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Having a tough time trying to decide which mount your setup needs ? Read on to see if we can help shed some light for you !! 

 

 

Which mount should I use (for amateurs) ?

Date: 04/02/2010

There are so many mounts out there for amateur astronomers that it can be pretty confusing which ones to get. So here's a little table I whipped up that will help you see some of the pertinent differences. If you do notice any errors that should be corrected, please do let me know and contribute to making this information useful !

The various mounts are grouped by category, from lightweight to heavy duty. Prices are in US$, and does NOT include shipping to Singapore. To get the Astro Bargains price, please send us an email for a quote.

Hope this helps !!

Joo Beng

 

Alt-Az Mounts

Celestron

Vixen

Orion

Meade

Others

Weight

Load limit

OTA range

visual

Misc

Single head

 

 

Orion VersaGo Precision Altaz Mount
$170.00

 

 

12.1 lbs

 15 lbs

 6" reflector or Cass.

 

     

Orion VersaGo II Altazimuth Mount
$194.95

 

 

13.0 lbs

 15 lbs

6" reflector or Cass.

 
     

Orion VersaGo II HD Altazimuth Mount
$249.95

 

 

18.5 lbs

 15 lbs

6" reflector or Cass.

 
     

Orion TeleTrack Altazimuth Tracking Mount
$249.95

 

 

9 lbs

 9 lbs

90mm Mak, 80mm Refractors.

 
     

Vixen Porta II Altazimuth Mount
$299.00

 

 

13.75 lbs

 20 lbs

6" SCTs

 
     

Vixen Porta II Altazimuth Mount
$319.00

 

 

12 lbs

 20 lbs

6" SCTs

 
                   

Dual head

 

 

Orion SkyView AZ Mount $379.95

 

 

19.5 lbs

 25 lbs x 2

 8" - 9.25" SCT

 NA

                   

Goto

 

 

Orion TeleTrack GoTo Altazimuth Mount
$299.95

 

 

9 lbs

 10 lbs

90mm Mak, 80mm Refractors.

 

          iOptron SmartStar-G Cube AltAz Mount
$360
9.5 lbs 11 lbs    
          iOptron CubePro Mount
$480
11 lbs 12 lbs    
          iOptron MiniTower Mount
$799
13 lbs 25 lbs + 8 lbs    
                   
                   
                   

EQ Mounts

Celestron

Vixen

Orion

Meade

Losmandy

Weight

Load limit

OTA range

visual

OTA range

astrophoto

Min-EQ

 

 

Min-EQ $54.95

 

 

14” 10lbs 5 oz.

 

 

 

                   

EQ1

 

 

EQ1 $109.95

 

 

11.9 lbs

 

 

 

                   

EQ2

 

 

EQ2
$179.95

 

 

18 lbs

 

 

 

                   

EQ3

 

 

Astroview EQ
$239.95

 

 

27.5 lbs

 

5” refractor

 

 

 

 

GP EQ

 

 

26 lbs

16 lbs

 

 

 

CG4

 

Skyview Pro
$379.95 -$819.95

 

 

 

20 lbs

 

 

 

 

GP -> GP2

 

 

 

 

20 lbs

 

 

 

 

Sphinx SXW

 

 

 

26 lbs

22 lbs

8” SCT

 

                   

EQ4/EQ5

CG5
$749.00

 

 

LXD55/ LXD75 $599

 

 

30 lbs

11” SCT

8” SCT

 

 

 

 

 

GM8

36 lbs

30 lbs

 

 

 EQ6

 

 

Sirius EQ-G
$849.95 - $1199.95

 

 

32 lbs

30 lbs

 

 

 

 

GP-D2

 

 

 

 

30 lbs

 

 

                   

 

 

 

Atlas EQ-G
$1199.95 - $1499.95

 

 

54 lbs

40 lbs

 

 

 

 

Sphinx SXD

 

 

 

 

50 lbs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

G11

71 lbs

60 lbs

 

 

 

CGE
$3000

 

 

 

 

114 lbs

65 lbs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HGM Titan

141 lbs

100 lbs

 

 

                   

Alt Az Mounts

Celestron

Vixen

Orion

Meade

Losmandy

Weight

Load limit

OTA range

visual

OTA range

astrophoto

 

 

 

Teletrack

 

 

8.8 lbs 15”

 

 

 

                   

 

 

 


 

 

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