Posts Made By: Eric Williams

I have tried to comprehend the significance of what I am about to ask, however, I feel that I may be getting in over my head. I am new to the equipment procurement area of astronomy and have few face to face references for advice. I am looking into purchasing equipment of the highest quality (best resale vale if needed) that I can use for a lifetime. The first step in this journey is the mount. What I need to know is can I over-rate the mount? I know that too much weight on a mount can be very bad, but is the opposite also true? I am asking because the waiting list for the AP900GTO or the AP1200GTO is very long. If I go ahead and get the AP1200 and place a small scope (with possible upgrade way later), will that work? The AP900 will work for my near goals, but way way down the road it may not. (I am looking into the mount first due to the time it takes to get one.) I also would like to know if anyone knows the relative wait time for the AP mounts. That way I can arrange a financing from the loan shar… er um… loan brokers to pay for the mount.

P.S. For those of you who want to know what my overall goals are… astrophotography, wonderful planetary viewing, and superb deep space observing. Still considering that the scope will ultimately have Dall-Kirkham optics.

Thanks,

Eric

Rob,
I am not familiar with you equipment, however a well known flaw with alkaline batteries (if you are using them) is that they do not function below freezing. Keeping the battery above freezing is very important. You might want to switch battery types for freezing cold nights. P.S. This is why we are taught to place unused batteries in the freezer… to preserve them.

Eric