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Crayford focuser or rack and pinion?

Sky-Watcher Explorer 150P ZWO ASI2600MC Pro Focuser Equipment Buying Advice
9 replies•494 views
Menelaos avatar
Menelaos avatar
Hi guys! I’m looking for a good reliable focuser to upgrade my SW150explorer. Ideally I want it to have 2 things, rack and pinion, and ball bearings. However i cant seem to find one that has both. Most of them are just regular crayford (no rack an pinion). And it was actually suggested to me to get this one https://www.astroshop.eu/focusers/omegon-steeltrail-2-newtonian-dual-speed-crayford-focuser/p,45073  is there a reason not to get it? 
of course i plan to use it for astrophotography and currently i have a decently heavy setup an ASI2600mcpro with a filter drawer and off axis guider but maybe i would upgrade in the future to mono and filterwheel. Any ideas?
andrea tasselli avatar
andrea tasselli avatar
I don't see why you shouldn't.
Tony Gondola avatar
Tony Gondola avatar
I like the low profile, it should handle the load but is it EAF compatible?
Michael Nemetz avatar
Michael Nemetz avatar
Get a Baader Steeltrack Diamond NT.
Maarten Broess avatar
Maarten Broess avatar
How about a Moonlite focuser. I love mine. Exchanged the focuser on my SW MN190 for a Moonlite. https://focuser.com/
MaksPower avatar
MaksPower avatar
I have this focuser on one of my scopes, it’s pretty good and it will take an EAF.
Stephen Jones avatar
Stephen Jones avatar
You might want to look at the RAP2DEL and adapter from Teleskop service.  It allows you to keep the SW base of the focuser (no drilling).  Email them for details if it also suitable.  I use it on my SW 250PDS with a 2600, FW and Paracorr etc without a drama.  Similar to the one in the link.  I have only just started to use it.
Concise Supportive
AstroShed avatar
AstroShed avatar
Rack and pinion all the way, steer clear of standard crayford focusers, they tend to slip when used with motors..I had a moonlight crayford once and it was the worst thing I ever bought, it was awful and slipped all over the place, the Baader steel track is also an excellent choice, sort of in between the two types, as it’s neither smooth crayford style or rack and pinion, but more of a sand paper type finish on the rail, but works very well.
Peter Graf avatar
Peter Graf avatar
Last year I also wanted to switch to a rack and pinion focuser for my 150PDS. I remember that this was quite frustrating though, as many of the focusers seem to be only fitting for 8" (like 200P) scopes and above - what is not obvious in most of the descriptions. Also the customer support of one of the shops here in Germany was not 100% sure which one would be fitting for 6" scopes. And support for the ZWO EAF was also needed. For the time being, I am therefore using the default focuser.
So I will follow this thread closely. :-)
Helpful Concise Engaging
Tomasz Kaminski avatar
Tomasz Kaminski avatar
For this telescope with the ASI2600MC PRO I decided to use the CYCK focuser, praised by Cuiv in one of his videos. It's rack and pinion,  worse than the one proposed, but cheaper and much better than the factory-fitted one. It has some pros and cons, but it is fully compatible with most popular autofocusers and fits the SW focuser base. I was more interested in stiffening the telescope tube around the focuser.The sheet metal here is soft and bends under the weight of the attached devices, causing the camera to tilt. The device works perfectly with my autofocus controller (AstroLink) and both images uploaded to Astrobin show that it was a good choice.
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