[AZ-Observing] Re: Heads-Up for Celestron NexStar 114GT for $159 at Costco...

Greg and all;

Been there, done that, with the baby Nexstar.=20

This is a good deal, and the Baader bracket is very cool, but be aware =
that
this series offers mediocre tracking at anything above low power, say =
50x+.
What is bizarre about mine is it tracks OK in some sectors of the sky =
(near
the zenith it is great!) and terrible in others (45 alt, 135 az, for
example). Tracking errors are as high as 3 minutes per minute in some =
areas.

GOTO performance can be good, but set-up is finicky and careful =
alignment is
a must. I use an illuminated reticle ep for this.

You also need to know whether these scopes come with the upgraded =
handpad;
you can send the old one back and Celestron will replace it n/c, but you =
pay
shipping (of course).

What's more, the 114GT has a bigger, beefier arm than the 60/80 GT =
model, so
it might be *a little* more stable, but light, small OTAs are the rule =
here.

Of course I know of some fool who put a 120mm f8 refractor on a Nexstar =
60
mount using a Baader bracket and it actually worked, but the mount =
twanged
in the lightest breeze. I think if you breathed on the thing it would =
start
to oscillate.

Oh yeah, and if you crash the mount a replacement motor runs $50, and =
you
pay shipping.

The 114GT has a built-in barlow to minimize coma. The fl is ~900mm, I =
think.
So it is not really a widefield scope, like the 80GT.

Regardless of the hype, I think this scope would be somewhat of a =
challenge
for a beginner of any age. But for someone looking to put a quality ota =
like
a TV Pronto on a GOTO mount, this might be just the ticket . . . But =
realize
it is not going to point/track like its bigger Nexstar bretheren.=20

Just my $0.02, discounted to 0.015 for the readers of az observing.

Matt


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