Me 1 - EQ4 0

[Moonlit]

Just spent four hours (way longer than I anticipated) overhauling an old EQ4 mount I bought used - I would guess it is from the late 90s or early 00s. 

Boy, did that need some love. The RA axis was so hard to turn I had to use the telescope as leverage, and it was missing all four knobs (one on each side for RA/Dec axis).

Two of them are now replaced by guitar knobs, the other two will be larger potmeter knobs 😄

 

I actually had to use a file and grind away some steel from the inside of the RA worm drive tube, as it simply fit too tight on the RA axle. Oh, and half of the balls in the ball bearing were too tight so I had to pry the steel holder loose in many places with a knife so they would roll freely.

 

To unscrew the ring from the RA axis I had to jerry rig a tool with a block of wood and nails - Thank you, AstronomyBoy for that tip.

Here's his guide to stripping those kinds of mounts: http://www.astronomyboy.com/cg5/Astronomy_Boy_CG-5.pdf

 

I was so happy that I got it to work that I forgot "After" pics, but here are a few I took earlier. 

Edited September 8, 2022 by Moonlit

[TerryMcK]

Wow that bearing looks tired. Glad you got it overhauled.