Re: [ATM] need help with an altitude bearing problem

[Dominic-Luc Webb <dlwebb@canit.se>]

> I have a telescope that was made for me by a friend. The altitude
> bearing surfaces are highly polished stainless steel against Teflon.
> This results in extremely smooth motion with hardly any "stick-tion" at
> all. This makes the scope very sensitive weight to changes at the ep and
> difficult to counterbalance (ie, a counterweight that will keep the
> scope from plunging downward when I add a 2" ep will also cause the
> scope to swing toward the zenith once I pass the midpoint going
> upwards).

I have never been especially good at translating written words to
a mechanical device, but I am guessing you are wanting something
like a clutch. I have used greased cork and a tensioner for this.
If a clutch sounds like something you are after, you could have
a look at the higher end Manfrotto tripod heads. I finally got
round to buying one (a tad expensive). My different cameras and
spotting scopes have different weights and weight distributions
and the tensioners and locks on the Manfrotto heads made a real
easy task of switching cameras and lenses on the same tripod.
This was actually a surprising and pleasant bi-product of my
purchase. I wanted the Manfrotto for the very stable, long (~2
meter), tripod legs so I could stand upright (much easier on
the back than bending down). I think the clutch (adjustable)
arrangement is pretty simple. It definitely works well and
moving up and down to point at different altitudes gives
essentially constant tension, which again, is adjustable.

Dominic-Luc Webb

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