RPK_Astro Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 I bought an HEQ5 last year and the one pain with it is adjusting alt/az when doing PA. The altitude adjustment bolts in particular are a right royal faff. Are there any readily available replacement bolts that provide a better solution? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstronomyUkraine Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 Posted by: @RPK_Astro I bought an HEQ5 last year and the one pain with it is adjusting alt/az when doing PA. The altitude adjustment bolts in particular are a right royal faff. Are there any readily available replacement bolts that provide a better solution? There is an upgrade set of bolts available for the HEQ5. Problem is, when using them, it is impossible to put the polar scope cover back on.https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333168013760A better option would be to install an HEQ5 Rail kit. I installed the EQ6 version on my mount, and the adjustment is now smooth as silk. The installation is quite simple if you have a little mechanical experience.https://www.darkframeoptics.com/product/heq5-rail-kitBrian 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted January 13, 2021 Share Posted January 13, 2021 I just replaced mine with some M10 x 75 screws https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07MR9G4ZJAdjust them with a 17mm spanner. The advantage for me is the cables no longer snag on the skywatcher bolts which of course are made for all latitudes. They are overly long for me as I never move from northern England. The bolts will probably do for the whole UK.I ground a dome on the end of the bolts though like the original skywatcher ones. This is so the bolt is free to bear upon the angled surface inside the mount that it bears upon when the altitude is altered. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted January 13, 2021 Share Posted January 13, 2021 I attach the spanner to the side of the pier with a small 12mm button magnet so it is always to hand 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPK_Astro Posted January 14, 2021 Author Share Posted January 14, 2021 @AstronomyUkraine I can't help but think that the supplied bolts are a serious design fail... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazAstro Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Skywatcher say the bolts are soft deliberately so the bolts bend rather than the mount threads strip !Baaah pathetic excuse ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Padraic M Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 @GazAstro Back in my IBM software development days we used to call this a 'feechur' i.e. a bug you don't want to fix. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Posted by: @GazAstro Skywatcher say the bolts are soft deliberately so the bolts bend rather than the mount threads stripHa ha. ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstronomyUkraine Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Posted by: @RPK_Astro I can't help but think that the supplied bolts are a serious design fail...I don't think it's the bolts that are faulty, it's the internal design of the mount. The angle the bolts are pushing against to adjust the altitude is too acute, and it causes damage not only to the bolts, but also the mount too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPK_Astro Posted January 14, 2021 Author Share Posted January 14, 2021 Posted by: @padraic-m @GazAstro Back in my IBM software development days we used to call this a 'feechur' i.e. a bug you don't want to fix.Indeed, when I found a bug in some IBM mainframe software, after investigation, IBM responded with "It's an undocumented feature..." 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazAstro Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Posted by: @AstronomyUkraine Posted by: @RPK_Astro I can't help but think that the supplied bolts are a serious design fail...I don't think it's the bolts that are faulty, it's the internal design of the mount. The angle the bolts are pushing against to adjust the altitude is too acute, and it causes damage not only to the bolts, but also the mount too.Agreed it's poorly thought out ... But it's worked fairly well for most people for a long time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstronomyUkraine Posted January 14, 2021 Share Posted January 14, 2021 Posted by: @GazAstro Agreed it's poorly thought out ... But it's worked fairly well for most people for a long time.I think a lot of the problems arise when the mount is loaded to near capacity. The mount carrying a small refractor would be easy to adjust in altitude, but a large newtonian carrying 15kg of counterweights would be a different proposition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPK_Astro Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 The issue I mostly have is the mechanics of operation have been poorly thought out. Screwing the altitude bolts is just difficult - regardless of whether scope is attached or not. The existing hinged bar doesn't really provide enough leverage and it gets fouled on either the polar scope or the mount. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GazAstro Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 Posted by: @RPK_Astro The issue I mostly have is the mechanics of operation have been poorly thought out. Screwing the altitude bolts is just difficult - regardless of whether scope is attached or not. The existing hinged bar doesn't really provide enough leverage and it gets fouled on either the polar scope or the mount. Yep, you're right ! I tried to defend it but it's rubbish :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPK_Astro Posted January 15, 2021 Author Share Posted January 15, 2021 Posted by: @GazAstro Posted by: @RPK_Astro The issue I mostly have is the mechanics of operation have been poorly thought out. Screwing the altitude bolts is just difficult - regardless of whether scope is attached or not. The existing hinged bar doesn't really provide enough leverage and it gets fouled on either the polar scope or the mount. Yep, you're right ! I tried to defend it but it's rubbish :-) If the head of the bolt had longer bar through it / hinged that woudl help as it would give you more leverage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevS Posted January 15, 2021 Share Posted January 15, 2021 Just a thought, use hex head bolts and a ratchet spanner. If my memory serves me correctly a 10mm bolt requires a 17mm spanner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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