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New rotator: I need some advices

Equipment Rotator Filter Wheel
5 replies•170 views
Leonardo Landi avatar
Leonardo Landi avatar
Hi guys. I'd like to add a rotator to my setup but I need some advice. Due to the short OTA, in some positionsof the filter wheel hits the mount. Rotating the camera manually this is not a problem because I can use the upper arch and get all the angles I want, but with a rotator I'm afraid it could become risky. So I would like your advice to understand if there is a rotator that allows you to set limits by working only in a certain range of angles. An alternative would be to make new spacer blocks between the rings and the Losmandy bar of greater thickness, but I would avoid it if I could.
Xenofon Nastos avatar
Xenofon Nastos avatar
Hi,
Rotators usually allow to set specific limits to rotation. I have a rb-focus Camelot 2" rotator with an ASCOM driver in use and it allows to set the limits and even the way of rotation (clockwise, counter clockwise, bidirectional…).
CS,
Xeno
Quinn Groessl avatar
Quinn Groessl avatar
It's possible with a rotator you might have to slide it back enough that it clears. Thicker risers between your scope rings and your dovetail looks like it would solve the problem too.
Leonardo Landi avatar
Leonardo Landi avatar
Quinn Groessl:
It's possible with a rotator you might have to slide it back enough that it clears. Thicker risers between your scope rings and your dovetail looks like it would solve the problem too.

I hadn't thought about the shift in the center of gravity due to the weight of the rotator. Thicker risers could be the simplest solution, also because I make them myself on the milling machine like the cable glands for cable management. But I would have to disassemble everything. I would avoid it if I could, if there is a safe way through software management.
Stjepan Prugovečki avatar
Stjepan Prugovečki avatar
If the mount payload specs allow, kind of a simplest solution could be adding some weight to the front (below your blue cable box). That would let you to pull the whole setup back just enough and still remain balanced.
Quinn Groessl avatar
Quinn Groessl avatar
Leonardo Landi:
Quinn Groessl:
It's possible with a rotator you might have to slide it back enough that it clears. Thicker risers between your scope rings and your dovetail looks like it would solve the problem too.

I hadn't thought about the shift in the center of gravity due to the weight of the rotator. Thicker risers could be the simplest solution, also because I make them myself on the milling machine like the cable glands for cable management. But I would have to disassemble everything. I would avoid it if I could, if there is a safe way through software management.

I thought so when I saw the raw aluminum. I made my own risers for my last scope too. And now that I'm thinking about it I'm stupid, because if anything adding the rotator would make you move the scope further forward, not backward like I said.