1/4 x 20 adapter plate for Celestron short tube (FS80 EQ WA)

Hello. Several years back I purchased a Celestron FS80 EQ WA (one of
the many 80mm f/5 clones). It has proven to be a great grab-and-go
scope at a very reasonable price. The only thing I don't like is the
apparently non-standard means by which the OTA attaches to the EQ
head. My Celestron short tube has two ~1 inch bolts portruding from
the underside of the OTA that are spaced about 4 inches apart. These
are inserted into two holes in the EQ head and then secured with nuts.
I'd like to mount this scope on a regular alt-az tripod with a 1/4 x
20 threaded post. Does anyone know of an adapter plate that would
allow this connection? Would tube rings solve my problem? I've
looked in the s.a.a. archives and can't seem to find a definitive
answer.

Thanks,
Bill Bensler

"Bill" wrote in message
om...
Hello. Several years back I purchased a Celestron FS80 EQ WA (one of
the many 80mm f/5 clones). It has proven to be a great grab-and-go
scope at a very reasonable price. The only thing I don't like is the
apparently non-standard means by which the OTA attaches to the EQ
head. My Celestron short tube has two ~1 inch bolts portruding from
the underside of the OTA that are spaced about 4 inches apart. These
are inserted into two holes in the EQ head and then secured with nuts.
I'd like to mount this scope on a regular alt-az tripod with a 1/4 x
20 threaded post. Does anyone know of an adapter plate that would
allow this connection? Would tube rings solve my problem? I've
looked in the s.a.a. archives and can't seem to find a definitive
answer.

Hi Bill,
I have exactly that same scope. Not exactly an inexpensive solution, but I
purchased a UniStar Light Deluxe w/Dovetail from Universal Astronomics along
with the D&S Compact CS Short Tripod. I then bought two sets of tube rings
from Orion. I used one set on the UniStar and the other set on the original
EQ-1.

http://users.net1plus.com/spaul/astr...Unistar_Up.jpg

http://users.net1plus.com/spaul/astr...80_Unistar.jpg

This setup is _perfect_ for the ST80. I also have a C5 for the UniStar (you
can just see its dovetail on the desk to the right in the last picture) and
it can also be used with light tripods like the Compact CS at medium to low
powers. Recently I traded for a StarMax 127 and in an experiment attached
the UniStar Light head to the EQ3 tripod, and the C5 was solid as a rock all
the way to 250x.

Anyway.... it's an option that works. If you don't have that kind of cash,
an alternative might be to give Larry a call (at UA) and
ask him to modify a ULight dovetail bar with a 1/4-20 bolt hole tapped in
the center. Then add rings.

http://www.universalastronomics.com
(No affliation, other than being a satisfied customer)

Stephen Paul
Shirley, MA

I've
looked in the s.a.a. archives and can't seem to find a definitive

Hi:

Yes, tube rings are the way to go. In fact, the Celestron 80 I
purchases...oh...about four years ago now, came with tube rings that could be
bolted to the EQ1 mount and an adapter plate that you could bolt the tube rings
to as well, that would allow it to be used on a camera tripod. Get tube rings.
You should be able to bolt them to the head of the GEM without a problem.


Peace,
Rod Mollise
Author of _Choosing and Using a Schmidt Cassegrain Telescope_
Like SCTs and MCTs?
Check-out sct-user, the mailing list for CAT fanciers!
Goto http://members.aol.com/RMOLLISE/index.html

"Stephen Paul" wrote in message ...
"Bill" wrote in message
om...
Hello. Several years back I purchased a Celestron FS80 EQ WA (one of
the many 80mm f/5 clones). It has proven to be a great grab-and-go
scope at a very reasonable price. The only thing I don't like is the
apparently non-standard means by which the OTA attaches to the EQ
head. My Celestron short tube has two ~1 inch bolts portruding from
the underside of the OTA that are spaced about 4 inches apart. These
are inserted into two holes in the EQ head and then secured with nuts.
I'd like to mount this scope on a regular alt-az tripod with a 1/4 x
20 threaded post. Does anyone know of an adapter plate that would
allow this connection? Would tube rings solve my problem? I've
looked in the s.a.a. archives and can't seem to find a definitive
answer.

Hi Bill,
I have exactly that same scope. Not exactly an inexpensive solution, but I
purchased a UniStar Light Deluxe w/Dovetail from Universal Astronomics along
with the D&S Compact CS Short Tripod. I then bought two sets of tube rings
from Orion. I used one set on the UniStar and the other set on the original
EQ-1.

http://users.net1plus.com/spaul/astr...Unistar_Up.jpg

http://users.net1plus.com/spaul/astr...80_Unistar.jpg

This setup is _perfect_ for the ST80. I also have a C5 for the UniStar (you
can just see its dovetail on the desk to the right in the last picture) and
it can also be used with light tripods like the Compact CS at medium to low
powers. Recently I traded for a StarMax 127 and in an experiment attached
the UniStar Light head to the EQ3 tripod, and the C5 was solid as a rock all
the way to 250x.

Anyway.... it's an option that works. If you don't have that kind of cash,
an alternative might be to give Larry a call (at UA) and
ask him to modify a ULight dovetail bar with a 1/4-20 bolt hole tapped in
the center. Then add rings.

http://www.universalastronomics.com
(No affliation, other than being a satisfied customer)

Stephen Paul
Shirley, MA

Wow! Nice setup. Thanks for the information, Stephen. That's
exactly the type of hardware I was looking for. Did you have to
remove the bolts on the underside of the short tube OTA? Thanks again
for the feedback.

Bill Bensler

"Bill" wrote in message
om...

exactly the type of hardware I was looking for. Did you have to
remove the bolts on the underside of the short tube OTA?

Yes. You have to remove one end of the OTA to do this (it's coming back to
me now). Both the focuser and the lens cell are removeable. The focuser
comes off with just the three screws and is probably the best bet.

I've now given my Starmax 127 the same treatment, by switching from the
block mounting plate to rings on the EQ3. In that case, the screws thread
right into the OTA wall, so there's no bolt heads or such to deal with on
the inside. I'm only telling you that because both OTAs would probably be
better off if I covered/filled the holes left behind, but I haven't quite
made a permanent committment to the new arrangement. When I do I'll fill
them with something appropriate, like maybe some silicone adhesive. In fact,
now that we've had this little discussion, I might do that as soon as I get
some feedback on the idea of that particluar solution (anyone else reading
this?)

Best wishes,
Stephen