Setup with 8 or 10 inch Newton?

Aris Pope:
Get it. You will not regret it.. I have a 6", 8" and 10" Newtonians.. The difference of just 2" is enough for you to notice in framing. Bang for the buck, you won't get anything better than a 10" Imaging Newtonian. i Also recently added a 12" Meade SCT but that's a different story lol. 

I had my 10" Newt riding on my trusty iOptron GEM45 for over two years until i upgraded a CEM60 a couple months ago.

*Thank you for your feedback, I cannot agree more with you about the advantages but we M UNO users are more limited in telescope dimensions than "normal" EQ Mount users. If the telescope is too long, we might get problems as we do not do a meridian flip. 

Let me express the size limitations with an image. Thats the setup from Alexanders Reinders from the Avalon User Gallery. As you can see the telescope can hit the RA axis flange if it gets too long. But you also have to balance it, so if the setup is too front heavy and too long it will not achieve balance ever. 

I see Alexanders even had to deploy some counterweights on the telescope itself, but I am missing more information on the setup. He is also using a DSLR only, so if I would deploy my mono setup the scope would be even heavier on the front. 

TiffsAndAstro:
I think there is a Dec extension pier ?

10mm example here

https://www.teleskop-express.de/en/mounts-tripods-rings-rails-power-supply-14/mount-accessories-other-83/avalon-spacer-for-m-uno-declination-axis-10-mm-8620

Maybe use multiple or find a thicker version.

I'm not recommending this or the shop, ive never used either. I just like the design of this mount

*Thanks, I am using a 50mm spacer for my RC10 already, because with the Touptek AFW L it gets too tight for my taste. To have the tube above the RA axis flange I would need many more spacers, but then I would get problems with the balance. 

I would prefer knowing if balance can be achieved without spacers at first, this would assure me that I have enough headroom. 

Regards

you can always move the Dec arm up by switching the big L brackets

Tobiasz:

Flavius Andrei · Aug 6, 2025, 04:08 PM

you can always move the Dec arm up by switching the big L brackets

What do you mean? The white/silver L brackets that hold the fork arm to the RA axis?

I know that you can move up the fork arm, but we are talking about 15-30mm here, which is not much with such a big newton. But I think the height is not the problem here, but the tube length and balance. With a front heavy setup like a Newton + Mono + Filter Wheel you have to move back the scope pretty much to be in balance. Hence my initial question.

with the L brackets you can move the Dec arm tens of cm up or down.
regarding a longer Newton, it can still work without any issues but you'll lose the "no flip" capability, you'd have to perform a meridian flip to avoid hitting any equipment.

here's an animated gif showing how much you can offset the Dec arm on an m-zero (6 points) - https://www.avalon-instruments.com/images/prodotti/m-zero/m-zero-equatorial-mount-6-position.gif

right now my m-zero sports a takahashi epsilon 130d which is so front heavy, I had to add a counterweight on its back to balance it. 

same goes for other mounts, eq6 for example, with a Quatro 250p, needs a back counterweight to balance it. 

all that said, I'm pretty sure the avalon mount will be able to carry a large Newton but will need a meridian flip and be properly balanced

Tobiasz:

Aris Pope:
Get it. You will not regret it.. I have a 6", 8" and 10" Newtonians.. The difference of just 2" is enough for you to notice in framing. Bang for the buck, you won't get anything better than a 10" Imaging Newtonian. i Also recently added a 12" Meade SCT but that's a different story lol. 

I had my 10" Newt riding on my trusty iOptron GEM45 for over two years until i upgraded a CEM60 a couple months ago.

*Thank you for your feedback, I cannot agree more with you about the advantages but we M UNO users are more limited in telescope dimensions than "normal" EQ Mount users. If the telescope is too long, we might get problems as we do not do a meridian flip. 

Let me express the size limitations with an image. Thats the setup from Alexanders Reinders from the Avalon User Gallery. As you can see the telescope can hit the RA axis flange if it gets too long. But you also have to balance it, so if the setup is too front heavy and too long it will not achieve balance ever. 

I see Alexanders even had to deploy some counterweights on the telescope itself, but I am missing more information on the setup. He is also using a DSLR only, so if I would deploy my mono setup the scope would be even heavier on the front. 

I'm sorry for the late reply but I think if you use riser blocks that might get you the clearance you need.

Maybe something like this

https://agenaastro.com/astrodymium-2-5-riser-blocks-for-refractor-telescopes.html#ca_s_size=6385