The Mach 1 sets revolutionary standards in the field of portable mounts in terms of weight, stability, load capacity and precision. Among other things, it is the first mount of this size in which ALL cable connections to accessories, such as CCD cameras, are routed through the polar axis, making cable clutter a thing of the past when using the mount at night. This means that the Mach 1 can even be operated remotely.
Despite its high instrument load capacity, the mount is lightweight (approx. 12 kg without counterweights), small and suitable for air travel. By loosening four hexagon screws, the declination axis can be separated from the hour axis and pole block; both parts weigh approx. 6 kg each. The Mach 1 carries short-focus 4" to 6" refractors, 6" to 8" Maksutovs and 8" to 11" Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes.
At the heart of the GTO-Mach1 are the drives of both axes, consisting of finely toothed worm gear drives, which are produced directly by Astro-Physics and individually adjusted and tested. This allows Astro-Physics to guarantee a maximum position error (PEC) of +/- 3.5 arc seconds (7 arc seconds peak to peak)!
The current Mach1 model features auto-compensating motor gear drives for both axes with significantly improved tracking performance.
The servo motors used in the Mach1 are the same as those used in the larger GTO-100 and GTO-1600 mounts. Generally oversized for the load capacity of the Mach1, the high torque has a positive effect when the instrument load is unbalanced and/or at low temperatures during GoTO positioning and tracking.
Astro-Physics has radically revised and redesigned the drive technology of its mounts. As a result, all Astro-Physics mounts – including the GTO-MACH 1 – now feature so-called auto-compensating motor gearboxes on both the RA and DE axes. These offer major advantages for astrophotography and visual observation alike.
The entire unit, consisting of a servo motor and drive worm, is pressed into the worm wheel by spring force. This ensures optimum engagement in all telescope positions, worm gear/worm positions and operating temperatures, as well as the resulting changes in distance between the worm and worm gear. The adjustment between the worm and worm gear using tension and pressure screws, which is often difficult for inexperienced users, is no longer necessary.
Backlash problems are also largely a thing of the past. When adjusting with tension/pressure screws, the problem was always finding the optimum setting. If the distance between the worm and the worm wheel is too large, the reverse play is much too high; if the distance is too small, there is a risk of the drive blocking, e.g. due to temperature fluctuations. Thanks to the new design, the worm and worm wheel are always in optimum engagement.
To prevent damage to the drives during transport, the entire motor/screw block can be completely disengaged using a small lever and just as easily re-engaged after transport.
Even after years of use, and even under very intensive use, the drive worm always presses optimally into the worm wheel when material wear occurs. In addition, new steel alloys with extremely low wear are used for worm production – not unimportant for automated observations, where the telescope is often swivelled back and forth at high speeds in GoTo mode.
The runout accuracy (PE - periodic error) of EVERY drive worm is measured with the PemPro software before delivery of the mount, and the resulting compensation is stored in the CPC control box so that the PEC function (periodic error compensation) is immediately available to you as the observer. This compensates for 90% of the periodic error, which is not unimportant for photographic observations with shorter exposure times WITHOUT guiding.
Included in delivery:
- Mach1GTO mount head (R.A. & Dec. axis cross) with servo motors. RA axis incl. built-in adaptor for angle pole finder
- GTO servo motors Control box
- GTO control box adaptor
- Stainless steel counterweight bar with safety screw
- RA/DE Y-cable for connecting the GTO control box to the drive motors
- Power cable set for GTO CP4, incl. 1.8 m cable with PowerPole connector, 45 cm cable with cigarette lighter plug and 45 cm cable with
- ring cable lug (power supply operation)
- Serial extension cable, 4.5 m
- 1/4-20" knurled screw set
- Inch hexagon socket wrench
- CD with PulseGuide software by Ray Gralak, Sirius Imaging, and PDF user manual for GTO-Mach1 and GTO-Keypad
- Warranty/registration card
The ASCOM driver is available for download
