ORION TELESCOPES & BINOCULARS EQ-26 User manual

INSTRUCTION MANUAL
IN 682 11-22
Orion®EQ-26 Motorized
German Equatorial Mount
#55029
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2
1. Unpacking
Be careful unpacking the two shipping boxes. We recom-
mend keeping the boxes and all their internal packaging. In
the event that the mount needs to be returned to Orion for war-
ranty repair, having the proper packaging will ensure that your
mount will survive the journey intact.
Make sure all the parts in the Parts List below are pres-
ent. If anything appears to be missing or broken, immedi-
ately call Orion Customer Support (800-676-1343) or email
[email protected] for assistance.
2. Parts List
• Equatorial mount
• Tripod
• Counterweight, 5.9 lbs. (x2)
• Counterweight shaft
• Center support tray
• Center support shaft
• Dual-axis hand controller
• Saddle lock knob
• Safety lock knob
• 8-pin cable
• 4-pin motor cable
• 12V DC Power cable
• Hand controller holster
3. Assembly
Refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 as needed during the assem-
bly process.
1. Stand the tripod legs upright and spread the legs out as
far as they will go. Make certain that the leg lock levers
are tightened. You can lengthen the legs later to a desired
length by loosening the leg lock levers and extending the
lower leg section, then retighten the leg lock levers.
2. Now thread the narrow end of the center support shaft into
the underside of the hole in the tripod head, as shown in
Figure 3. Thread the shaft clockwise until the threaded end
of the shaft is completely through the hole. Then the shaft
will be captive in the tripod head.
3. Now place the base of the equatorial mount onto the tripod
head. Orient the equatorial mount so that the post on the
tripod lines up with the gap between the azimuth adjust-
ment bolts in the equatorial mount (Figure 4).
4. Thread the center support shaft up through the tripod head
and into the bottom of the equatorial mount until tight. Use
the upper knob on the central support shaft to do this. The
equatorial mount should now be rmly connected to the tri-
pod.
5. Now slide the tripod support tray up the shaft until the three
tray arms are touching the legs of the tripod. The at side
Center
support
tray
Counterweights
Counterweight
shaft
Leg lock lever
Safety
stop
Dual axis
controller
Polar scope
Latitude
adjustment T-bolt
Latitude lock
knob
Front opening
Dovetail saddle
Azimuth
adjustment
knobs
Dec. motor
R. A. motor
Table of Contents
1. Unpacking 2
2. Parts List 2
3. Assembly 2
4. Attaching a Telescope 4
5. Balancing the Telescope 4
6. The Dual-Axis Hand Controller 7
7. Polar Alignment 7
8. Operating the EQ-26 Mount 10
9. Specications 11
Dont forget to
update TOC
Figure 1. The Orion EQ-26 Motorized German Equatorial Mount

3
of the support tray should be facing up. Make sure the “V”
of each tray arm is buttressed against a tripod leg (Figure
5). Thread the large rosette knob clockwise onto the sup-
port shaft until the knob is tight against the tray. The tripod
support tray provides additional stability for the tripod, and
holds up to seven 1.25" eyepieces/accessories and two 2"
eyepieces/accessories for convenient access.
6. Thread the counterweight shaft clockwise into its recepta-
cle in the mount (Figure 6) until tight.
7. Remove the knurled “toe saver” safety stop on the bottom of
the counterweight shaft and slide the counterweight(s) onto
the shaft (Figure 7). Make sure the counterweight lock knob
is adequately loosened to allow the counterweight shaft to
pass through the hole. Position the counterweight(s) near
the bottom of the shaft, then tighten the lock knob. Replace
the toe saver on the end of the shaft. The toe saver pre-
vents a counterweight from falling on your foot if the lock
knob happens to come loose.
8. Next, attach the hand controller holster to one of the tri-
pod legs (Figure 8). Wrap the holster’s hook-and-loop strap
around the leg at a position above the support tray arm.
That way it will not slip down the tripod leg.
Figure 2. Components of the EQ-26 Mount
Figure 3. Thread the center support shaft up through the tripod
head.
Tripod
8-pin cable
4-pin motor
cable
DC power
cable cable
Saddle lock
knob
Safety
lock knob
Equatorial
mount
Center
support shaft
Counterweight
shaft
Counterweights
Dual-axis hand controller
Hand controller holster
Center support tray
Post
Center support shaft

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9. Connect one end of the 4-pin motor cable – identiable by
the 4 pins in its two plugs (Figure 9A) – to the “Dec. In”
socket on the Declination motor (9B), and the other end to
the “R.A. In” socket on the Right Ascension (R.A.) motor.
10. Connect one end of the 8-pin cable (Figure 9A) to the
“Dec. OUT” socket on the R.A. motor (9B) and the other
end to the “Motor” socket on the hand controller.
Powering the EQ-26 Mount
The EQ-26 Mount should be powered by a 12V DC power sup-
ply (tip positive) capable of producing continuous current of
5 amps. A 12V DC power cable is included with the mount; it
has a male cigarette lighter plug on one end for connection to
a 12V power supply, and a standard 2.1/5.5mm stereo plug
on the other end to connect to the “Power” jack on the hand
controller (Figure 10).
4. Attaching a Telescope
The EQ-26 Motorized German Equatorial Mount is designed
to hold a telescope tube weighing up to 26 lbs. (including all
accessories). For astronomical imaging an equipment load
somewhat less than that weight is recommended to insure
consistently steady images. The mount has a Vixen-style
dovetail saddle (Figure 11), which accepts any telescope opti-
cal tube equipped with a Vixen-style dovetail bar or plate (not
included).
1. To install a telescope on the mount, rst ensure that the
counterweight is installed as in step 7 above, and that the
RA and Dec clutch levers are tightened.
2. Now loosen the saddle lock knob and safety lock knob
to allow the dovetail plate to seat in the saddle without
obstruction (Figure 11).
3. Place the dovetail mounting plate, with optical tube
attached, in the saddle so that the plate is roughly centered
lengthwise in the slot. While still holding the optical tube
with one hand, re-tighten the saddle lock knob and safety
lock knob with your other hand until the plate is secure.
5. Balancing the Telescope
To ensure smooth movement of a telescope on both axes of
the equatorial mount, and to avoid putting undue stress on the
motors, it is imperative that the optical tube be properly bal-
anced on both axes.
We will rst balance the telescope on the right ascension (RA)
axis.
1. Unlock both the RA and Dec clutch levers (Figure 11) and
rotate the telescope until both the telescope and the coun-
terweight shaft are parallel to the ground.
2. Retighten the Dec clutch lever.
3. Now loosen the counterweight lock knob (Figure 7) and
slide the weight along the shaft until it counterbalances the
telescope. That’s the point at which the shaft remains hori-
zontal when released. If the telescope can’t be balanced in
this way then you have either too much or too little coun-
terweight. Remove the counterweight, or add an additional
counterweight if needed.
4. Retighten the counterweight lock knob.
Figure 5. Slide the tray into the center support shaft, with
the tray arms contacting the tripod legs. Then tighten the tray
with the rosette knob.
Figure 6. Install the counterweight shaft as shown.
Tray arm
Rosette knob
Figure 4. A) Back off the azimuth adjustment bolts to create
a gap. B) Place the equatorial head on the tripod so that the gap
aligns with the post on the tripod.
B.
A.
Post
Gap
Azimuth adjustment
bolts/knobs

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The telescope is now balanced on the RA axis. To balance the
telescope on the Dec axis:
5. First, tighten the RA clutch lever, with the counterweight
shaft still in the horizontal position.
6. With one hand on the telescope optical tube, loosen the
Dec clutch lever. The telescope should now be able to
rotate freely about the declination axis. Determine which
direction it tends to rotate.
7. Now, if the telescope is held in tube rings, loosen the tube
ring clamps until you can slide the telescope tube forward
and back inside the rings (this can be aided by using a
slight twisting motion on the optical tube while you push or
pull on it). Slide it until it is balanced.
8. If your telescope is not held by tube rings, you will need to
slide the dovetail plate it is mounted on forward or back-
ward in the saddle. To do that carefully loosen the saddle
lock knob and safety lock knob while supporting the tele-
scope with your other hand, then slide the plate as needed.
Then retighten the lock knobs.
Figure 7. Install the counterweight, then make sure the “toe saver”
safety stop is threaded on.
Figure 8. Attach the hand controller holster to a tripod leg with the
hook-and-loop strap. Make sure the strap is fastened above the tray arm.
Figure 9. A) The plugs of the 4-pin (left) and 8-pin cables. B) Note
the correct attachment of the 4-pin and 8-pin cables.
Lock knob
Hook and
loop strap 8-pin cable
Dec. motor
R. A. motor
4-pin cable
Safety stop
A
B

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The telescope is now balanced on both axes. When you loos-
en the clutch lever on one or both axes and manually point the
telescope, it should move without resistance and should not
drift from where you point it.
Figure 10. A) The dual-axis hand controller of the EQ-26 mount. B) Slide the hemisphere switch to N (Northern) or S (Southern) for your
observing location. C) The cable ports at the bottom of the hand controller.
Directional
keys
Slew
rate
keys
Power
port
8-pin
motor
port
USB port
Hemisphere
switch
A B
N
S
C
S
l
e
w
R
a
t
e
s
Figure 11. Close-up detail of the EQ-26 mount.
Figure 12. To use the polar scope, remove the polar scope
cover and the cap on the front of the mount housing.
Saddle
lock
knob
Safety
lock Dec. setting
circle
R. A. setting
circle
Dec. clutch
lever
R. A. clutch
lever
Saddle
Dec.
motor
R. A.
motor
Latitude lock
knob
Azimuth
adjustment
knob
Bubble level Polar scope
cover
Cap
Latitude
adjustment
T-bar
Polar scope
Eyepiece

7
6. The Dual-Axis Hand
Controller
Review Figure 10 to familiarize yourself with the dual-axis
hand controller.
Hand Controller Features
• Power port: The small end of the included 12V DC
“cigarette lighter” power cable provided with the mount
plugs into the power input jack.
• Motor port: 8-pin jack is for connecting the cable to the
R.A. motor housing.
• USB port: USB-B serial port accepts USB cable for
connection to a computer. This port is not needed for
current functionality of the mount. It is there for possible
future applications.
• Hemisphere switch: Switch on left side of hand
controller; set it to N for use in Northern hemisphere, or
S for use in Southern hemisphere.
• Directional buttons: Press buttons to move the mount in
right ascension and declination.
• Slew rate buttons: Press the left button to decrease the
rate of slewing; press the right button to increase the
rate.
• Slew rate and axis indicator lights: Seven red LEDs
along the top edge of the hand controller provide
speed indicators, starting at 1.25x sidereal up to 800x
sidereal rate. Pressing the slew speed button on the left
decreases the slew speed; pressing the slew speed
button on the right increases it. Slow speeds will be
useful for nal centering of an object in the telescope’s
eyepiece, while faster slew speeds will facilitate moving
the telescope from one part of the sky to another rapidly.
The DEC and RA LEDs will illuminate when you press the
Dec (top and bottom) and RA (left and right) directional
buttons, respectively.
7. Polar Alignment
An equatorial mount is designed to compensate for the Earth’s
rotation, allowing your telescope to easily “track” the move-
ment of stars and astronomical objects across the sky. Tracking
keeps objects from drifting out of the telescope’s eld of view
while you’re observing or imaging. This is accomplished by the
slow rotation of the mount on its RA axis, using the built-in
RA motor drive. But rst the RA axis must be aligned with the
Earth’s rotational (polar) axis—a process called polar align-
ment.
Adjusting the R.A. Axis Elevation (Latitude)
You will want to set the mount’s latitude to the latitude of your
observing site, which you can look up on the internet or nd
on some astronomy apps. To set the latitude:
1. Loosen the latitude clutch knob located on the right side
of the mount (Figure 11) about a quarter turn.
2. Refer to the latitude scale and its pointer (Figure 12) as
you turn the latitude adjustment T-bar clockwise or coun-
terclockwise to set the R.A. axis elevation to your loca-
tion’s latitude. For example, if your latitude is 35° North,
set the pointer to 35. The latitude setting should not have
to be adjusted again unless you move to a different view-
ing location some distance away.
3. Retighten the latitude clutch knob.
The EQ-26 Mount comes with a polar axis finder scope
(Figure 11) housed inside the RA housing of the mount. When
properly aligned and used, it makes accurate polar alignment
quick and easy to do.
Remove the cover at the rear of the mount’s RA housing and
the cap on the front opening of the mount to view through the
polar axis nder scope (Figure 12). Shine a red ashlight down
the front end of the polar scope to illuminate the reticle, which
is shown in Figure 13. Make sure the ashlight shines in at an
angle, so as not to block the polar scope’s eld of view. It may
be helpful to have a friend hold the ashlight while you look
through the polar nder. Too much light will wash out the view
of Polaris and other stars, so it’s best to use dim red light. The
reticle allows accurate polar alignment from either hemisphere.
If the reticle graphic appears blurry, you can focus it by rotating
the polar scope’s knurled eyepiece (see Figure 11).
If we extend Earth’s rotational axis out into space it intersects
an imaginary point called the Celestial Pole. In the north-
ern hemisphere that point is called the North Celestial Pole,
or NCP. In the southern hemisphere it is the South Celestial
Pole, or SCP. Because the celestial poles are imaginary
points, you can’t see them. Fortunately, there are a couple of
celestial “guideposts” close to the poles that help us pinpoint
them. In the northern hemisphere that landmark is Polaris, the
North Star. Polaris is not located exactly at the NCP; it is off-
set from it by less than 1 degree. In the southern hemisphere
Figure 13. The polar scope’s internal reticle is used for polar
alignment in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres.
Illuminate it with a dim red ashlight.
Cassiopia
Big Dipper
Polaris SCP
Crux

8
the guidepost star is the star Sigma Octantis, in the constella-
tion Octans. But Sigma Octantis is much fainter than Polaris at
magnitude 5.4. Sigma Octantis lies a little more than a degree
away from the SCP.
For observing in the Northern Hemisphere
1. Extend the tripod legs to the desired length by rst releas-
ing the leg locks, then extending the lower portion of each
leg, then re-tightening each leg lock. Check the bubble
level (Figure 14) to make sure the tripod is level; if it isn’t,
adjust the tripod legs individually as needed to center the
bubble in the black ring.
2. Set the mount’s latitude to the local latitude.
3. Find Polaris in the sky. Look north and locate the pattern
of the Big Dipper (Figure 15). The two stars at the end of
the “bowl” of the Big Dipper point right to Polaris. If you
need help determining which direction is north, you could
use your smartphone’s compass feature or nd a physical
compass to point the way.
4. Now move the tripod so the mount’s RA axis points rough-
ly in the direction of Polaris.
Figure 14. Features for leveling the mount and adjusting its
latitude and azimuth positions.
Figure 16 A.) The polar scope and R.A. setting circle. B) The
Declination setting circle.
Pointer
Ignore
this ring
Allen
screw
Eyepiece
Latitude scale
Thumbscrew
Latitude adjustment
T-bar
Pointer
Pointer
Dec. setting
circle
Bubble level R.A. setting
circle
Azimuth
adjustment
knobs
Crux
Figure 15. To nd Polaris in the night sky, look north and nd the
Big Dipper. Extend an imaginary line from the two “Pointer Stars” in
the bowl of the Big Dipper. Go about ve times the distance between
those stars and you'll reach Polaris, which lies within 1° of the north
celestial pole (NCP).
Big Dipper
(in Ursa Major)
Little Dipper
(in Ursa Minor)
Cassiopeia
N.C.P.
Pointer
Stars
Polaris
B
A

9
5. Make sure that the polar scope is aligned with the RA
Axis. If it is not, follow the procedure in the following sec-
tion, “Aligning the Polar Scope”.
6. Use the latitude and azimuth adjustments on the mount
(see Figure 14) to move it incrementally while viewing
through the polar scope, until you can see Polaris in the
eld of view. It doesn’t matter where it is in the eld of view
at this point; you will make ne adjustments to position
Polaris where it needs to be in a moment.
Note: For the azimuth adjustment knobs, turn one clock-
wise and the other counterclockwise the same amount,
or vice versa. For latitude adjustment, loosen the latitude
lock knob slightly, then turn the latitude adjustment T-bolt
counterclockwise to raise the mount or clockwise to lower
the mount. Then retighten the latitude lock knob.
Note the constellation Cassiopeia (looks like a W) and
the Big Dipper in the reticle (Figure 13). They do not
appear in scale, but they indicate the general positions
of Cassiopeia and the Big Dipper relative to the north
celestial pole (which is indicated by the cross at the cen-
ter of the reticle). Rotate the reticle so the constellations
depicted match their current orientation in the sky when
viewed with the naked eye. To do this, release the R.A.
lock lever and rotate the main telescope around the R.A.
axis until the reticle is oriented with sky. For larger optical
tubes, you may need to remove the tube from the mount
to prevent it from bumping into the mount. Once the reticle
is correctly oriented, use the right ascension lock lever to
secure the mount’s position.
7. Now use the azimuth adjustment knobs and the latitude
adjustment T-bolt (Figure 14) to position the star Polaris
inside the tiny circle on the “railroad track” ring. You may
rst need to very slightly loosen the central support shaft
underneath the equatorial mount, to allow it to rotate.
Once Polaris is properly positioned in that small circle
on the reticle, you are polar aligned. If you do not have
a clear view of Polaris from your observing site, you will
not be able to use the polar-axis nder to polar align the
telescope.
Note: From this point on in your observing session, you
should not make any further adjustments in the azimuth
or the latitude of the mount, nor should you move the
tripod. Doing so will undo the polar alignment. The tele-
scope should be moved only about its right ascension
and declination axes.
For observing in the Southern Hemisphere
1. Set the mount’s latitude to the local latitude.
2. Move the tripod so the mount’s RA axis points roughly in
the direction of the South Celestial Pole.
3. In the polar scope’s eld of view (Figure 13), there are
three labeled stars and the unlabeled “cross” asterism of
Crux, the Southern Cross, which will act as guideposts
for alignment in southern hemisphere.They do not appear
in scale, but they indicate the general positions of these
stars relative to the south celestial pole (SCP). Release
the R.A. lock lever and rotate the main telescope around
the R.A. axis until the stars in the polar scope’s reticle are
oriented the same as those in the sky. For larger optical
tubes, you may need to remove the tube from the mount
to prevent it from bumping into the mount. Once the reticle
is correctly oriented, use the right ascension lock lever to
secure the mount’s position.
4. Use the latitude adjustment bolt and the two azimuth
adjustment knobs on the mount (see Figure 14) to ne-
tune the alignment of the stars in the sky with those on the
reticle.
Note: For the azimuth adjustment knobs, turn one clock-
wise and the other counterclockwise the same amount, or
vice versa. You may rst need to very slightly loosen the
central support shaft underneath the equatorial mount, to
allow it to rotate. For latitude adjustment, loosen the lati-
tude lock knob slightly, then turn the latitude adjustment
T-bolt counterclockwise to raise the mount or clockwise
to lower the mount. Then retighten the latitude lock knob.
The mount is now polar aligned.
Note: From this point on in your observing session, you
should not make any further adjustments in the azimuth
or the latitude of the mount, nor should you move the
tripod. Doing so will undo the polar alignment. The tele-
scope should be moved only about its right ascension
and declination axes.
Aligning the Polar Scope
Before using the polar scope for polar alignment for the rst
time, you should check that the polar scope is aligned to the
mount’s RA axis. If it isn’t, you will want to make adjustments to
its alignment. At the center of the reticle is a cross, which you’ll
use in the procedure below to align the polar scope.
1. Look through the polar scope at a distant object (during
the day) or at Polaris (at night, in Northern Hemisphere)
and center it on the cross in the middle of the reticle. You
may need to turn the latitude adjustment T-bolt and the
azimuth adjustment knobs of the mount and even move
the tripod itself to do this.
2. Rotate the mount 180° about the RA axis. It may be con-
venient to remove the optical tube and counterweight(s)
before doing this. If the object remains centered on the
cross after the rotation, then the polar scope is properly
aligned to the RA axis and no adjustment is needed.
3. If the target deviated from the cross, then use a 1.5mm
Allen wrench to adjust the three small Allen screws on
the polar scope (Figure 16A) to move the target half the
distance back to the cross. Then you will re-center the
object on the cross as in Step 1 using the mount’s azimuth
adjustment knobs and the latitude adjustment T-bolt (with-
out moving the tripod this time).
4. Repeat Steps 2 to 4 until the object stays centered on the
cross of the reticle when rotating the mount 180° on the
RA axis.
NOTE:
• When adjusting the Allen screws, rst loosen one screw
only ¹⁄8of a turn, and then lightly tighten the other two.
• Do not over tighten the Allen screws as it might damage
the reticle plate in the polar scope.

10
• Do not loosen one screw completely or loosen more
than one screw at a time, or the reticle plate in the polar
scope will be disengaged and further adjustment will be
impossible.
• If the reticle plate does disengage, remove the polar
scope’s eyepiece by turning it counterclockwise and
engage the reticle plate again.
8. Operating the EQ-26
Mount
Moving the Mount By Hand
The EQ-26 mount can be moved by hand in RA or Dec or
can be moved electronically with the included dual-axis hand
controller.
For coarse slewing, moving the mount by hand will allow you
to slew the telescope a large distance across the sky quick-
ly. Then you can nish the slew to a target object in a slower
and more controlled way with the electronic hand controller.
To move the mount by hand, loosen one or both of the lock
levers on the RA and Dec axes to rotate the mount. Both levers
should then be re-tightened for electronic operation via the
hand controller. f
Using the Dual-Axis Hand Controller
The Orion EQ-26 Equatorial Mount allows motorized slewing
using the included dual-axis hand controller (Figure 10). Make
sure you are using a power supply capable of providing 12V
and 5 Amps, and that it is connected to the hand controller
via the included DC cable. The cable has a male DC “ciga-
rette lighter” plug on one end, which you connect to a corre-
sponding female socket on your power supply. The other end
of the cable has a small stereo plug, which you connect via the
“Power” socket on the hand controller.
Now make sure the 8-pin and 4-pin motor cables are attached
as in Figure 9B. The DC power cable from your 12V DC power
supply should plug into the “Power” port on the hand controller
(Figure 10C). The 8-pin plug from the cable connected to the
R.A. motor housing should be plugged into the “Motor” port on
the hand controller.
Set the hemisphere of your location using the switch on the
side of the controller (Figure 10B). Slide it to N for Northern
hemisphere or S for Southern hemisphere.
The four large directional keys (Figure 10A) allow the mount to
be slewed electronically as follows:
• The Left and Right keys control the movements of the
Right Ascension (R.A.) axis.
• The Up and Down keys control the movements of the
Declination (Dec.) axis.
When the power to the mount is turned on, the RA motor runs
at sidereal rate and the Dec. motor remains idle. To turn the
power off, turn off the external power supply or unplug the
power cable from the hand controller’s Power port.
The slew rate is indicated by labeled LEDs at top of control-
ler. The rates range from 1.25x (1.25 times the default sidereal
rate) to 800x. Adjust the rate to be faster or slower using the
two buttons below the four directional control buttons. The rate
adjustment buttons are the ones sporting the double arrows.
Set a slower rate when doing ne centering of an object in
the eyepiece, and use a faster rate for slewing the telescope
across larger swaths of sky.
Locating Objects Using the Setting Circles
The two setting circles (Figure 16) on an equatorial mount
enable you to locate celestial objects by their “celestial coor-
dinates”. Every object resides in a specific location on the
“celestial sphere”. That location is denoted by two numbers: its
right ascension (R.A.) and declination (Dec.). In the same way,
every location on Earth can be described by its longitude and
latitude. R.A. is similar to longitude on Earth, and Dec. is simi-
lar to latitude. The R.A. and Dec. values for celestial objects
can be found in any star atlas or star catalog.
The EQ-26 mount’s R.A. setting circle (Figure 16A) is scaled
in hours, from 1 through 24, with small marks in between rep-
resenting 10-minute increments. The numbers at the bottom
of the setting circle scale apply to viewing in the Southern
Hemisphere while the numbers at the top apply to viewing in
the Northern Hemisphere.
NOTE: If the silver-colored ring adjacent to the RA setting cir-
cle has numbers on it, you can ignore them (see Figure 16A) .
They are not useful for the purposes of object location or polar
alignment.
The Dec. setting circle is denoted in degrees, with each long
mark representing 10° increments and the short marks denot-
ing 2° increments (Figure 16B). Values of Dec. coordinates
range from +90° to -90°. The 0° mark indicates the celestial
equator. For this mount, the number scale goes to 90 on either
side of 0 – there are no (+) or (-) signs. When the telescope is
pointed north of the celestial equator, values of Dec. are posi-
tive, while when the telescope is pointed south of the celestial
equator, values of Dec. are negative.
For example, the coordinates for the Orion Nebula (M42) are:
R.A. 5 hr 35.4 min, Dec. -5° 27’
That’s 5 hours and 35.4 minutes in right ascension, and -5
degrees and 27 arc-minutes in declination (there are 60 arc-
minutes in 1 degree of declination).
Calibrating the Setting Circles
Before you can use the setting circles to locate objects, the
mount must be polar aligned, and the setting circles must be
calibrated. The easiest way to calibrate the setting circles is to
point the telescope at an identiable bright star, center it in the
eyepiece, then set the setting circles to the star’s published
coordinates, which you can nd in a star atlas or astronomical
software program, or perhaps on the internet.
Using a star atlas or astronomy planetarium program, identify
a bright star visible in your sky. Some smartphone apps allow
you to hold your phone up to the sky and the app will identify
the stars and constellations visible in the direction you’re point-
ing to. Note the right ascension and declination coordinates of
the star.
Let’s take as an example Altair, in the constellation Aquila. Its
coordinates are:
R.A. 19 hr 51 min, Dec 8° 52’

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1. Loosen the R.A. and Dec. lock knobs on the equatorial
mount, so the telescope optical tube can move freely.
2. Point the telescope at Altair. Lock the R.A. and Dec. lock
knobs. Center the star in the eyepiece with the electronic con-
troller.
3. Now loosen the thumbscrew above the R.A. setting circle
(see Figure 16A) to allow the setting circle to rotate, and rotate
it until the pointer beneath the thumbscrew is pointing to ~19
hr 51 min. Retighten the thumbscrew.
4. Then rotate the Dec. setting circle until the pointer indicates
+8° 52’. (There is no thumbscrew to lock or unlock the Dec.
setting circle.)
Finding Objects with the Setting Circles
Now that both setting circles are calibrated, look up the coordi-
nates of an object you wish to view.
1. Loosen the R.A. lock knob and rotate the telescope until the
R.A. value from the star atlas matches the reading on the R.A.
setting circle. Remember to use the upper set of numbers on
the R.A. setting circle if you’re in the Northern hemisphere.
Retighten the lock knob.
2. Loosen the Dec. lock knob and rotate the telescope until the
Dec. value from the star atlas matches the reading on the Dec.
setting circle. Remember that values of the Dec. setting circle
are positive when the telescope is pointing north of the celes-
tial equator (Dec. = 0°), and negative when the telescope is
pointing south of the celestial equator. Retighten the lock knob.
Most setting circles are not accurate enough to put an object
dead-center in the telescope’s eyepiece, but they should place
the object somewhere within or near the eld of view of the red
dot nder scope, assuming the equatorial mount is accurately
polar aligned. Use the dual-axis electronic controller to center
the object in the nder scope, and it should then appear in the
telescope’s eld of view.
The R.A. setting circle must be re-calibrated every time you
wish to locate a new object. Do so by calibrating the setting
circle for the centered object before moving on to the next one.
Confused About Pointing the Telescope?
Beginners occasionally experience some confusion about how
to point the telescope overhead or in other directions. One
thing you DO NOT do is make any adjustment to the mount’s
latitude setting or to its azimuth position (don’t touch the azi-
muth lock knob). That will throw off the mount’s polar align-
ment. Once the mount is polar aligned, the telescope should
be moved only about the R.A. and Dec. axes by loosening one
or both of the R.A. and Dec. lock knobs and moving the tele-
scope by hand, or keeping the knobs tightened and moving
the telescope using the slow-motion cables.
9. Specifications
Mount Type German Equatorial
Motors Dual stepper motors (R.A. and Dec.)
Payload capacity (counterweights excluded) 26 lbs. (12 kg)
Mount Weight (tripod excluded) 9 lbs., 11 oz. (4.4 kg)
Tripod 1.75" stainless steel tube legs
Tripod Weight 9 lbs., 13 oz. (4.4 kg)
Saddle Vixen style
Counterweight 5 lbs., 12 oz. (2.6 kg), qty 2
Counterweight Shaft Diameter 20mm, Length 326mm
Power Requirement DC 12V, 5A
Maximum Slewing Speed 800x sidereal
Tracking Rates Sidereal
Hand Controller Cabled, dual-axis
Saddle height at max. leg extension 49"
Saddle height at min. leg extension 36"

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retail purchaser only. During this warranty period Orion Telescopes & Binoculars will
repair or replace, at Orion’s option, any warranted instrument that proves to be defec-
tive, provided it is returned postage paid. Proof of purchase (such as a copy of the origi-
nal receipt) is required. This warranty is only valid in the country of purchase.
This warranty does not apply if, in Orion’s judgment, the instrument has been abused,
mishandled, or modied, nor does it apply to normal wear and tear. This warranty gives
you specic legal rights. It is not intended to remove or restrict your other legal rights
under applicable local consumer law; your state or national statutory consumer rights
governing the sale of consumer goods remain fully applicable.
For further warranty information, please visit www.OrionTelescopes.com/warranty.
Copyright © 2022 Orion® Telescopes & Binoculars.All Rights Reserved. No part of this product instruction or any of its contents
may be reproduced, copied, modied or adapted, without the prior written consent of Orion® Telescopes & Binoculars.
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