GENERAL FEEDBACK Last updated: 30 June 2005

Subject:	repaired 125
Sent:	Thursday, June 30, 2005 03:52:41
From:	Tony Frisina (afrisina@yahoo.com)
after attempting repair on my out of warranty meade 125, i returned it
to meade on 6/15 for a $75 fee. unit returned to me 6/29, repaired. No
explanation of work done but the unit works fine.. good service , i
would say !!

Subject:	ETX standard vs. Premier
Sent:	Tuesday, June 28, 2005 19:44:19
From:	Bob Nelson (bobnelson@alltel.net)
I am a begginer and a new user. I am looking for a first scope. The ETX
105 seems to have caught my interest. With the problems you experienced
with the "out of the box" 105 Premier, would I be bettter off with the
standard 105 and leard how to level and orient the scope myself? Is this
difficult for a complete novice?
 
Thanks,
Bob Nelson
Jax., Fl

And:

I should not be concerned about the quality of the leveling system and
the scope overall. Would you characterize your bad experience with the
105 premier as a rare exception?...just a novice being cautious.

Thanks,
Bob Nelson
Jax. Fl

Subject:	Information about the ETX90AT
Sent:	Tuesday, June 28, 2005 15:34:39
From:	Mauricio Lpez (mlopez@constructorabolivar.com)
I recently bought a Meade Telescope ETX90AT. Before the first use of it,
i read your web page and found the recomendations about all the
procedures in order to make my telescope more accurate. Since your
observations are of years 2001 or 2002. I want to ask you if in the new
models all those precedures before the first use are necesary or if
Meade has correct them yet.
Thank you very much.
 
Yours,
 
MAURICIO LPEZ TOVAR
BOGOTA - COLOMBIA

And:

I refer to the following thecnicals tips, that are in your page:

Performance Enhancement
Creating The Perfect "GO TO" ETX or LX 90
Part 1 - Mechanical Considerations and Adjustments
            German translation (10/04/03)
Part 2 - AutoStar Downloads and Post-Download Initialization (10/31/02)
            German translation (10/07/03)
Part 3 - Training the Drives and Celestial Alignment
            German translation (10/07/03)
Part 4 - Eliminating Common "Rocking" in ETX Altitude Axis (9/11/02)
            German translation (10/07/03)
Part 5 - Polar Alignment Position (3/28/01)
            German translation (10/07/03)

The new ETX90AT and the Autostar 497, has already correct all those
problems.

Thank you for your information.

Subject:	Before I fry my scope...
Sent:	Tuesday, June 28, 2005 11:13:03
From:	H. Miller (h__miller@hotmail.com)
I've looked over your site, and perhaps this is covered somewhere, but
why can't I take a 9V power adapter for a car cigarette lighter (Radio
Shack #273-1863), run it through an adaptaplug (RS #273-1742) and,
assuming correct polarity, attach the adaptaplug to a 9V battery snap
connector (RS#270-324) and then the scope? Is the power "unclean" or
something?

I'm trying to get extended view time with my little ETX 70AT.

Thanks!
Hank

Subject:	Re: Slewing Problem
Sent:	Monday, June 27, 2005 15:29:34
From:	Francis Edwards (franxe@charter.net)
I tried Mike's suggestion (see below) and it did not correct the
problem.  Then I tried Benny's suggestion (see below) and it did fix the
problem.  That is, I did a full reset, then a motor calibration, then
trained the drives.  Seems to be working fine now.
 
Thanks for your help!
 
Fran Edwards

Mike Weasner said:
>Something is confusing the Autostar.  Could be some dirt on the 
>encoder.  Try this: unlock the altitude axis and slowly move the tube 
>up and down by hand, hard stop to hard stop, several times.  Sometimes 
>that cures the problem.

From:  BENNY ---.. said:
>I had the same problem with my ETX125, on my case it was solved doing a full 
>RESET , then calibrate & train in both axis.  Hope it helps.
>Benito

Glad to hear it worked .

On my particular case, I found that the problem was caused due to using
exhausted batteries on my ETX125 , actually I had an Motor unit Fault
message and then the slewing problems.
Benito

And:

From:	Lee Vincent (Lee@VincentTeam.com)
I wonder if Fran Edwards of Grafton, MA might have selected the an
alignment mode in the telescope setup on the Autostar that did not
corespond with the mount (ie polar vs. alt/az).  Crazy things can happen
in that case.
 
Lee Vincent

Subject:	Switched Polarity
Sent:	Sunday, June 26, 2005 20:45:44
From:	Mike Lind (LindCochez@Comcast.net)
I did it. I switched the polarity while powering my 125 from external
power. I think it is a valid complaint to say that it is a manufactures
defect that the scope lacks a diode to prevent damage but anyway. Do you
know how much this kind of damage will cost?

Thanks

Subject:	Purchasing a used ETX-125
Sent:	Sunday, June 26, 2005 19:57:30
From:	Eric Frazier (ericcfrazier@yahoo.com)
I would like to get your opinion regarding the purchase of a used
ETX-125EC. I am considering it for as my family's first scope. I have
found a used one for $450 (including 8 Meade 4000 eyepieces in an
aluminum case)at a local pawn shop. It appears to be in good condition
although it looks like it has been collecting some dust on the shelf. It
has the electronic hand controller in addition to the GO-TO controller.
It has the improved fork-mount with metal components. I'm not sure if it
has UHTC coatings: is there someway to check? I have set it up in the
store and it seems to function properly. I'm a little concerned about
buying from pawn shop because it's going to be an "as is" purchase. I'd
like some advice on what to check for on this model to keep from being
the proud new owner of a 450-dollar paperweight. Should I be running to
or away from this "deal"? Let me know what you think.

Thanks,  Eric

And:

Thanks for the quick reply.   I slewed the scope using both the
electronic hand contoller and the GO-TO controller: it seemed to work
fine in all directions.  I'll see if the manager will let me take it out
for a "star test" although, I'm not confident he'll allow this.  I don't
remember seeing a UHTC label anywhere on the tube, but I'll go back and
take another look. Do think I should pass it by if it doesn't have the
UHTC optics?
 
Thanks again,  Eric

Subject:	re: EXT105 Power Problem
Sent:	Sunday, June 26, 2005 11:03:11
From:	Richard Seymour (rseymour@wolfenet.com)
This can also happen if you are using the wrong sized plug for
the external power.  

The correct size is 5.5mm outside, 2.5mm inside.

However, a 6.1mm outside -can- be forced into the socket, and
that will bend the contact spring such that it cannot return to
make contact when the plug is removed.

Another possibility is that the solder connection of the battery wire
to the socket has broken, or that a circuit trace on the power panel
has blown, or that the wire has become disconnected from the battery 
pack.

good luck
--dick

From:	Wayne Taylor (uskitebum@yahoo.com)
Thanks for the feedback. I found that it was an intermittent problem, if
the unit was bumped, sometimes it worked and sometimes it would not. It
seems that there is a problem with the circuit board, looks like a small
hairline crack across the board. May have been cause by pushing plug in
too hard. It never failed on external power, only on internal. After
finding that, I decided I would use the external power plug inlet and
make my own source. Since the EXT was out of warranty and had a built in
battery pack, I cut the wires from the battery pack and connected longer
wires from the pack to a 5.5 by 2.5 type N plug and drilled a small hole
to pass it outside to the external plug. Now when I use the internal
batteries, all I have to do is plug it into the external plug and when I
want external power I can unplug the internal batteries and plug in the
external power in, knowing that the two are separated. Thanks again for
all your help and your great site, it is truly the best ever. Wayne

Subject:	Slewing Problem
Sent:	Saturday, June 25, 2005 03:09:08
From:	franxe@charter.net
I have a problem with my ETX125EC.  When I do an align, whether it be
"Easy" or "One Star" or "Two Star", the scope slews vertically until it
hits the vertical stop.  I checked the stars coordinates in the
autostar, and they are correct.  Have you ever heard of this problem?  I
check your web page and did not see it.

Meade wants me to return the scope and autostar to them.  The shipping
cost + the $75 fee, will almost equal the cost of a new autostar, and I
would just replace the autostar if I thought it were the culprit, as I
do not want to give up my scope for the 3 months it would probably take
Meade to repair it.

The sscope works fine in the manual moce, and the tracking is fine if I
do manage to align the scope.  Any ideas?

Thanks.

Fran Edwards
Grafton, MA

And:

Yes I did both. I also reset and went through the entire initializatin
again.  It works okay in the manual mode.  The problem only occurs when
you select a target and try to wslew to it automatically.  Also, occurs
during alignment.

Fran Edwards

Subject:	RE: ETX 90EC - Right Ascension motor failure.
Sent:	Saturday, June 25, 2005 00:50:11
From:	Vittorio Carminato (vcarmin@tin.it)
The OTA stays still once it's locked. The clutch seams to be fine.
Vittorio Carminato

Subject:	Re: Gear problem in ETX-90EC
Sent:	Friday, June 24, 2005 14:16:44
From:	saleh homidan (homidans@yahoo.com)
Dear Dr. Clay,
Finally I diagnosed the problem in my ETX-90EC telescope, where I found
that about 4 teeth of one of the plastic gears were broken (fig. 1),
which is the sixth gear in the train-gear located in the black plastic
gear box (fig. 2).


 



I have here two questions:

1- What are the reasons may cause this problem? Is "tightening the
azimuth lock lever" one of those reasons?

2- I searched for this gear in most electronics spare parts shops, but I
couldn't find it, how could I find this gear? Please be informed that
there is no MEADE maintenance center in my city.
 
Thanks for your helpful cooperation.
 
Saleh Alhomidan

From:	P. Clay Sherrod (drclay@tcworks.net)
The reason for it is stress.  Can be from hitting the hard stop, running
the scope with too much accessory weight on it, OR more likely the RA
axle is installed too tightly in your scope...I have seen a lot of this.

As for a replacement, you cannot get just one gear, you must obtain the
entire "gearbox" which contains all of those gears.  It comes from
Taiwan assembled in that fashion.  Meade will not sell just the box, and
your best bet is going to be to find someone with a mounting only that
they are willing to part out.

I normally have extra gearbox assemblies on hand, but have used up what
I had....I will try to locate one as well, but it will take some time.
 
Clay
--------------------
Dr. P. Clay Sherrod
Arkansas Sky Observatories
Harvard MPC H41 (Petit Jean Mountain)
Harvard MPC H45 (Petit Jean Mountain South)
Harvard MPC H43 (Conway)
Harvard MPC H44 (Cascade Mountain)
http://www.arksky.org/

Subject:	EXT105 Power Problem
Sent:	Thursday, June 23, 2005 12:13:14
From:	Wayne Taylor (uskitebum@yahoo.com)
Thank you for your site, it the best I've ever seen.

I've used my Mac osx to update the Autostar 497 Rom with good results
until now. I have an EXT105 and using your site I found out how to make
a 12volt cable for cigarette plug to run the scope on external power and
double checked the connections to make sure they were right (+12v to
center on a 5.5 x 2.5mm plug). I plugged in the new cord for the first
time and it worked great. I was updating to Rom 34Ec while it was on and
all went well and seemed to work fine with cord plugged in. I went to
turn the scope on the next day with new internal batteries and it would
not turn on (not even power led). I rechecked new batteries and replaced
them anyway and still would not turn on. I then plugged in the new 12v
cord and all works great with it. With new cord plugged in it works fine
and on internal batteries it won't turn on (no power led). My question
is: could it be the new rom 34Ec or is it something to do with the new
cord.

Thanks again for all your support, Wayne Taylor

And:

Thanks for the reply so fast. To answer your question, Yes, worked for
almost a year until I plugged external battery in then went dead. I've
been looking on your site about it for the last 2-3 hours and have found
a lot of info about this problem. Tried to play with the cutoff tab to
see if it was stuck but had no luck. I didn't know if this was simple or
bad till I kept reading on your site. I intend to use external battery
for future anyway. If  anything else please let me know. Thanks again. 

Subject:	meade etx 125
Sent:	Wednesday, June 22, 2005 14:24:17
From:	david bryant (dbryant0211@comcast.net)
hi I email you earlier, I wonder if you can tell me something.

i've been searching the web, and the more i read about Meade 125, I more
i become interested,

can you tell me what parts do i need to assembly the Meade 125.

Subject:	ETX125 OTA Disassembly question
Sent:	Wednesday, June 22, 2005 06:16:41
From:	Michael Lang (Lang.Michael@orbital.com)
I recently noticed that the flip-mirror inside the rear cell of my
ETX-125 is covered with dust. This is due to inadvertantly leaving the
eyepiece port open (uncapped) after an observing session for an extended
period. I'm sure the dust will just blow off using the same air-puffer
ball that I use to blow off the corrector plate. However, I don't want
to blow the dust into the OTA. Could you or one of your ETX 125 experts
provide me directions/precautions for disassembling the rear cell to
allow me to blow off the flip mirror ?
thanks !
Mike Lang

Subject:	solar filters
Sent:	Tuesday, June 21, 2005 22:33:43
From:	Cysmar@aol.com (Cysmar@aol.com)
have you ever heard of a company called astro engineering (in Great
Britain)? They make a screw on solar filter for the etx models. I just
want to know if you know them to be safe.
thanx

Subject:	Batteries vs AC Power
Sent:	Monday, June 20, 2005 23:50:42
From:	Fletcher Gross (gross@math.utah.edu)
If the ETX has batteries in it and it also is connected to an AC outlet
using the proper adapter, do the batteries or the AC outlet actually
power the telescope. I assumed that the AC connection would take
precedence (that is the case with my laptop computer) but I recently had
a situation where the telescope was behaving very strangely (slewing
randomly and weirdly, not moving in one direction, etc.). When nothing
else worked, I remembered reading that when running on battery power,
such behaviour could be caused by low batteries. I didn't think I was
running off of batteries but just to make sure, I removed the batteries
(if that didn't improve things, my next step would be to ship the
telescope back to Meade. Now the only sorce of power was the AC
connection. I then started the Austostar and realigned the telescope,
whereupon the telescope (an ETS125-AT UHTC) behaved flawlessly.

Have I interpreted my experience correctly? If so this seems to
indicated that the batteries should be removed any time that they are
not actually supplying power to the telescope.

Fletcher Gross

Subject:	Telescopes
Sent:	Monday, June 20, 2005 08:35:19
From:	Abrie Pretorius (apretorius@mirlem.co.za)
I would like to buy my folks , who retired, a telescope for wildlife
viewing, primarily and stars, space, etc secondarily.

They live next to the ocean, and that part of the country(South  Africa)
is a popular whale breeding area.

I need to know which telescope is best for this requirements.

Regards

Abrie Pretorius

And:

Thanks for the reply. Someone adviced me to look at the ETX90 for the
aperture as a reason.

I don't need GOTO capabilities, also picture taking is not required.

Something basic but still does the one thing a telescope is suppose to
do and that is show a clear, big picture.

And:

Can you then make a recommedation, lets say on a budget of $600.

Subject:	RE: Article about pollen
Sent:	Monday, June 20, 2005 08:20:18
From:	Richard Kramer (rkramer@cafepress.com)
I believe the spots are permanently etched in the coatings, it didn't
take long as I think the pollen was only on the plate for a few days. I
tried cleaning several times with the ASO solution but to no avail. I
guess I will just have to live with it. Does not affect viewing in any
way. I am just a perfectionist and I look at the spots and just cringe.

Thanks for the reply.

Richard 

From:	P. Clay Sherrod (drclay@tcworks.net)
You are very likely correct in this, but also your assessment of it not
affecting performance is also correct; just take many precautions in the
future.  By the way, for this reason I highly recommend ALWAYS observing
with a dew shield.  They are good for much more than just dew!

Dr. Clay
--------------------
Arkansas Sky Observatories
Harvard MPC H41 (Petit Jean Mountain)
Harvard MPC H45 (Petit Jean Mountain South)
Harvard MPC H43 (Conway)
Harvard MPC H44 (Cascade Mountain)
http://www.arksky.org/

Subject:	RE: ETX 90EC - Right Ascension motor failure.
Sent:	Sunday, June 19, 2005 09:24:14
From:	Vittorio Carminato (vcarmin@tin.it)
I Did every check you ask me to do.

The autostar is still showing the message and if you press "mode" it
tries to recalibrate: the base moves correctly in azimuth but the OTA
does't move at all and the message come up again.

2 years ago I have done the tune ups suggested in your sites
(http://www.weasner.com/etx/techtips/etx_tuneup1.html) so I have already
removed the plastic covers in the fork arms and the OTA as well. Since
then I used the scope several times and it was great (actually
better!!).

Vittorio Carminato

Subject:	Electronic Focuser
Sent:	Saturday, June 18, 2005 13:33:51
From:	EWil1779@aol.com (EWil1779@aol.com)
I just purchased the 1244 electronic focuser  and was going to try it
out before mounting it to see if it worked. it runs, but I saw no led
light to regulate the speed as said in the instructions, or when I
pushed the speed button on the edges it also ran the motor as well. Is
it supposed to do that, it seem to have only two speeds on the handset,
I am guessing. The instructions are as always not clear and you cannot
get to meade so. I thought that maybe you  or soneone on the site could
give me some info, before I send it back if I need too.

Thank you ,
Rev. Emmit Wilson

Subject:	Parfocal eyepieces
Sent:	Saturday, June 18, 2005 10:17:07
From:	Chris Lavoie (lavsalot@sympatico.ca)
I purchased two extension pieces (1 inch each)from scopetronics.I attach
them to a max view 40 mm and a kodak 4330 camera.I then put a 32mm
plossl in a diagonal in the back of the ETX90.On mine I flip the mirror
and they are both in focus.I hope this helps.

Mike excellent resource,being a novice,this site has been an excellent
wealth of information.Thanks, Chris Lavoie (lavsalot@sympatico.ca)

Subject:	RE: ETX 90EC - Right Ascension motor failure.
Sent:	Saturday, June 18, 2005 00:12:45
From:	Vittorio Carminato (vcarmin@tin.it)
Sorry for my late answer I've been working away all week. 

I tried to reset the autostar. now every time I switch it on the scope
(I guess!) tries to calibrate the motors and then the message "...motor
faults.." appears.

I cannot override this warning message anymore. I'm stuck at this point.

Vittorio Carminato 

Subject:	Article about pollen
Sent:	Friday, June 17, 2005 11:09:50
From:	Richard Kramer (rkramer@cafepress.com)
I read your article about pollen. I seem to have quite a few tiny spots
on my UHTC coated corrector plate that will not come off. They have only
appeared in the last few days. I have cleaned with the ASO solution
(Alchohol, distilled water, windex and photo flow) with excellent
results but it does not get the spots off, I am assuming they are sap
spots. Should I try the ivory detergent method? I am worried they are
permanent sap stains that will never come off. Do you think the
detergent will remove them?
 
Thanks
 
   Richard Kramer

From:	P. Clay Sherrod (drclay@tcworks.net)
The advice is to never clean with Ivory or any other liquid other than
that described on the ASO Guides section
http://www.arksky.org/guides.htm It is very likely that in addition to
the sap and pollen, the acid in the secretions of the pollen have likely
resulted in some damage in tiny amounts to the coatings, essentially
etching through the molecule-thick layer.  Attempting to clean some
obscure (i.e., close to the edge of the corrector) spot that has
remained after the ASO cleaning method with pure Isopropyl alcohol at
purity greater than 90% is recommended....no rubbing, just apply and
buff off lightly.

If that does not work, then the coatings are etched.   NOTE that this
will not affect overall optical performance with isolated spots, only if
it continues and gets many more similar spots.  This is the importance
of keeping pollen and debris OFF the glass as often as can be
done...pollen is difficult as it is sticky and typically does not brush
off well.  The best thing on pollen when fresh is to use a tissue soaked
in distilled water and gently wash/rinse the glass prior to it sticking
and secreting the damaging acids.

Dr. Clay
--------------------
Arkansas Sky Observatories
Harvard MPC H41 (Petit Jean Mountain)
Harvard MPC H45 (Petit Jean Mountain South)
Harvard MPC H43 (Conway)
Harvard MPC H44 (Cascade Mountain)
http://www.arksky.org/

Subject:	Recognized the motor problem for EXT 70 AT
Sent:	Thursday, June 16, 2005 18:42:59
From:	Christian J. Tyrrell (beachpunk@comcast.net)
I saw the posting on your site of a possible motor failure.

So I thought I'd pass on this Interesting note -- I bought an EXT 70 AT
last week, but unfortunately it had very serious motor failure and would
not align.  It would only go to the first alignment star after a serious
grinding, but would not let you adjust the setting (as shown in the
manual).

I ended up returning it this evening.  Could it be that this happens in
"batches"?  I saw other postings of similar experiences with the motors.

It was a very disappointing experience to say the least.   Now I'm back
at square one without a telescope.

Not sure what to do at this point.

Christian

Subject:	comparison between the ETX and the LXD
Sent:	Thursday, June 16, 2005 14:29:13
From:	rdl (rodelaet@yahoo.com)
I just looked at your LXD site. I did not find a
comparison between the ETX and the LXD.
You have both the scopes. Is the LXD the better one?
How do you compare them on a visual (not astrophoto)
basis. Which one do you prefer and why?

Regards,

Rony

Subject:	Sloppy tracking in RA , on a ETX-125
Sent:	Thursday, June 16, 2005 12:19:48
From:	Anthony Rukcic (anthonyrukcic1@sbcglobal.net)
I started using my ETX-125 a couple of days ago and after I set-up
everything correctly and its tracking in RA, the movement is jerky.
Using 20mm or higher, you'll see the image slowly drift off center, not
much,then it will kick back in place. You can feel the "knock" on top of
the base when it does that. DEC tracks fine. I did a motor train and
calibration the next day and it still had the jerky tracking that night.
It use to be real smooth to where you could'nt even tell is was moving.

I hope its not getting back at me for not using it in a while. If you
have any ideas, send them my way.

Thank You,
Anthony

Subject:	Should I get a Barlow lens
Sent:	Wednesday, June 15, 2005 17:00:23
From:	Mark (ab2ml@optonline.net)
I have an ETX 90AT and a set of eyepieces..6.4mm,12.4mm,20mm,26mm and
32mm...it seems it would give me a few in between mags but would double
a couple too...just wondering if it is ok for this scope due to it's
small aperture (slow f 13.8) and because of the doubling of powers....I
think the retained eye relief would be good but just looking for your
opinion.....Mark

also I'm emailing you here cause I'm not sure where to find the right
address

And:

Ok thanks Mike....so if I want that 13-15mm I should just buy that
eyepiece I guess. The 20mm doubled would have given me 10mm for another
in between power but I guess it is close to my 12.4 then...by the way
Mike thanks for the fast reply and the great web site.....Mark

And:

Of course your right Mike....I'll consider another useful accessory of
some kind instead....again thanks for the quick reply and info and
advice....clear skis to you Mike.....Mark

Subject:	ETX-125AT
Sent:	Wednesday, June 15, 2005 15:37:45
From:	Dan and Joan Mattes (dfmjem@verizon.net)
I will be receiving a Meade 125-AT tomorrow 6/16 from UPS.

I noticed this scope is somewhat more expensive than the 125-EC. Could
you tell me what is the difference between the two?

By the way, great site!!
 
Dan Mattes

Subject:	Looking for a specific astronomy book - don't know title - ideas where to search?
Sent:	Wednesday, June 15, 2005 12:09:07
From:	Paxton & Brenna Taylor (paxbren02@sbcglobal.net)
I'm trying to help my husband find this astronomy reference book he had
when he was a kid (it's not a "kid book" though).  I'll tell you what I
know about it on the off chance you may have seen it before but really I
was wondering if you could direct me to someone or someplace that would
help me in my search.

He doesn't remember the title but it's an astronomy book mainly focusing
on our planets and sun, the cover is black with a space ship on it, he
says it's a serious but neat encyclopaedic reference book and that he
got it from some book club his mom was signed up in during the early
80's.  I know that there are probably about as many astronomy books as
there are stars in our galaxy just about but maybe you could help me get
in the right direction for looking.

Thanks for any help you can give me!  If you have no clue, please just
send me a quick email saying so, so that I know one way or the other. 
Thanks again,
 
-Brenna Taylor

Subject:	etx coma
Sent:	Wednesday, June 15, 2005 05:00:07
From:	Cysmar@aol.com (Cysmar@aol.com)
I'm not familiar with what is considered normal "coma" on an etx.

Mine shows it on the outer third of the fov.

When a star is out of focus in the inner two thirds the black circle is
dead center and there is no coma on the outer third when out of focus it
is off center and when in focus there is pronouned coma.

Thanx in advance
and thanx for your website

And:

Hi,
Sorry! I have an etx 105
Thanx

Subject:	parfocal eyepieces
Sent:	Monday, June 13, 2005 07:59:47
From:	Luis Villa (ETX_125EC_from_arizona@msn.com)
Do you by any chance know how I could have two eyepieces parfocal? one
on top and the other using a diagonal?  Specifically I am trying to use
the 18mm Scopetronics for photos with my CP-995 on top and also use the
40 mm Meade Super Plossl for wider shots.  I have tried extension tubes
with different eyepieces but I have not had very good luck.  I have also
tried a parfocalizing ring in combination with extension tubes.

Do you know IF there are two eyepieces that are parfocal?  I would like
to use the 18MM and the 40mm for pictures and use the diagonal for
centering and focusing.

Perhaps there is a formula for calculating what I am after.

Thanks!
 
Luis 

And:

Thanks!  You are right on the money with the trial and mostly error!  I
have tried many different combinations and I will continue to try until
I can find the magic formula!  IF I find the right combo I will
definitely share this with the site!  Maybe somebody out there already
has found the magic combo, and could share that with everybody else.

I will be doing some shopping for extension rings to see if that will
help---

Only after I had sent this, did I find the site announcements, this was
not a priority type question.  The quarry I am after will be washed out
by the moon these next couple of weeks.  AND I found some very useful
information when I searched for parfocal and diagonal on your site.....

As always your site has a wealth of information!!
 
Luis

And:

Thanks.... I checked that way and it seems that they will help.... since
I tried so many combinations I forgot which eyepiece I tried!  BUT I do
know that one of them came very close..... I do have until next new moon
to find the right combo so that I can image M-57, plus give others a
shot!
 
Will keep you posted as to which combination will work....
 
Thx
 
Luis

Subject:	125 pe download
Sent:	Sunday, June 12, 2005 09:51:56
From:	alanbassgreene@aol.com (alanbassgreene@aol.com)
You recently suggested I download 33ec for my new 125 etx pe. I know I
need a 505 cable to do this. Is this the cable that was included with my
autostar suite c.d. that came with the scope or do I have to order it
from Meade?

Do I still need to do this download to improve accuracy in the goto even
though I have no intention of running the scope from my p.c.?

Thanks, Al Greene

Subject:	ETX 90EC - Right Ascension motor failure.
Sent:	Sunday, June 12, 2005 08:23:10
From:	Vittorio Carminato (vcarmin@tin.it)
Yesterday during a day observing session of the sun I experienced a
serious malfunction in my ETX 90 EC. The scope suddendly made erratic
movements and I've got a message in the Autostar dispaying "...motor
faults". I tried to move the scope in azimuth and it was working
correctly but it didn't slew any more in right ascension ever since. I
tried to swich it off and on several times, I changed the batteries with
fresh ones, I reset it and retrained the motor but the message was still
on. I read your book reccomending not to leave the scope under direct
sunlight and felt guilty (but this is not the first time I observe the
sun!!!!). I'm using the scope for 5 years now and I've never had such a
big problem. Is there something I can do before sending the scope back
to US, I know it's gonna be very expensive since I live in Italy.
Thanks for your help and for your extremely useful site.
Well done,
Vittorio Carminato 

Subject:	ETX70 Azimuth tracker problem after extending wires
Sent:	Friday, June 10, 2005 10:59:57
From:	pgierow@aol.com (pgierow@aol.com)
I found your site and bought an ETX70 tracker to modify to track to a
GEO satellite with an inflatable antenna. I took apart the system and
was amazed how well done the software/hardware appeared.

I extended the cables since my antenna has an elevation movement about 3
feet from the azimuth rotation. The ETX 70 has the controller plug in at
the elevation part of the tracker versus the 90 on the bottom az area.

Everything worked well until about a day later the az motors would only
move one direction with the controller and would not work in the go-to
mode. After re-wiring with shielded cable the motor will now work in
both directions at full speed but no speed control and when I use the go
to it says motor controller error.  The el works fine either way.

I suspect I may have messed up the optical position sensor somehow.

Is there any source for the optical encoders. Meade won?t consider it
and I hate to buy a whole new telescope for a small part if that is the
case.

Thanks for your help in advance, and I'll send you a picture of my
contraption when I get it working.
 
Paul Gierow
pgierow@aol.com

Subject:	ed eyepieces
Sent:	Thursday, June 9, 2005 06:08:26
From:	Cysmar@aol.com (Cysmar@aol.com)
Are ed eyepieces as good as advertised ? Do they offer signifigantly
better views than regular ep's
Thanx
Once again I just want to say PRICELESS WEBSITE

Subject:	re: 2 ETX books
Sent:	Wednesday, June 8, 2005 23:03:16
From:	Richard Seymour (rseymour@wolfenet.com)
aitchbar@centex.net said:
> I don't have any way to get Sterling...

If they accept a credit card, just do it... the card company will sort it out.
(for about $2 plus 2%)
You can buy travellers checks in pounds sterling, and just send one.
There are international postal money orders (from the post office).
Many commercial banks are set up to transfer funds (this is pricey).


Which publisher is it?

I see that www.amazon.co.uk (who'll happily do the pounds-dollar work)
does not list that book.

have  fun
--dick

Subject:	Meade Software- General feedback category?
Sent:	Wednesday, June 8, 2005 12:10:26
From:	adam reisner (adamreisner@lanset.com)
Excellent site and great personal effort. Thank you.

I just wanted to comment that as a "new" Meade customer I find it very
disappointing and a disservice to the Meade customers that Meade
provides so little information about autostar suite software.

I am especially appalled with the lack of description about new version
releases and fixes and the total lack of what should be a minor effort
to communicate what the customers should know to make intelligent
decisions about upgrading or not. The readme file included in their zip
files is grossly vague.

Basic customer software support argues for setting up even a primitive,
known or outstanding bug or error listing document (hopefully with work
arounds and target fix release dates)  and some small amount of
information detailing all the fixes in a release and which hardware the
fixes apply to.  Also, immediate prior version releases should be
available for download (fallback).

I am still struggling with the autostar suite starchart and even
understanding what its functions are and how to get them to work...
examples. where are satellite viewing loading and options?? just
asteroids and comets?? No TLE loading??

I can't get telescope control to work for an etx-125.  i think it was
because i was still "connected" to the scope via the starchart program
so the telescope control program never connected.. (next time i will
disconnectd from the starchart and then try to connect from the control
screen); where is that documented???

Thanks again for your efforts and providing this forum

Subject:	Re: Gear problem in ETX-90EC
Sent:	Wednesday, June 8, 2005 08:27:06
From:	saleh homidan (homidans@yahoo.com)
I did your suggestion 10 times, it moves smoothly by hand, and I feel
nothing. Also nothing happened while slewing.

The telescope still not slewing left and right, instead I hear cracking
sound in the gears.

What you mean by "catching"?

And from our resident hardware expert, Dr. Clay Sherrod:

From:	P. Clay Sherrod (drclay@tcworks.net)
First of all, you should never attempt to manually turn any of those
gears....they are not supposed to move nor will they except under
damaging force.  The gear system is unforgiving....if you force the
gears to move you WILL damage them.  The sound you hear is not likely
manifested from the gear train....it is something else, OR could be in
the reducer gear assembly....the best way to determining is to leave the
base plate off and initialize the scope with CLAMP UNDONE....and then
slew slowly in RA to isolate the noise. Once you hear it, it will be
obvious what is making the noise.

However, if the gear box was loose, this very likely could have been
causing the problem.....simple tightening it up, being careful to center
it to the cylindrical worm gear would very possibly eliminate the sound
and any damage that could result from this.

However, if you have used pliers to move gears, then it is very likely
that you have damaged one or more of the reducer gears inside the small
box.  They are NEVER meant to move except when a powered Autostar turns
them.  Moving manually will strip them very easily.

Examine the mechanism as described and get back with us....perhaps we
can get this going without any more trouble.

Dr. Clay
--------------------
Arkansas Sky Observatories
Harvard MPC H41 (Petit Jean Mountain)
Harvard MPC H45 (Petit Jean Mountain South)
Harvard MPC H43 (Conway)
Harvard MPC H44 (Cascade Mountain)
http://www.arksky.org/

I opened the bottom cover, removed the gears, unlocked the azimuth lever
then I rotate the metal gear in the meddle (see the attachment picture)
by hand slowly;





I feel that the rotation goes easy then hard then easy then hard etc. in
both directions.
Is this normal?
If it is not normal; is that mean there is something inside block the
gear? If yes; how can I remove this blocker?
Thanks

This does tell me a great deal....nothing is blocking the gear itself;
likely what has happened is inside the turntable (behind the gear in
this image...you cannot see this area and I urge you to not attempt to
get in there as the wires passing through the gear (showing as black
here) will be sheared off in the process and have to be reattached). 
Very likely one of six small Phillips screws has come loose  inside a
retaining plate area and is dragging inside the turntable.

If you are not comfortable rewiring the scope, the only answer will be
to send the scope to Meade for repair....do not operate the scope in
this condition as it will burn out the motor and/or strip those delicate
reducer gears!

Best of luck...this is about the worst case in terms of problems that
can develop.

Dr. Clay

Remove the large hex gear to obtain access inside the turntable; however
you must first CLIP THE WIRES going into the turntable; they are color
coded and when you reassemble the telescope, you can use heat shrink to
repair and affix the wires properly...just go slow and be very careful.
 
Best of luck!
 
Dr. Clay

I tried to follow your instructions but I failed. Please be more
specific and write all details may help me, pictures and web page
addresses will be helpful and appreciated.
Thanks

I cannot be specific if you are not specific in telling me exactly what
you have done that failed.  There are many, many excellent photos posted
on Mike Weasner's ETX site that should guide you through the process,
but I cannot help you if you tell me what does not seem to be working as
far as your repair or ability to get inside the telescope.  There are
many, many details about getting into the turntable to repair, but this
would take hours and hours of description, most of which is posted on
the Technical Tips on the Mighty ETX site.
 
What, exactly failed in your attempt?
 
Dr. Clay

Subject:	frozen horizontal movement
Sent:	Wednesday, June 8, 2005 06:38:31
From:	Tony Frisina (afrisina@yahoo.com)
my 125 started making awfull noises when trying to move from left to
right (azimuth ?). i removed the base plate and noticed the gear box
wanted to move, but the worm gear would not budge (causing the
noise).the worm gear will move with a little help from pliers, but not
the round gear. the base will move by hand. also the plastic numbered
ring around the base(r.a. setting circle) would not stay in place. I
noticed a gap( about 1/8") between the base and the upper fork section.
The scope was stored very carefully in a padded box, was not dropped,
etc. anybody got any ideas ? thanks

And:

the shaft in the middle of the base, with a large plastic ring at the
end and the round gear , seems to be what is frozen. problem is i have
no idea how to lubricate it. perhaps if i could get the black plastic
plate off. any ideas ?

decided to bite the bullet and sent scope back to meade...

Subject:	ETX125
Sent:	Wednesday, June 8, 2005 05:25:20
From:	Steve Jones (zen28779@zen.co.uk)
Firstly, conrats on a fantastic website. Its been a great help for us
both in buying a new scope. We have settled for the ETX125. We are just
having a few niggles and I was wondering if you may be able to help. We
set the scope to home, point it North after turning it counter clockwise
etc and then align to the 2 stars. It is always slightly out but in the
viewfinder. We align successfully and then slew to Jupiter which is
almost dead on. We then track to a messier which we haven't found yet
because the skies are too bright I think. The problem comes when we slew
back to Jupiter. It is quite a way out and not even in the viewfinder?? 
Any ideas??

Kind Regards

        Steve

Subject:	Comparison - ETX 90AT abd ETX 90EC
Sent:	Tuesday, June 7, 2005 13:32:38
From:	Rev. Ayoob (ure3222@yahoo.com)
I am less than a novice, after doing some basic research on Meade
products I have come to the conclusion that an "E" series would best fit
my desires and my budget (our limited income one major purchase for the
year).  As we do a fair amount of outdoor photography, I concluded that
the ETX series would best fit our all around needs(assuming my
conclusions are correct).

My question is what is the difference between the 90AT and the 90EC? 
Are the differences significant?  Do you have any other suggestions with
Autostar?

Thank you for your patience and tolerating my ineptitude.

Subject:	ETX125
Sent:	Monday, June 6, 2005 17:53:31
From:	Frank George (fgeorge@pclnet.net)
Meade wants the scope in for repair I forgot to ask them a few things.
Should I take my auto focuser off the scope and reinstall the knob?

Should I put it into 2 boxes the original and an extra with some packing
material and do I need to take out my batteries?

Thanks Frank George

And:

Thanks Mike I appreciate it! Frank George

Subject:	2 ETX books
Sent:	Monday, June 6, 2005 15:32:54
From:	H Schaeffer (aitchbar@centex.net)
I want to thank you for giving so much support to a basically excellent
telescope - the Meade ETX - that is almost completely unsupported by its
own manufacturer.  In particlular, your "Using The Meade ETX" is almost
a necessity if one is going to use these things.  However, it is
becoming somewhat dated; do you plan to issue a second edition any time
soon?

Also, for over 6 months now I have been trying to obtain a copy of a new
book, "The ETX Telescope Guide" by Lillian Hobbs.  How can I obtain this
book with US funds?  I contacted the publisher, and was unable to make
anyone there understand that I have American currency, and I don't have
any way to get Sterling.  Do you know anyone who will sell this book for
US dollars?

Please keep up the good work. 
 
Harden Schaeffer

Subject:	Gear problem in ETX-90EC
Sent:	Monday, June 6, 2005 14:36:50
From:	saleh homidan (homidans@yahoo.com)
My Meade ETX-90EC telescope not move in azimuth direction, instead I
hear a high noise in the gears.

I decided to open the bottom of the telescope and I found all gears were
moving good except the big one attached to the axis. I could find no
obvious physical obstruction.

How can I solve this problem?
thanks

And:

No, I can't. The lock is engaged.

Instead I hear cracking sound in the gears when I trying to press left
or right button in the autostar control.

And:

I opened the bottom cover and the plastic gears compartment, then
starting from the gear near the motor I checked the gear-train one by
one for the three possibilities you mentioned:

1- Nothing catching the gears but the last one. The last gear rotate a
little (5 or 6 teeth) then stop for unknown reason, when I give it a
little bush it  rotate a little and then stop again.

2- All teeth for all gears are good.

3- All gears are aligned well.

I can't contact Meade because I live in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) where
there is no maintenance center her.

Please help me!
Thanks

Subject:	Should I buy this ETX-125EC
Sent:	Monday, June 6, 2005 09:32:28
From:	Curtis West (cwest27@cox.net)
I'm somewhat new to astronomy. I owned a homebuilt 12" trussed dob. I
liked it, but after two years of lugging it around I sold it.

I been doing some reading on your site. This site alone convinced me
that an EXT-125 would be a good scope to re-start my astronomy hobby.

After work  today, I stopped by a large electronic retailer. They only
had (1) Mead product in their inventory, and it happened to be a
EXT-125EC, and it was a returned item. Their was a "Return to Store"
sticker on the outside of the box dated 02/13/05, with a "Defect
Description" of: "No Control". That's all it said. So, I thought it
meant it didn't have a computer controller. I rounded up a sales guy for
some more info. He said it didn't have a controller, and pointer to the
picture on the box. I then asked him what they wanter for it because it
didn't have a price sticker on it. He said that he had to look it up. He
came back and quoted me a price of $299. Then I asked him if the
warranty was still good, and he said yes.

So, I told him I'd think about it awhile. After he walked away I took a
closer look at the box. Inside the box I found a lable:

ETX-125 / UHTC / 884 Tripod / 497 HB
Product# 0515-03-21

MRR# 040722 0515-03-21
w/o 0406042-M

Also inside the box was a hand controller with a LCD screen on it. The
scope looked to be in new condition, the manual bag was never opened,
and their were two small boxes that contained lenses.

This sounds pretty cheap. I asked about the 884 Tripod, he said that
they couldn't included it for that price. Oh, the underside of the scope
had a UHTC label attached.

So, what do you think. Is the "EC" model a troubled one? Is this a
to-good-to-be-true deal? Or, did it happen to be my lucky day?

cw 

Subject:	My website : Rony's ETX Site.
Sent:	Sunday, June 5, 2005 14:16:38
From:	rdl (rodelaet@yahoo.com)
I have started a little website about visual observations with the ETX
105.

You can find it at www.geocities.com/rodelaet

I will add more drawings later.

I have put your site on my favorites list because you and your site have
helped me so much with this fascinating hobby!

Best regards,

Rony

Subject:	ETX-125 for a High School class?
Sent:	Friday, June 3, 2005 08:38:16
From:	Arnold, Paul (parnold@mt-vernon.k12.oh.us)
We are instituting a night-time Astronomy class at the high school where
I teach.  It will be held two hours/night, one night/week, year-round. 
Its main focus will be observational astronomy.

From prior summer course experiences, I've learned that students
definitely need a go-to scope.  I also feel that it needs to be small
enough to "grab and go."  We have an 8" C8, but it is pretty bulky and
was even dropped once (no damage!!)  Consequently, I'm considering
smaller aperture.

Do you have an opinion on the suitability of the ETX-125 PE vs AT vs a
C5 or perhaps one of the LXD models, or perhaps one the 6" advanced
series Celestrons?  I want the biggest aperture I can get and yet remain
portable and easy to set up and use in our limited time.  I want the
students to be (after training by me) the users and handlers of the
scopes.  My goal is to teach them all I can about observational
Astronomy.

Also, should I be considering the purchase of a portable power supply
instead of the AA batteries for the ETX?  Any other accessories you can
recommend?

Any suggestions you can make would be appreciated. 

Thanks, 
Paul Arnold 
Mount Vernon High School 
Mount Vernon, OH

Subject:	Request for assistance trouble attaching red dot finder to scope
Sent:	Thursday, June 2, 2005 03:45:07
From:	Sam Nothman (sam-nan@juno.com)
I am having trouble attaching  a red dot finder (Orion EZ- finder)
permanently to my etx-125. I have used the thin spongy type double
backed adhesive tape which holds for several months only- Im not sure if
I should drill  screws into the scope- any suggestions?

Thanks, 
Sam Nothman

Subject:	Solar filter for ETX
Sent:	Wednesday, June 1, 2005 13:29:19
From:	Jan H Kolst (jan.kolsto@online.no)
I'm planning to make a solar filter for my ETX 90 AT.I found a solution
on this page(It's written in English):

http://www.baader-planetarium.com/sofifolie/bauanleitung_e.htm

Do you think that this will be OK for the ETX? I'm a bit worried about
the closed construction of the ETX.
 
Regards
Jan Kolst
Norway

Subject:	View?
Sent:	Wednesday, June 1, 2005 06:04:47
From:	Carpenter, Jon (jmcarpenter@rhs.kana.k12.wv.us)
Can one expect to see the same views that are in the pictures?

And:

I sure appreciate your help... your site has helped tremendously.  The
only thing deterring me from ordering a 125 today is my concern about
the ability to see galaxies. What can I expect?  I see that Amazon has
the best price...any reason why?

Subject:	ETX125 LST poblem
Sent:	Wednesday, June 1, 2005 01:30:34
From:	John Farrant (johnfarrant@gmail.com)
First of all congrats on a brilliant site. Constantly used by myself. I
have recently upgraded to Autostar Version 33ef and although everything
seems OK, slewing etc., the LST seems to be out by 4 hours no matter
what the Local Time is set to. I am reluctant to upgrade to version 33ei
as all is well with slewing accuracy. Should I ignore the LST error or
is it me. Your comments would be appreciated.
Many thanks
John

And:

Many Thanks, Mike. Will do.

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