How to TUNE Skywatcher AZEQ5 or Orion Sirius Pro AZ/EQ-G - remove backlash for better photos!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 ส.ค. 2020
- Tuning the SkyWatcher AZEQ5 / Orion Sirius Pro AZ/EQ-G is more complex than tuning the EQ6R / Atlas II Pro - but it it still quite easy! I guide you through the steps in this video. Much greater stability can be achieved, although the mount will still be quite sensitive to wind.
Note that I am not mechanically inclined, so make sure to check any comments below about whether I'm doing anything wrong!
If you've been wanting to get more performance out of your SkyWatcher AZEQ5 / Orion Sirius Pro AZ/EQ-G mount, this is the video for you!
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#astrophotography #skywatcher #AZ-EQ5 - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
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Thanks! Your video helped me tune the backlash out for both Dev and Ra quickly. Thanks!
Hey Cuiv, thx a lot for your description. Now I was able to solve my backlash issues in a easy way!
Excellent to hear, glad it was helpful!
THANK YOU for this excellent guide and explanation of how to correct this ANNOYING issue! I have owned a Sirius Pro AZ/EQ-G for a number of years and finally gave up and shelved it almost 3 years ago due to it being unusable, especially in alt-az mode due to the excessive backlash. Your clear and concise video showed me exactly how to fix it, and it was really an easy process. Thank you again!!
I don't know how many times I saw this video before finally attempting this today. My horrible wobble in RA is gone. Thanks a ton.. you probably saved me £450.
Glad it helped!!
Sorry for my English. Thank you for your video. Thanks to you I solved the annoying backlash I had in declination, but above all in right ascension. Thanks a lot, Moreno
Your English is fine :D Excellent to hear that this helped solve the backlash on your mount, I'm so glad this helped!
Just did this today. Can’t believe what a difference mine was so loose. Have to see how it tracks. !! Thanks. Was was able to do it no problem without disconnecting anything.
I have found that leaving the ota and image train and counterweights connected is really necessary to get a real assessment of worm mesh backlash. The weight really affects how the adjustment will end up. The other thing to watch is how much end play exists on the worm before loosening the worm block. Great video- I will be posting a video of this process for the ioptron IEQ30 Pro.
Keep up the good work Cuiv!
I love your YT name :-) Very true too, having the axes loaded is good practice, thanks for mentioning it!
It worked! Tuned my AZGT5 yesterday and went from occasional elongated stars to almost no tracking errors with a total RMS error of around .9. Thanks for the tutorial!
Awesome!!
Good guide. Would be also great to know how you can calculate the backlash compensation in degrees, minutes ,seconds to enter in to the hand controller for permanent software compensation
Great video. It is recommended though to have your ra and dec slightly off balanced so as to prevent any wobble due to backlash, but it is difficult to prevent wobble due to backlach when approaching the zenith I believe.
Wow great! Well explain now ppl with AZEQ5 GT or PRO can have a good fine tuning 🔭😍
Good luck with the tuning!
This video is helpful and better than owners who unbox the mount then install a long OTA and gripe about play in the RA/DEC axes. Removing backlash by adjusting the worm drive to worm gear mesh on the axes will depend on the length or your telescope (a long refractor will impose higher moments of inertia than a short refractor or compact reflector like a MakCass) and the outside operating temperature. In cold weather, meshing the gear interface too closely (tightly) will cause binding. If one lives in northern climates, these adjustments may have to be done twice, for summer or winter operation.
You are absolutely right, I should have mentioned this in the video!
Yes, this mount is more like a swiss watch, on the declination axis. I would like to have seen what's under the hood on the RA axis. Very interested in this mount because I have one on order arriving in one week!
Sorry I didn't show the RA axis - it really, really is exactly the same layout in terms of motor, worm assembly, and gear! I hope the mount will perform well for you once it arrives! Clear skies (despite the new equipment curse) and good luck!
Great video! Can this mount be hypertuned with aftermarket belts and sprockets ⚙️?
Cuiv, I suggest improving on ergonomics. Get a quick adjust stool, kneepads or a bit of sleeping mat instead of hunching over through entire videos. Great content as always! 👍
Hahaha ergonomics for video shooting is definitely something I should be working on at some point!
Vielen Dank für dieses lehrreiche Video, viele Grüße aus Dortelweil Deutschland
Hello Cuiv, thanks for the demonstration, I have recently purchased a used az-eq5 pro and found that I always experienced elongated stars on exposure of 10 mins, my guiding error is around 0.5 but I notice that there is wobble issue on the saddle , do you think I need a tuning on the axis or is the problem caused by differential flexures?
I owned an AZEQ5 and R200SS, do you think AZEQ5 can carry R200SS? (my camera is an QHY268C, with a very light guide scope, 60mm+QHY-5-IIM)
I've done it - it can, but make sure you have absolutely zero wind!
As an AZ-EQ5 owner for more than two years, my advice is to buy a HEQ5 or an EQ6-R instead of this mount. The main problems with this mount are the returning wobble of the axles and the extreme declination backlash. The encoders and the PPEC are useless features in practice.
This video explains well how to adjust the worm tension to remove the wobble of the axles (RA is exactly the same), but unfortunately the wobble slowly comes back by a tiny bit every time you lose the clutches. So, you need to do this adjustment frequently in every few months, depending on how often you loose the clutches. If you adjust the worm in cold weather, the adjustment will last longer. The other problem is the huge backlash in the declination axle (over 3000ms, while a belt-modified HEQ5 has around 600ms), which comes from the gears INSIDE the DEC motor housing, because it is not completely belt driven. You can't do anything with that. If it is adjusted correctly it's guided performance is sub-arcsecond, but it requires much more maintenance than other mounts in its class.
Wow, that's pretty bad... I haven't experienced much backlash in either DEC or RA on mine (at least after tuning), so guiding (and dithering) in DEC do not cause issues - I guess it could simply be mount variability, or recent parts changes from SW. It feels to me that the in-motor backlash of your DEC axis is a clear defect, and SW should have fixed that under warranty... Note that it is important to disable the encoders in EQMOD and the hand controller! They're actively harmful to guiding...
I'll see how mine holds up in the long term! Thanks for the feedback!
I am getting 0.9 - 1" guiding before tuning procedure in this video. There's definitely backlash in both axes(that's why I am watching this video), but I don't think mine is as terrible. At least the PHD2 Guiding Assistant never shows anything close to 3000ms
I've had my AZ-EQ5 for 6 years its been great :P
Great video, thank you!
I just ordered my AZ-EQ5 yesterday based on your videos. I found an open box going for $1255.
Planning to go with the HEQ5 but it has been out of stock for awhile now and with the price drop they are only $25 apart in price. Plus I don't have to worry about adding a belt kit to the HEQ5.
The comments section has me a little worried.
I plan to tune it according to your video but is there a way to give the mount a check-thru all around to make sure I don't have a lemon? I have 30 days to return it.
I still use the mount, and for my setup it works great!
I'd say you want to just have it guide across multiple parts of the sky, see if it works properly. BUT if you wish to keep the option to return it, maybe better not to mess with it too much? :)
@@CuivTheLazyGeek thanks for the vote of confidence and response Cuiv!
I'll give the mount a whirl, worst case I sell it used on cloudynights. It's my first mount so I probably have a long way before I out grow it.
Keep up the great work and keep putting out (AZ-Eq5) content!
Mmmmh... This seems definitely more complicated than the EQ6 tuning. Not quite sure, if I can do this 🤔 But anyway, thanks for the instructions and the inspiration on this topic!
It's honestly not that complicated. I am terrible at mechanics too!
@@CuivTheLazyGeek Hi Cuiv, happy new year! After lots of weeks with bad weather when there was nothing else to do, i finally tuned my mount, too. Overall it was really simple as you told before. I highly recommend for everyone to give it a try. Now i have to wait again for clear sky... Hope your doing well!
Hello Friends. I am an AZ EQ5 Pro user for a month now . By the way, what's the difference between the AZEQ5 GT and AZEQ5 PRO? I notice a very small backlash on both axis but does that makes it bad for visual use of the mount? I am not in astro photography. Thank Cuiv for the interesting video!.
Aha, this is an excellent question on the GT vs Pro, and I have no idea! I *think* the former comes with a standard tripod, while the other comes with that tripier thingy which is supposed to be Deluxe? I believe that's it... it's not super obvious to me. If you're in visual, you don't need to adjust the backlash, but if you're using an SCT with high focal length, adjusting the backlash will make the mount less sensitive to wind and less prone to vibration when adjusting the focus, so I would still recommend it...!
Hey you keep your tripods out in the open .. do you have issues with rust or other issues on their legs?
Yeah, it's a choice I make... There is rust forming on the feet. And extending the legs will probably no longer be easy... So I think I am indeed sacrificing the tripods. They seem to be surviving quite well for now though!
One way of helping to combat the rust, especially if you do not extend the legs, is to use some Plasti Dip Multi-Purpose Rubber Coating spray primer and spray paint or similar primer and paint. I find it even helps during the winter when it is cold.
Can carry this mount a 200/1000 Newtonian for imaging?
I wouldn't use it mainly for that, no. It may work, but you will want a beefier mount.
@@CuivTheLazyGeek
I am just askin' because its weight is only 9kg.
Just feel the RA & DEC lock are not so friendly compare to EQ6 with just a easy lock . This mount if tighten is a but hard to unscrew , might need some tools to get it lose.
Which part are you having trouble with? None of the screws gave me any difficulty...
@@CuivTheLazyGeek i mean the lock for tighten RA or DEC .. Black wheel lock is not so friendly... Ones tighten need unscrew need use force only can loose...
@@alexchong1979 Mmmh I don't really have that problem - inside the axis, the clutch is a large rubber brake pad, so you don't need to tighten the clutch a lot, unless grease has seeped onto that rubber pad! (that would be bad)
@@CuivTheLazyGeek oic.. been clean it ones last time duel to traveling alot...i tot must tighten everytime when tracking.
@@alexchong1979 Got it. If you need to clean the brake pad, check this one: stargazerslounge.com/topic/348584-skywatcher-az-eq5-tuning-regreasing/
Lot easier to do on a Losmandy GM8/G11
Good video, go to a garden store, get a knee pad.
sorry but this is insane; you spend $2000 on a device that has mediocre quality control :( We should NOT have to do this to get acceptable results