Vixen's Advanced Polaris-M Motorized EQ Mount is an upgrade from the basic AP mount with the addition of a right ascension motor module and the Star Book One hand controller. The micro-stepper motor's full-circle brass wheel gear allows the mount to track over extremely long periods with little error for long-exposure astrophotography or prolonged observation of a single celestial object. While this mount configuration does not have full GoTo capabilities, once you Polar align the mount and manually navigate to your subject, the Star Book One controller will track it across the right ascension all night. This version of the AP-M includes Vixen's TL130 adjustable-height tripod.
Use the included Star Book One hand controller to move the scope for navigating and to track celestial objects. Since near- and deep-sky objects appear to move at different speeds, the controller features celestial, solar, lunar, and King's rate tracking speeds, in addition to slew speeds from 0.5x to 999x. An integrated autoguider port adds to the mount's usability.
- Motorized German equatorial
- Payload capacity: 13.2 pounds, excluding counterweights
- Altitude:
- 0-65° adjustment
- Tangent screw with handle
- 1.9°/rotation
- 59mm diameter, aluminum-alloy axis shaft with friction stop
- Azimuth:
- ±6.5° fine adjustment
- Twin adjustment screws with knobs
- 1.4°/rotation
- 59mm diameter, aluminum-alloy axis shaft with friction stop
- 7 stainless steel ball bearings
- 8" long, 20mm diameter counterweight shaft
- 2.2 lb (1kg) counterweight
- Vixen-style dovetail saddle
- Runs on four user-supplied AA batteries
- Micro-stepping (pulse) motor
- Right ascension:
- 144-tooth full circle wheel gear, 73.5mm diameter
- 11mm brass worm gear
- 144-tooth full circle wheel gear, 58.4mm diameter
- 9.8mm brass worm gear
- Integrated bubble level
- Clutch-less friction stop
- 2-line, 8-chracter backlit display
- Red backlit keypad
- Independent screen and keypad dimming control
- Integrated red LED light
- Won't affect night-adjusted vision
- Use to read or perform tasks
- Adjustable brightness
- ST-4-compatible integrated autoguider port
- Multiple sidereal tracking speeds:
- Celestial
- Solar
- Lunar
- King's rate
- Variable manual slewing speeds from 0.5x to 999x
- Backlash compensation gives smoother rotation of the gears on the mount, especially when stopping or changing slew/tracking speeds
- Periodic Error Correction (PEC) removes inaccuracies inherent in gears and allows for more accurate tracking, especially for long-exposure astrophotography
- Selectable tracking for Northern or Southern Hemispheres
- Physical specifications:
- Powered by mount through connector port
- Operating temperature: 32-104°F (0-40°C)
- Dimensions: 5.4x2.5x1" (13.7x6.5x2.1cm)
- Weight: 4 oz (110g), excluding cable
- Three leg sections
- Easy-to-use snap locks
- Adjustable padded feet
- Collapsed length: 24" (61cm)
- Legs adjustable from 22.4 to 51" (56.9-129.5cm)
- Total adjustable height from 20.7 to 45.6" (52.6-115.8cm)
- Weight: 7 lb (3.2kg)