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6. Tighten the knobs on the Telescope-Mounting Platform to hold the telescope in
place.
Just like R.A. balancing, these are general balance instructions and will reduce excessive
stress on the mount. When doing astrophotography, this balance process should be done
for the target area where the telescope is pointing to.
Adjust the Mount
To track celestial objects accurately, the telescope’s axis of rotation must be parallel to
the Earth’s axis of rotation. This is called the polar alignment. The polar alignment is not
achieved by moving the telescope in either R.A. or DEC. This is done by adjusting the
telescope horizontally (azimuth) and vertically (altitude). More details of polar alignment
is described later.
Adjust the Mount in Altitude
To increase the latitude of the polar axis, tighten the Rear Latitude Adjustment Screw
and loosen the Front Screw (if necessary).
To decrease the latitude of the polar axis, tighten the Front (under the Counterweight
Bar) Latitude Adjustment Screw and loosen the rear screw (if necessary).
The latitude adjustment on the SmartStar
®
-PR mount has a range from approximately 30°
to 60°.
You should always make final adjustments in altitude by moving the mount against
gravity (i.e. using the Rear Latitude Adjustment Screw to raise the mount). To do this you
should loosen both Latitude Adjustment Screws and manually push the front of the mount
down as far as it goes. Then tighten the Rear Adjustment Screw to raise the mount to the
desired latitude.
For Advanced users, it may be helpful to remove the Front Latitude Adjustment Screw
completely. This will allow the mount to reach lower latitudes without the screw coming
into contact with the R.A. motor assembly. To remove the latitude screw, first use the
rear screw to raise the mount head all the way up. Then remove the Front Latitude Screw
completely. Now you should be able to manually move the Mount Head all the way to its
lowest latitude. Now raise the mount to your desired latitude using only the rear screw.
Adjust the Mount in Azimuth
For rough adjustments in azimuth, simply pick up the telescope and tripod and move it.
For fine adjustments in azimuth:
Turn the Azimuth Adjustment Knobs located on both sides of the azimuth housing.
While standing behind the telescope, the knobs are in the front of the mount.
o Turning the Right Adjustment Knob clockwise moves the mount toward the
right.
o Turning the Left Adjustment Knob clockwise moves the mount to the left.