Friday, March 31, 2017

buttoned up mount

Did some more testing with the GoToStar (IDEA/iOptron) system on the Vixen Super Polaris mount.

custom bracket and bumper between Super Polaris and GoToStar motor left

With the custom bracket (made by Jeff) installed with the appropriate bolts I was able to place the GoToStar Dec motor in its proper position. Used the old flat plate (made by Tony) to hold the motor assembly to the Dec bracket.

custom bracket and bumper between Super Polaris and GoToStar motor centre

I had screwed up in the bracket design by not accommodating for the ridges on the top of the motor casing. But it occurred to me that this was not a show-stopper. In fact, I wondered if it would prove useful.

I put rubber band pieces between the outboard part of the bracket and the motor to serve as something of a shock absorber. The motor assembly could move a bit for imperfections in the gears. The rubber strips, cut from a thick but small broccoli elastic, would act as a spring, pressing the gears together.

custom bracket and bumper between Super Polaris and GoToStar motor right

Boxed everything up. Used a recycled food container as a protective cover over the Declination motor assembly as I put the mount in the carrying case. That's until I can make (or print in 3D) a new custom cover.

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