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bonline |
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Member Junky Posts: 8  Location: Chicago | |||
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| phxbird |
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Expert Junky Posts: 1950     Location: Deming, NM | |||
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| mosheriffic |
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Admin Posts: 5323  Location: Marysville,Wa 48.07N-122.21W | Hello and WELCOME to the forum!!  Congrats on owning a fine scope. One of the quirks of this series of scope mounts is that it is sensitive to voltage. If the voltage drops, you will think it possessed!! I have its big brother, the 8SE. a beefier mount, but it shares the same issues. I would suggest a power source of at least 17Ah capacity. This will allow you to run for a couple of nights if fully charged. Actually the Powertank is not the best type to use for this duty cycle. It will work for a long life, if you charge it immediately after use, and make sure that the initial charge is over night. At least 12 hours. The charge indicator lights are a bit deceiving. For extended field use, I have a deep cycle marine cell that I can run the scope, dew heaters, power inverter for lap top, ect. You can pick up a suitable battery much cheaper by going to Walmart, Harbor freight, and such stores. Be sure to purchase the power cord from Celestron. This is to get the proper pin size on the connector that plugs into the scope. Here is a web site that every NexStar owner should be familiar with: http://www.nexstarsite.com/ | ||
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| bonline |
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Member Junky Posts: 8 Location: Chicago | |||
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| mosheriffic |
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Admin Posts: 5323 Location: Marysville,Wa 48.07N-122.21W | Hi Ben, I can see why you are a little lost. I posted that while I was very sleepy, and left out some stuff.  I was actually referring to the jumpstart type batteries to get cheaper at those stores. These are usable as-is and have the lighter sockets that are standard. Something such as this: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Stanley-500-Amp-Jump-Starter-with-Compres... You can shop around to get a good deal on a similar product. The deep cycle marine battery is a DIY project that is very heavy. I got one to run all the various items for multi-night star parties and is not necessary for most observing sessions. I can give you the details if you wish. The power cord is: http://www.amazon.com/Celestron-Battery-Adapter-Nexstar-Telescopes/... I hope that covers it for you. Feel free to ask any other questions and we'll do our best to get you answers. | ||
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| bonline |
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Member Junky Posts: 8 Location: Chicago | Hi Ron, Thanks for the clarification, I think the jump start kit is the way to go for me. Besides, I been looking to get a jump-start kit for the car anyway and now it will be multipurpose. I take it the marine battery option may be a bit over my head and I am not at the point of multiple nights of star gazing.  Is it safe if I go and buy a 900amp jump kit, I am sure that is overkill for the scope but would be useful for my other the truck? Thanks again, Ben Edited by bonline 3/20/2012 9:53 PM | ||
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| lightbridge_driver |
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Elite Junky Posts: 957 Location: Mohave Desert AZ/CA border | |||
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| AlBoning |
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Veteran Junky Posts: 215 Location: Gainesville, FL | |||
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| mosheriffic |
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Admin Posts: 5323 Location: Marysville,Wa 48.07N-122.21W | Al, you are correct on all counts. I have re-charged mine successfully for 4 years, but the battery tender is the way to go to insure long life. I actually have a tender, but haven't put it to use as yet. | ||
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| AlBoning |
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Veteran Junky Posts: 215 Location: Gainesville, FL | Following up on my previous post ... Today I finally succumbed to my curiosity and cracked open the case of my Orion Dynamo Pro 12 just so I could read the label and get the dimensions of the battery. The dimensions are 150 mm (5.91") long, 98 mm (3.86") deep and 95 mm (3.74") high (not including the terminals). If you want to see what one of these units looks like open go here ... http://blog.astrophotographytargets.com/2011/09/celestron-power-tan... Taking it apart was easy, finding the last screw, in the storage compartment for the charger, wasn't. Once the all the screws were removed and the big lamp dismounted the case fell apart. Putting it back together presented no difficulties. Deep cycle batteries that could be used to replace this seem to be common, here's a couple ... http://www.batteryspec.com/cgi-bin/cart.cgi?action=link&product=300 http://www.batteryspec.com/cgi-bin/cart.cgi?action=link&product=223 Attachments ----------------  DynamoPro12Battery.JPG (166KB - 0 downloads) | ||
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| mosheriffic |
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Admin Posts: 5323 Location: Marysville,Wa 48.07N-122.21W | Thats good stuff Al!! | ||
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| VioletBlue |
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Veteran Junky Posts: 151 Location: Louisville, Ky | |||
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| JohnM |
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Forum Support Admin Posts: 6042 Location: Wyoming Wind River Range | |||
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| mosheriffic |
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Admin Posts: 5323 Location: Marysville,Wa 48.07N-122.21W | Harbor freight is a good source for inexpensive generators, or Walmart. A deep cycle marine type battery paired with a DC-DC converter will let you power your mount, camera, and laptop for multiple nights and is a good value. The one I have supplies about 85 Ah of power and was under $100. | ||
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| VioletBlue |
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Veteran Junky Posts: 151 Location: Louisville, Ky | |||
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