Improving balance of Mak on my Alt/Az mount.
Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2020 9:16 pm
This is what my GnG Maksutov scope looked like.
I still found a little disadvantageous that the powerful viewfinder was above the tipping point. This naturally caused balance problems, especially in the zenith. The high base on which the entire viewfinder group was placed was actually too high. Today I made the decision, removed the high base-foot and reattached the base to the tube, but in such a way that the large viewfinder is right beside the telescope.
This required some drilling and tapping and the tube had to be opened. I encountered other problems too. Bolts that turn out not to be M4 and, moreover, too short. And then it also turns out that I cannot drill by hand as cleanly as I would like. Column drill would have been handy ...... so, a small slotted hole had to be milled, by hand of course... haha.
But .. succeeded. And the scope no longer sinks into the zenith. The small 100 gramRDF has little influence on the remaining imbalance, the eyepieces the most.
The viewfinder group from left to right: 18.5X50 viewfinder with 4.4 degree field of view, sun viewfinder, red dot finder.
I still found a little disadvantageous that the powerful viewfinder was above the tipping point. This naturally caused balance problems, especially in the zenith. The high base on which the entire viewfinder group was placed was actually too high. Today I made the decision, removed the high base-foot and reattached the base to the tube, but in such a way that the large viewfinder is right beside the telescope.
But .. succeeded. And the scope no longer sinks into the zenith. The small 100 gram
The viewfinder group from left to right: 18.5X50 viewfinder with 4.4 degree field of view, sun viewfinder, red dot finder.