Celestron Omni CG-4 Equatorial Mount

Comments about Celestron Omni CG-4 Equatorial Mount:

Mounted on a 12 lb Sky-watcher ED100 Refractor. Balances well with larger counterweight. Smooth movements. Heavy and solid. (consider heavy a plus.) Well made. Might purchase a ten percent improved product at twice the price. Hard to believe something so substantial could be so well priced. Even the few nonmetal parts are solid. Mine has a minor fit problem with the plastic cup over the polar alignment scale interface.

Comments about Celestron Omni CG-4 Equatorial Mount:

I purchased this mount for my Meade 6 inch F5 Schmidt Newtonian optical tube assembly, and the mount handles the scope very well. I wanted a mount that was light enough to move the entire assembly with telescope attached without getting a hernia. The mount meets that requirement while at the same time providing a firm stable mounting platform. The slow motion controls are very smooth. The only downside is that the polar alignment scope and motor drive are optional. But then again the price is still a bargain even with the additional cost of these options. If you purchase the motor drive make sure you adjust the gear backlash on the mount (included in drive instructions) for smooth performance. If you do not do this the RA drive motor can induce vibrations from gear lash into the mount which degrades the sharpness of high magnification views.

Comments about Celestron Omni CG-4 Equatorial Mount:

This is an update as I added the ra and dec motors. I have some backlash in dec which I'm trying to adjust out but ra is very smooth. As I use it more I seem to be getting more usable 45-60 sec deep space images at 300mm with unguided tracking. My total imaging setup weight is 13.4 pounds. The attached image of the Orion Nebula is a set of 9x45 sec and 12x60 stacked images taken with an unmodified Nikon 50 and 70mm-300mm Nikkor lens at 300mm.
For a total investment of $420 for the mount, polar scope and motors, no autoguiding and no go-to capability, I think it is working well.

Comments about Celestron Omni CG-4 Equatorial Mount:

I purchased this to mount my AT72ED telescope and associated gear for viewing, planetary imaging and eventually, deep space imaging. The AT72ED weighs 5 lb without anything attached. I intend to experiment with eyepiece photography which will add several pounds. I also plan to add the motors (modified) and a small guidescope for guided deep space imaging. I expect the final total weight to be about 12 lbs. While balancing the scope, I discovered that the telescope integrated vixen style foot is too short to balance in declination with the focuser tube fully extended. That's not a mount problem though. So far, I'm pleased and expect it to meet my needs.

Comments about Celestron Omni CG-4 Equatorial Mount:

The CG-4 has been around a long time. it is a great mount. Dual motors can be added quickly. Not for heavy OTA tubes, can handle up to 20lbs easily. Nice dovetail mount.