newbie cheap tracking mount worth it? 130$ on amazon?

[realflow100]

found a cheap tracking mount on amazon for 130$ (only rated for 11lb could be why its so cheap)

Could I use this to get long exposures with my camera and kit lens (18-55mm IS II lens) or with telescope?

It also finds stuff automatically too! is it worth it should I get it? any tracking is better than none at all right?

[Tailspin45]

I just went through a search for an affordable GOTO mount for astrophotography. The cheapest usable solution I could find was an Amazon Warehouse Deal for $550 ($699 MSRP).

My not so humble opinion is that bad tracking on a rickety mount is worse than none at all. You’ll drive yourself nuts trying to make it work when you could have been out there with a tripod taking nice star trails.

There certainly are cheaper ones but the consensus was that they are completely inadequate for photography, and barely adequate for visual astronomy. Meaning it might get you in the general vicinity of a object and once centered it would do a poor job of tracking such that any attempt at photography would produce a blurred image.

As someone here pointed out, when you buy a cheap mount what you’re really buying is frustration. They’re right based on my experience.

Click the One Day At A Time link in my signature. I’ve been keeping a running account of my journey to do astrophotography as inexpensively as possible. I learned from mistakes, maybe you can benefit from mine?

Have you considered a used iOptron SkyTracker Pro? Should be able that find one for about $150 used. Very portable.

[Refractordude]

found a cheap tracking mount on amazon for 130$ (only rated for 11lb could be why its so cheap)

Could I use this to get long exposures with my camera and kit lens (18-55mm IS II lens) or with telescope?

It also finds stuff automatically too! is it worth it should I get it? any tracking is better than none at all right?

which model

[realflow100]

Please dont buy it just to make it unavailable for me

I dont care if its shakey or makes blurry images as long as i can at least get SOMETHING visible vaguely resembling what object i want to track that would be amazing to me.

[Lady Fraktor]

If it is rated for 11lb then it is most likely a EQ-2 and would be a poor choice for even short exposures.
These mounts do not have bearings in them to ensure smooth operation and tracking as well as using steel bolts on aluminum rings as clutches so they will damage the holding surface quickly.

A EQ-4 sized mount such as the Celestron CG-4, Skywatcher EQ-3/2, Skywatcher EQM-35 and Orion Skyview Pro are a starting point but you will likely outgrow it quickly.
A EQ-5 class has a 30lb visual/ 15-20lb AP load and is considered a good starting point for long exposures.

What telescope are you going to be using?

[realflow100]

either a 70mm light weight 360mm focal length telescope thats quite small
or 100mm orion skyscanner (much heavier. probably wont work even by itself without a camera attached)

nvm apparently the orion skyscanner is only 6.2lb with its DOB mount included. without the mount it's probably half of that?
Maybe I underestimated how much 11lb weighs?
My camera doesnt weigh anywhere near as much as the orion skyscanner without it's mount

[ARock]

It is an Alt Az mount and so not very suitable for AP.
Since you are a DIY guy, you are better off buying a cheap EQ mount and motorizing it yourself.

[Lady Fraktor]

When doing AP you will have to reduce the mount capacity by 50% so the 11lb capacity is already down to 5.5lbs.
The weight of the telescope, camera and other accessories will most likely exceed this already.

[realflow100]

What about just a camera with a camera lens? that should still get some pretty good pictures i think! and far lighter

[OzEclipse]

What about just a camera with a camera lens? that should still get some pretty good pictures i think! and far lighter

You can do a lot with a camera and wide lens. I've just published a 2020 nightscape photographer's handbook.

Link is near the top on the right of this page:-
http://joe-cali.com/nightscape/index.html

All the ephemerides are calculated for the Canberra region [149E, 35S] so most of the info is irrelevant to you. However, on pages 11-12 are three maximum exposure tables that will be useful for fixed tripod work. The tables give you maximum exposure times for stars to appear stationary based on focal length and output scale.

cheers

Joe

[realflow100]

I was thinking the opposite of wide lens though. like 55mm and crop sensor (what i have available is 18-55mm IS II kit lens and canon 500D which is a crop camera) so I can get a moderately zoomed in image but not unwieldly zoomed in. and not too wide either

[JayTee]

Have you read this post yet?
viewtopic.php?f=24&t=3129

JT

[Tailspin45]

FYI, Sky-Watcher AllView Mount. $400 not $130, but might meet your needs if not your budget.

This is my 3rd Sky-Watcher mount, joining a S-W Az-Eq6 and Eq6Pro. It is primarily meant as grab-and-go mount for DSLR Astro-Imaging and solar/lunar imaging and works very well in this capacity.

Pros: - Easy to setup and get operational - Works very nicely with Starry Night Pro off a laptop - Reasonable price for performance. - Added advantage of panorama functionality - Camera control works well with my Canon 60D's

Cons: - Sky-Watcher/Celestron has, once again, not added the Sun to their GoTo menu. A real bummer for solar imaging enthusiasts! Bad Sky-Watcher!! The reason for only a 4 star rating.

[realflow100]

i cant do anything complicated like that and I dont have the materials tools or skills either.

[Tailspin45]

Here's a review that says essentially what we suspected of a $130 mount.

It might work for you if you "... dont care if its shakey or makes blurry images as long as i can at least get SOMETHING visible vaguely resembling what object i want to track.".

CONCLUSIONS
When the Yugo was introduced, some pundits stated it was what a car made by Bic would be like. The same is true of this mount--it seems like it was made by Bic.

At $200, the SmartStar-E is the cheapest goto mount on the market and clearly targeted at an amateur on a budget. It is 1/3rd the price of a CG-5 or LXD-75 GEM and 1/4th the price of a Vixen Skypod, the sole other standalone Alt-Az goto mount of this variety that we know of (though some Celestron Nexstar Alt-Az telescope systems use a Vixen style dovetail so their mounts could also be used for other scopes).

Its single largest defect is its poor stability. In this sense, it is considerably inferior to cheaper manual Alt-Az mounts such as the AZ-3. Focusing at high powers is frustratingly difficult as slight touches excite massive vibrations. A gentle push to the azimuth axis produces noticeable movement to the naked eye, even when the mount is tracking.

We also find the goto system to be inaccurate, but the tracking performance to be more than adequate. We noticed that there are several software and user interface glitches such as slow hand controller response. The handcontroller screen is generally simple and intuitive to use and the large screen makes for a more user friendly experience.

We think this mount is generally best suited for astronomers with a limited budget and a light wide field telescope whose large field of view is used for observing low to medium power objects. In these cases, the mount's instabilities and the inaccuracies of the goto system will hopefully be less important. Although the mount advertises weight capacities up to 11 lbs, we believe that 7 lbs or so is the realistic top limit due to the mount's wobbliness. Due to its light weight and low cost, it is also well suited for a travel mount..

[UlteriorModem]

A cheap alt az mount is pretty much worthless for AP no matter what you put on it.

Here is why.

[Refractordude]

Has anyone tried this goto? I know it is not good for AP, but how about an object locator.

[Lady Fraktor]

I believe Bryan (bladekeeper) has this mount or a version very close to it.

[Tailspin45]

You might find this video about astrophotography without a star tracker useful even if you do eventually get a mount.

[bladekeeper]

Has anyone tried this goto? I know it is not good for AP, but how about an object locator.

Yeah, I've got one. Does ok with a short small scope. Anything long needs careful balancing, and if you hang a heavier eyepiece in it, the gears can slip or it won't budge. Mine has plastic gears.

GOTOs are accurate for the first couple of objects, and after that it starts to get a little wacky.

Works better with a jumpstart powerpack vs. the D-batteries (or is it C?).

I've imaged the Moon several times with mine and my ST80. It did ok on that particular target. Long exposure (let's say 30 or less seconds) would be more frustrating than trying to catch and spray paint a fart. In my opinion, at least...