Re: ATM Worms and gears

[Andy Hochstetler <andyhoc@mindspring.com>]

Andy Saulietis wrote:
<< can't speak for the other mfg's but here's what I have:

Here's an abbreviated table of available gears/sizes etc:

Prices include unmounted worm & shaft
>>

Thanks for the info, Andy.  I will keep all of this in mind.  I had planned 
on using some form of guiding, I guess.  But, alas, I still need to learn 
more about how best to implement this.  I really must read the archives on 
guiding.

I've been following a thread on the astrophotography list recently about 
PEC and it seems that there is a great deal of debate about it.  I'm not 
sure which is the best way to go.

I had envisioned controlling my scope via my laptop - perhaps with guiding 
involved.  My limited understanding of this is that using something like a 
CCD, I can test for errors in tracking and then issue an adjustment to the 
RA control.  Is this the basic idea for guiding?  Or am I totally in the 
dark?

<< The gears will not be damaged by a <10 lb tangential load. The scope 
should
be well balanced & the slip clutch adjusted so the 10 lb load is not
exceeded
>>

I'm in the very early stages of think about this, obviously.  You pointed 
out something that I'd not thought about...a slip clutch.  Obviously this 
would be very important to save the gears and possibly even the stepper.

Thanks again for all the info!
Andy H.