about the DiscMount. I read with surprise that the Tak Teegull can ssupport the wt. of Tec140. Then the next Tec/Yahoo posting confuse me further. Another reader use the Dsicmount upto 300X and just finger knudge the scope for tracking! I always thought that the Teegul can only support the capcity of Sky90. Presently I have a Universal Astronomics Surveyor wood tripod plus the dual axle Giro mount. Very stable but not smooth enough. Which way should I go: Discmount or the Tak Teegul? Can you fellows help me out?

Hi Eddie:

I also read the Teegul comments on the TEC yahoo group. I own a Teegul, and I own a TEC 140. I do not have the courage to put my TEC on the stock Lapides Teegul. The connection between the two axes of the mount seems too light weight.

I love the Teegul. The slow motion controls are fabulous of course. I am sure that Discmounts, large Giros, and the other heavy duty alt-az solutions are wonderful pieces of engineering. On the other hand, the Teegul slow motion controls and very nice axis locks allow you to bump a scope accidentally, or change eyepieces without worrying about re-acquiring the viewing object.

I think you are about right regarding the Teegul's appropriate capacity. Mine worked great with an 80mm refractor. I have read about using an AP 130 with the Teegul, but that is a famously compact and light scope.

Thus, I personally am thinking about machining some large scale reinforcement parts to beef up the Teegul. In particular, I want to beef up the connection between the two axes. I would love to use the Teegul with my APO 140. I just don't think it's up to the task now. My humble opinion of course. - Jim -

I've heard very good things about the stability and smoothness of a Discmount...but you pay for what you get. This is a snap of my TEC 140 (#70) and its UA Unistar Deluxe with Argo Navis DSCs, another viable choice in the race for a good alt/az mount. Good luck!

Walter

Attached Image:

Eddie, quick question - you do use counterweights on your Giro, right? I have used my TEC140 on a Giro and when I had it balanced well, the motions were pretty smooth. I live near you and look at planets most of the time, too. I also have the Lapides-mod Teegul and although it works great for a Sky90, there's no way I would put the TEC140 on it! I once saw something even worse...someone put a TOA130 on a Gibraltar

Mark

Eddie,
I had the Universal Astronomics UniStar and like it very much, but wanted a cradle type mount. I purchased an 8" Helix Hercules cradle mount and like it too. The Hercules is about the same as the UniStar when it comes to being solid. Early this morning I was tracking Jupiter at 326x without any issues. So Many choices....
Stu

Attached Image: