Re: Long Term Reliability of Meade/Celestron SCTs

From: RMOLLISE (rmollise_at_aol.com)
Date: 01/24/05 

Date: 24 Jan 2005 13:17:38 -0800

Hi:

Too_Many_Tools wrote:

Does
> one see many disabled GOTOs at the star parties for sale?

No...I don't, anyway.

>
> In reference to the LX200 and Nexstar series of scopes, are the
> components used off the shelf or are they customized? I remember my
> first reaction when I saw the split ring inside the Nexstar 11GPS and
> thinking potential point of failure in the future. In my experience
any
> custom component will be a pain later to replace when, not if it
fails.

Many of the components, the mechanical components used in the scope are
off-the-shelf, used in the companies' other scopes, will continue to be
used and available, or can be easily fabricated. Electronic components?
Aye, there's the rub. Some components, ICs, etc., which were commonly
available when your scope was new will, in the normal course of things,
be scarce or impossible to obtain 10 years later. There's not much of a
solution to that and some owners of the earlier Classic LX200s are
encountering that problem now (this isn't yet a serious problem, as
Meade is still repairing LX200s themselves).

>
> I think of the world of computers where it is next to impossible to
get
> many parts for machines that are older than three years old. Only as
> long as the used supply exists can one find what is needed. It is one
> of the reasons why we buy new rather than fix the old. It is also one
> of the reasons why discarded electronics are being such a problem in
> the waste stream.

Yes, see above.

I
> would agree the relocation of the OTA to a different mount will be a
> common way to salvage a dead GOTO scope in the future if support
> disappears or the cost to repair is excessive.

That's what I think. And cost is relative. You can get a new goto GEM,
a good one, for about (or less) than the price of a new
top-of-the-line laptop PC. And you're liable to get more years (and
more fun) out of the GEM! ;-)

> Thanks again for addressing this topic,
>
> SRU

You're welcome. ;-)

Relevant Pages

  • Re: star hopping [Ammendment]
    ... there are two very positive cases for GoTo. ... > mount that could automatically slew to an object. ... cool a larger scope. ... The 12.5" Dob is nice for sure, but frankly I'd rather have the 3" smaller ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Re: Beginner - ETX 90AT vs. EC
    ... ETX90 AT was my first half decent scope since childhood. ... Without the GoTo, it was very hard to use indeed. ... > those messages claimed that the EC package is the same as the AT ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Re: Buying a new telescope...LONG
    ... how do I setup my GoTo so I can see it?". ... I kept that little 4" GoTo for years, and at one time I even mounted a 5" ... the little GT scope used only on the rarest of occasions over the next three ... aperture F4 reflector. ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)
  • Re: orion sky view pro 8
    ... the new GoTo mount or Intelliscope. ... I'd take Intelliscope with a clock driver over GoTo. ... Setting Circles (Intelliscope) allows _you_ to aim the scope by grabbing ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)