Weasner's General LXD55/75 Feedback Page

GENERAL FEEDBACK

Last updated: 31 July 2007

This page is for user comments and information of a general nature or items applicable to all LXD55 and LXD75 models. If you have any comments, suggestions, questions or answers to questions posed here, e-mail them to me and I'll post them. Please use an appropriate Subject Line on your message. Thanks.

Subject:	LXD55 DEC setting circle
Sent:	Saturday, July 28, 2007 15:25:52
From:	JOHN PALADINI (jpaladin1@comcast.net)
The number on my LXD55 DEC setting dial have worn off
Can I get a replacement from someone somewhere ?
 
John

Mike here: You could try Meade; they might send you one for free. Alternatively, try Telescope Warehouse (link on the Astronomy Links page on my ETX Site). But do you use the setting circles or do you use an AutoStar and so might not even need one?

Subject:	Hypertune Kit for LXD55 / LXD75... How do I find this to purchase it?
Sent:	Wednesday, July 18, 2007 23:45:13
From:	Scott Begg (scottbegg@charter.net)
I would prefer not to bother you like this, but I am having a very
difficult time tracking down one of those LXD55 Hypertune Kits which
were popular several years ago.  I have an LXD75 which I currently use
with a Celestron C8, and I have been having some "slippage" trouble with
the mount.  The site LXD55.com used to sell the hypertune kits for
addressing these sorts of problems, and on their web page, they appear
to still sell them.  However, whenever I contact them--or rather,
whenever I attempt to contact them at their address:
notify@lxd55.com--my email query gets returned.

Would you know of any dealers or sites which might carry this Hypertune
kit, and how I might go about obtaining one?  Or for that matter how I
might go about reaching someone at the LXD55.com site?  I thank you in
advance for your assistance in this matter.

Scott

Mike here: I have forwarded your email to Richard Harris; he will contact you directly.

Subject:	Basic Astrophotography Question LXD 55 
Sent:	Tuesday, July 17, 2007 07:45:00
From:	Jackstay5@aol.com (Jackstay5@aol.com)
I am getting started with Astrophotography using an LXD 55 6" Refractor,
Canon Rebel XT, and Image Plus for focus and image capture using a
laptop.  I have set up and tested everything OK.

One thing I am curious about is the process for alignment and balance. 
I have noticed that if I do my alignment using an eye piece, and balance
the scope for that wieght, the camera etc requires rebalancing once
attached.  I can balance either for the eye piece or for the camera OK. 
But if I do the alignment using the eyepiece and GOTO the object I want
to photograph, I need to rebalance when I attach my camera.  That would
seem to through the alignment off.  Are people aligning then attaching
the camera and rebalancing before doing the GOTO to the object?  What is
the process that works best?

I haven't seen this detail addressed anywhere.

Phil Alman

Mike here: With my LXD75-8"SC I balance for the camera weight (since that is worse case) and then align using the eyepiece without changing the telescope or counterweight positions. Yes, there can be some slippage of the telescope during the process of attaching the camera due the change in weight at that end so I do a SYNC on a nearby object after attaching the camera.

And:

Thanks for the quick reply.  I understand you are in the process of
moving.  Good luck!

When I did my first set up I did just that - balanced the telescope with
the camera then removed the camera did a polar alignment using  the eye
piece and finally slewed to target and then mounted the camera.  While
slewing it sure sounded like the drive motor was struggling. I became a
little apprenhesive that slewing an out of balance scope could cause
slippage or damage the drive affecting tracking.  So it sounds like that
is not a significant problem and I should continue with the way I was
doing it correct?
 
Phil

Mike here: Slippage is the mostly problem to occur with most lightweight cameras. But don't over tighten the axis locks in an attempt to avoid the slippage; that can damage the mechanisms.

Subject:	Re: LXD55 Mount
Sent:	Sunday, July 15, 2007 11:47:41
From:	Marco Santos (mpbschique@gmail.com)
Ok Mike, i'll do that. Anyway thanks a lot for your great help. I will
let you know abou the end....  :-)!!!!
 
Thaks again and congratulations
 
Marco

And:

on the attachment the result.......any idea concernig repair?

Thanks

Mike here: If the trace is burned out then you would have to have someone familiar with working on circuit boards fix that. If the component is fried then you would have to replace the component, resoldering it to the board (without causing additional damage). Or you can try to find a replacement circuit board (or contact Meade for the repair).

Subject:	LXD55 Mount
Sent:	Sunday, July 15, 2007 09:18:41
From:	Marco Santos (mpbschique@gmail.com)
first of all i would like to thanks for all the work youre doing for the
astronomical world. My name is Marco, im 26 years old and i leave in
Portugal.

I bought a second and LXD55 SN 8" telescope. Yesterday a made the update
for the newest firmware from meade for the autostar. (497#) in order to
try to solve a problem. My telescope is always giving me "Motor Unit
Fault" message when i try to calibrate motors. First time i did the
connection to the handbox, it started to smell burned from de telescope
control panel. From now on, the engines are moving in all directions
except to de right, even when i press de right direction button on the
autostar. Everytime i make calibrate or test motors is giving me that
error.

Can you please help me?

Best regards,

Marco Santos

Thanks for such a nice job

Mike here: A burning smell is not good. Were you using an external power supply? In any case I suspect something shorted out inside the control panel. You will have to open it up and see where the damage is. You may or may not be able to repair it yourself.

And:

Thanks Mike for the quick answer!!
 
Ye im using an external power supply (12V). First it started wtih a
little bit of smoke, from inside de control panel, and after that the
burned smell.....any idea? Im not an expert in electronics!!! ;-)
 
Nice of u!
 
Best regards
 
Marco Santos

Mike here: Was this the first time you used the external power supply? One way to burn out the controls is by reversing the power plug (to the control panel) polarity.

And:

Yes Mike, this was the first time....is there a cheap way to solve this,
 or do i have to buy a new motor and panel?
 
Thanks

Mike here: If you can locate some electronics person to repair it, then you might be able to get away with a cheap solution. Alternatively, you could contact Meade for a repair. Or perhaps Telescope Warehouse for a replacement part, if they have one. But check that power source, especially the plug polarity; it should be center pin positive. Also, 12VDC and 2500mA.

Subject:	meade lxd75 sn telescope(8 inch)
Sent:	Saturday, July 14, 2007 15:09:41
From:	Richard Swift (cswift.24@comcast.net)
Hello Mr. Weasner .I am writing you because I am into
astroimagining deep space objects.I am thinking of buying the meade sn
telescope the 8 inch f/4 one.I would like to use my D.S.L.R camera with
a 2 inch adapter.I saw your images of m27 at f/4 and f/2.6.Was the samer
image of m27 the f/2.6 with the focal reducer?Also i have a celestron
f/6.3 focal reducer that converts my f/8 refractor to an f 5.3.do you
think the sn8 will have enough focal travel to get me an image.also how
hard is it to collminate the s.n. telescope.

Also it seems to me that the next size up the sn 10 inch may be a little
to much for the lxd mount.What do you think?  I use piggy back guiging
with a 80mm f/5 guide scope.

Mike here: I don't have a focal reducer nor a SN LXD so those must not have been my photos of M27 (at f/4 and f/2.6). You might want to contact the submitter of the original images. I don't know if the SN will have enough travel focus but suspect that it might. The 10" was a little bit too much for the LXD55 mount but since Meade now uses the LXD75 mount, which is a way better mount, 10" should be fine.

Subject:	Autostar loose GOTO alignment after park scope and restart!
Sent:	Wednesday, July 11, 2007 01:59:28
From:	Riccardo Sallusti (riccardo.sallusti@fullsix.com)
Hello i am having a new and strange problem!

I have an ETX125 mounted on an LXD75 mount, and i am using it from one
year without any problem.

But since i am using a lead Battery to power my scope, a strange thing
is happening:

after a normal park scope at the end of a session, when i restart the
scope for a new one, i find that the scope have lost any previous goto
Aligmment and i have to do it again every time i turn on the scope.

THIS THING HAPPENS ONLY IF I USE THE LEAD BATTERY AND EVEN WITHOUT
UNPLUGGING THE JACK, JUST TURNING ON AGAIN. IT DOESN'T HAPPEN WITH THE
NORMAL POWER ADAPTER AND HOME POWER.

The battery provides a normal 12/13 volts at 17Ah. I know that a lot of
people use those kind of batteries without problems.

Thanks for your site!!!!!

Riccardo Sallusti
milan

Mike here: Since it only happens with the lead battery, it would seem that perhaps something there is causing a full power loss.

Subject:	LXD75 focuser replacement
Sent:	Thursday, July 5, 2007 12:32:46
From:	Stephen Olson (steve34@comcast.net)
Hope you had a great 4th! I recently sent my LXD75 SN8 to Dr. clay for a
supercharge. Upon receiving the scope he noticed that the focuser was
not Meade brand. I never knew that. He also said it was of poor quality.
There were many other things "not Meade" on my mount and scope, To say
the least the place I got it at will never see my business again. Anyway
I would like to replace the focuser with something better. Can you give
me a recommendation?  Also do you have any pages that show how to
replace the focuser? I am possibly going to so this myself. Thanks again
for such a great site!

Steve Olson

Mike here: Strange. I believe JMI has some replacement focusers. There are probably other sources as well; I just haven't had a need to look into them. I would think that the focuser would come with mounting instructions. Let me know what you get and how it works out.

Subject:	Book on the LXD75
Sent:	Thursday, July 5, 2007 03:33:32
From:	Dieter.Wolf@DNSint.com (Dieter.Wolf@DNSint.com)
haope you had a glorious 4th of July.

You mentioned in reply to a posting in  'etx/general feedback'  that  
"As to a book on the LXD75, as Apple Inc. say, 'we don't talk about
unannounced products' but thanks for the input."

So if you plan to write - or started doing - a book about the LXD 75
this will be much appreciated

Meanwhile there is another one new and just out on the market.  The
author is  MARTIN PESTON  (A User's Guide to the MEADE LXD55 and LXD75
Telescopes; ISBN: 978-0-387-36489-6). Very well done and nice.

And I - not only ;-) - say this because he used some LXD55
photographs from me...

If you want to mention it - it's your decision.

Have a nice day and clear nights,
Dieter (Munich, Germany)

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