Re: ATM Accutrack Capability

[Dwight Elvey <elvey@hal.com>]

"Chuck Shaw" <cshaw@ghg.net> wrote:
> 
> I thought I would try the water again with the group to see if anyone knows
> what wattage motor the old "Accutrack" Drive Correctors can handle?  The
> folks at Orion do not seem to have any tech data on it (its been out of
> production too long).
> 
> I have an equatorial mount with an old Bodine 1amp motor on it I want to use
> this drive corrector with.  Now 120v x 1 amp is a lot of watts, and I am not
> sure the Accutrack is up to that....  If it is, I do not have to get a
> different motor.  If not, I will need to get a smaller motor, but how
> small??? (answer:  What is the capability of the Drive Corrector??)
> 
> There are no markings on the inside of the drive corrector on any of the
> components.  The 110v fuse is a 1.5 amp fuse, but that just tells me a 1 amp
> motor would be really pressing the issue.....
> 
> Thanks for any help!!
> 
> Chuck
> 
> 

Hi Chuck
 The motors that use shade pole type drives are usually quite
inefficient. Not quite 120 Watts but usually in the 5-15 Watt
range. The amount of power required when geared down to the
speed of a RA drive is quite small. I'm not sure you'd
have any trouble with almost any motor that turns. Lets assume
the armature rotates at 120 rpm. The total drive ratio
would be 1200:1. A 10in-lbs out of balance would be only
0.00833 in-lbs at the armature. The gear drag would most
likely be greater than this. ( not correct for siderial time )
 I think the more important question is the voltage of the
system. Is the corrector you have suppose to drive a 110-120V
AC motor or some other voltage?
Dwight