Northmere Moraine GoTo EQ mount, with steel pier

Specifications

Description

The Moraine GoTo EQ mount is a German equatorial head for telescopes and camera setups up to 8 kg. It carries a refractor, a compact reflector, or a small Newtonian with enough payload margin to keep the tube steady during focusing and at higher magnifications. The head weighs 6.2 kg, so it is set on a sturdy pier or on a tripod with load-rated legs.

The mount uses a GoTo handset with a catalog of more than 42,000 objects, including stars, double stars, deep-sky objects, and solar system bodies. Enter a target, and the drive slews the tube to it and then tracks it at the sidereal rate. Polar alignment can be done with a built-in polar scope or with a plate-solving routine on a connected laptop. Once aligned, you can center objects with the handset arrows and follow them through an eyepiece or a camera for long exposures.

A 12-volt input powers the drive, and a standard 12 V battery pack runs it for several hours in the field. The handset accepts a serial cable for firmware updates. Balance the tube on both axes before each session, because an unbalanced load raises tracking error and can strain the gears.

The saddle is a dual-bar design with a 60 mm wide dovetail clamp. Slide the bar in from the front, tighten the two clamp screws evenly, and check that the tube sits level before you slew. Keep the total load, including the diagonal, eyepiece, guide scope, and camera, below the rated 8 kg.

For visual work, the mount holds a 150 mm reflector at moderate magnification. For astrophotography, it suits guided exposures with a short refractor or a lens of modest focal length. Sessions with long focal lengths or heavy accessories need an autoguider to hold tracking accuracy over longer exposures.

About this configuration

The Northmere Moraine GoTo EQ mount is sold in several configurations, and the notes below describe what this particular one includes. The steel pier raises the mount and leaves more room under the telescope for long refractors and cameras. A pier lets the telescope swing past the meridian without the tube or the camera hitting the legs. With a spare dovetail bar, you can fit a guide scope or a second instrument side by side.

The titanium gray finish has a hard anodized layer that resists wear on the clamp surfaces. The 2023 edition uses the same gears and bearings as later years, with small differences in the clamps. Check the saddle type in the specifications against the dovetail bar on your telescope before you choose a configuration.

What's in the box

• GoTo equatorial mount head with dual-bar saddle
• Hand controller with GoTo catalog
• Counterweight shaft
• Power cable with 12 V connector
• Serial cable for firmware updates
• Polar scope with illuminated reticle
• Steel pier with leveling base
• Spare 200 mm dovetail bar

Compatibility notes

• Accepts dovetail bars up to 60 mm wide.
• Rated for a total payload of 8 kg, including accessories.
• Requires a 12 V DC supply or a compatible battery pack.
• Suits telescopes and camera setups for guided astrophotography and visual observing.