Coronado PST review in Feb. S & T

One question; The author put his on a TeleVue mount
because he said the "Malta" table-top mount needed a
tall, stable platform to be used. But isn't the Malta
mount head threaded for a 1/4"-20 bolt on the bottom
to go on a camera tripod, you just remove the legs?
If not, it looks like something that could be done
without too much effort.
-Rich

Your usual camera tripod isn't made to be pointed up into
the sky, and won't look up over 45 degrees. I borrowed
my brother's girlfriend's camera tripod for my TeleVue 85
while my telescopic tripod is on order, and it's useless--
can't aim at anything that isn't near the horizon.

-Paul W.

On Mon, 03 Jan 2005 21:38:03 -0500, RichA wrote:

One question; The author put his on a TeleVue mount
because he said the "Malta" table-top mount needed a
tall, stable platform to be used. But isn't the Malta
mount head threaded for a 1/4"-20 bolt on the bottom
to go on a camera tripod, you just remove the legs?
If not, it looks like something that could be done
without too much effort.
-Rich

Paul Winalski wrote:

Your usual camera tripod isn't made to be pointed up into
the sky, and won't look up over 45 degrees. I borrowed
my brother's girlfriend's camera tripod for my TeleVue 85
while my telescopic tripod is on order, and it's useless--
can't aim at anything that isn't near the horizon.

Try mounting the telescope backward -- that usually works.
But it would have to be one mighty powerful photo tripod
to be of much use with a TV85.

- Tony Flanders

Your usual camera tripod isn't made to be pointed up into
the sky, and won't look up over 45 degrees. I borrowed
my brother's girlfriend's camera tripod for my TeleVue 85
while my telescopic tripod is on order, and it's useless--
can't aim at anything that isn't near the horizon.

-Paul W.


It depends on the tripod and too a TeleVue 85 is a pretty big scope for most
camera tripods..

But take a good tripod like a Bogen 3040 or 3051, add a decent Tilt-Pan 3 axis
head like my old 3047 and it makes a good mount for a scope the size of a
Pronto and certainly for a PST.

The trick is in realizing that by tilting the top axis 90 degrees, one no
longer has a typical photo head but rather a single armed, balanced, fork
mount.

I have been doing this for several years, 200x with my Pronto directly overhead
is not a problem...

If you astromart access, here's a photo of a ST-80 mounted side saddle...

https://www.astromart.com/common/ima...es/forums/1770
00-177999/177008.jpg

Notice how the pivot of the Altitude axis passes through the center of the
scope...

Best wishes for the new year

jon

Rich Anderson wrote:
One question; The author put his on a TeleVue mount
because he said the "Malta" table-top mount needed a
tall, stable platform to be used. But isn't the Malta
mount head threaded for a 1/4"-20 bolt on the bottom
to go on a camera tripod, you just remove the legs?
If not, it looks like something that could be done
without too much effort.

I believe a stop-the-presses comment was added to the effect that the
Malta is now capable of being mounted that way, suggesting that it
wasn't when the author conducted his review.

Brian Tung
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