Jump to content
  • Join the online East Midlands astronomy club today!

    With active forums, two dark sites and a knowledgeable membership, East Midlands Stargazers has something for everyone.

HEQ5 Pro DEC Clicking Noises


JamesAstro2002

Recommended Posts

Hi people,

So I've been a bit of a fool and managed to drop my entire HEQ5 Pro mount head on my foot (Ouch). I was carrying it upstairs 'attached' to the tripod so I could make some adjustments to the DEC axis since there was a slight amount of play. So I set the tripod down and bam, the head rolled off and landed right on my foot. Silly me didn't realise the head screw wasn't done up all the way!

 

So I gave it a test to make sure it was okay, got the hand controller out and moved it in both RA and DEC and it seemed fine.

 

Then I decided to proceed with what I was going to do in the first place, adjust the worm gear engagement for DEC since there was a bit of play. After following astro baby's guide, I can hear this awful clicking sound when rotating the DEC axis a certain direction. Here is a video showing what I mean: https://1drv.ms/v/s!Av4AJlmi-oXUiRto2oGY22Q6eJc-.

 

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated, I do hope I haven't messed it up too bad.

 

Regards,

James.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi James.

I am assuming this clicking started after you adjusted the backlash.

It sounds like you have adjusted it too much and the motor is stalling on a single tight spot on the worm gear.

Back the adjustment off a very small amount and try again to see if it stops.

A small amount of backlash is normal for these mounts

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Graham,

Yes - I didn't notice any noises after dropping it, only after I adjusted the worm gear.

I'll give that a try now.

 

Thanks for the quick response ?

Edited by JamesAstro2002
Spelling mistake
Link to comment
Share on other sites

So I backed off the adjustment a bit, now that vibration and other noise has gone - but still the clicking noise continues.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Back it off some more until there is a quite a bit of backlash and then try it.

If it still clicks you might have damaged something.

Can you do a longer video of it clicking so I can try to asses what is going on.

I need to see a close up of the motor end of the belt whilst it is running

Edited by Graham
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Your drive belt has a lump on it.

Every time it reaches the motor pulley you get the click.

The belt is riding too high on the pulleys.

You need to move the guide wheel down a touch so the belt rides in the center of the pulleys.

 

In fact before you get into that just take the belt off and turn it around.

Edited by Graham
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi James,welcome to the forum. I hope you get your mount sorted, if Graham

doesn't know, I don't know who would.

Why don't you pop a post in the welcome section and tell us a little about yourself, of course only if you want to.

Again, welcome aboard and enjoy the forum.

Andy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 minutes ago, tuckstar said:

Hi James,welcome to the forum. I hope you get your mount sorted, if Graham

doesn't know, I don't know who would.

Why don't you pop a post in the welcome section and tell us a little about yourself, of course only if you want to.

Again, welcome aboard and enjoy the forum.

Andy

Thanks Andy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've just taken the belt off, flipped it around and gave it a test - no more clicking! I didn't move the guide wheel down, since I don't know how, is there a screw on it somewhere? But if there isn't any more clicking I guess I don't need to.

 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks Ron, so am I! That's just one of the many reasons this hobby surpasses others for me, the community is full of well informed, kind people who are willing to help or just have a general chat. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There you go. ?

You can sort your backlash out now.

If you want to know how to drop the guide wheel let me know and I will walk you through it.

It involves a bit of work because the motor will have to come out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks a lot for that Graham.

I'm out under the clear skies at the moment, testing, all seems to be normal. But I'm still experiencing what i'm assumming is excessive backlash in the DEC axis. After doing a calibration in PHD2, I always get the message 'little south movement detected'. Also, when dithering, it takes the DEC axis an age to settle, eventually it seems to average out over time, settling quickly. Any idea on how to resolve this? I'm just assuming it's a large amount of DEC backlash but i'm not sure how to fix it. And Should I move this question to a new thread?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Removing backlash is a trial and error process. 

The amount of backlash will vary depending on where the scope is pointing. 

The accuracy of the pinion wheel isn't that great so creating the differences. 

You just have to find the sweet spot where there is minimal backlash and the mount doesn't lock up when slewing. 

Just to complicate things further it is also affected by temperature and moisture. 

Still all good fun. 

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah. I had a play with it today and managed to get rid of any play in the gear, with no luck ups whilst doing a complete 360 degree slew in the DEC axis, so fingers crossed it's better. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, Graham said:

0.2 is pretty dam good for an HEQ 5

Great. Just started an imaging run and all seems to be even better after the adjustments I've made, thanks again for your help, Graham.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thought I'd post an update here and thanks to the help of Graham, my mount is now performing much better than before. Just in time for my new dslr Ha filter that I managed to try out the other night.

https://1drv.ms/u/s!Av4AJlmi-oXUiSCuG0s9-dl5d5A5?e=7Uqh2Z

That was 15 x 10 minute exposures, with a large dither between all subs which now settles on time also. 

 

Can't wait to start HaRGB now, but of course it'll be cloudy for the foreseeable future, lol. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.