My telescope mount failed during a Perseid meteor shower shoot - should I fix or replace?

I was out at Cherry Springs State Park last August trying to capture the Perseids. Around 2 AM my mount started making a grinding noise and then just stopped tracking entirely. I spent 20 minutes trying to reset it, even swapped batteries, but the alignment was totally thrown off. Ended up just taking wide angle shots on a tripod for the rest of the night which actually saved a few decent frames. Has anyone dealt with a mount dying mid-session and found a reliable repair shop, or is it smarter to just buy a new one?

2 comments

2 Comments

kim_hart75d ago

...and that's basically how my old mount turned into a paperweight. I say fix it if the repair is under $150ish. If not, just get a new one, the newer ones track way smoother anyway.

bethj445d agoMost Upvoted

Honestly, I feel you on that. When something craps out like that it's such a bummer, especially if you had it for a while. I had a similar situation with an old phone mount that just stopped holding the phone after a year. That $150 rule sounds about right to me, anything more and you're better off just starting fresh. It's way less headache in the long run.