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Orion EQ-3M Single-Axis Telescope Drive
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Orion EQ-3M Single-Axis Telescope Drive
$89.99
 
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  • Precision mini-motor attaches to your AstroView equatorial mount for automatic tracking of celestial objects
  • Electronic motor drive provides regulated sidereal-rate tracking in right ascension
  • Drive controller has 2x, and 8x speeds and pause mode
  • Includes motor, controller and battery case
  • Runs on four D-cell batteries (not included)


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Item #  07829
Mfg Model #  07829
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Pop this precision mini-motor on a compatible Orion or Celestron equatorial telescope mount and track celestial objects automatically. It'll make observing easier and more fun! Drive provides regulated sidereal-rate tracking in right ascension. Electronic Hand controller has 8x speed and pause mode. External disengage allows coarse movement of the telescope by hand with motor attached. Both systems include electronic motor, electronic hand controller, and battery case. Powered by four D-cell batteries (not included).

This EQ-3M Drive System is compatible with the Orion AstroView 6 Reflector Telescope, the Orion AstroView 120 and 120ST Refractor Telescopes, and Orion StarMax 127 EQ Maksutov-Cassegrain Telescopes.

Product Support
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In the Box
R.A. motor drive assembly
Computerized Hand controller
Battery pack
4mm Allen wrench
2mm Allen wrench
Shipping Info

Orders received by noon Pacific Time for in-stock items ship the same business day. Orders received after noon will ship the next business day. When an item is not in-stock we will ship it as soon as it becomes available. Typically in-stock items will ship first and backordered items will follow as soon as they are available. You have the option in check out to request that your order ship complete, if you'd prefer.

Reviews
Orion EQ-3M Single-Axis Telescope Drive
Rating??
4.3 / 5
4.3 / 5
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating Breakdown 3 Reviews
5 stars
2
4 stars
0
3 stars
1
2 stars
0
1 star
0
Mechanical Quality??
4 / 5
4 / 5
Tracking Accuracy??
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
Ease of Use??
3.7 / 5
3.7 / 5
Value??
3.7 / 5
3.7 / 5
2 out of 2(100%)reviewers recommend this product.
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3
3 The EQ-3M Single-Axis Orion Electronic Telescope Drive provides regulated sidereal-rate tracking in right ascension when attached to your equatorial mount. The hand controller features 2x and 8x sidereal speeds.
Rating??
4.3 / 5
4.3 / 5
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating Breakdown 3 Reviews
5 stars
2
4 stars
0
3 stars
1
2 stars
0
1 star
0
Mechanical Quality??
4 / 5
4 / 5
Tracking Accuracy??
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
Ease of Use??
3.7 / 5
3.7 / 5
Value??
3.7 / 5
3.7 / 5
2 out of 2(100%)reviewers recommend this product.
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Product reviews
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Ratings summary
Rating??
4.3 / 5
4.3 / 5
Open Ratings Snapshot
Rating Breakdown 3 Reviews
5 stars
2
4 stars
0
3 stars
1
2 stars
0
1 star
0
Mechanical Quality??
4 / 5
4 / 5
Tracking Accuracy??
4.7 / 5
4.7 / 5
Ease of Use??
3.7 / 5
3.7 / 5
Value??
3.7 / 5
3.7 / 5
2 out of 2(100%)reviewers recommend this product.
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Product ReviewsWrite A Review
Rating??
5 / 5
5 / 5
Good, but...
PostedMarch 28, 2012
Customer avatar
CharlieR
 
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from??Tulsa, OK
Owned this product for:Less than 3 mos
Mechanical Quality??
5 / 5
5 / 5
Tracking Accuracy??
5 / 5
5 / 5
Ease of Use??
4 / 5
4 / 5
Value??
4 / 5
4 / 5
This drive does what it is designed to do. Plain and simple. But, it seems like all drives of this same type have the same failing, no clutch. It is necessary to release the RA clutch and rotate the GEM by hand when star/planet hopping. Get as close as you can then lock the RA clutch and use the 8x and 2x speed of the drive to get on target.
Also, as mentioned previously, the battery pack is pretty flimsy. I would like an AC adapter for it, but haven't found one yet. So, I ended up investing in rechargeable D cell batteries. Finding a good quality charger was the biggest issue (and cost).
Favorite viewing location:??Home
Favorite object to observe:??planets and nebula
Pros: tracks well
Cons: no ac adapter, battery pack
Yes, I recommend this product!
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Rating??
5 / 5
5 / 5
No more fiddling with slo-mo controls
PostedNovember 23, 2011
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EJMaine
 
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from??Maine
Owned this product for:Less than 3 mos
Mechanical Quality??
5 / 5
5 / 5
Tracking Accuracy??
5 / 5
5 / 5
Ease of Use??
5 / 5
5 / 5
Value??
4 / 5
4 / 5
I put off buying this motor for 1 year, just wasn't sure it was something I "needed." Then I got to look to at the moon through a friend's motorized scope and that made up my mind. I ordered this the next day.
It was a very easy installation. For the first use, I roughly pointed the mount north (I have the Astro View 6 scope) and sighted in on Jupiter. It tracked Jupiter fine and allowed me the best viewing yet of the planet! So glad I purchased this.
Only downside is as mentioned in another review, the loosening of that little screw if you decide to use the slo-mo controls. I have two ways around this that I am working with to see which is best for me. The first is to always leave the set screw loose after a view session. But I worry about it falling out. The second is to remove the RA slo-mo control. I have two guide scopes and this usually allows me to lock into something fairly well. I could then just use the drives 2x or 8x speeds to fine tune.
Favorite viewing location:??Driveway
Favorite object to observe:??Jupiter and Orion
Pros: ease of installation
Cons: location of set screw
Yes, I recommend this product!
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Rating??
3 / 5
3 / 5
Does what it's supposed to do, but has shortcomings
PostedJuly 21, 2011
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Anthony
 
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from??San Francisco
Owned this product for:Less than 3 mos
Mechanical Quality??
2 / 5
2 / 5
Tracking Accuracy??
4 / 5
4 / 5
Ease of Use??
2 / 5
2 / 5
Value??
3 / 5
3 / 5
I bought this drive with the Astroview 6 EQ telescope. Installing the drive on the mount was quick and easy. Operation is straightforward and simple. The drive tracks stars well when the mount is level and accurately polar-aligned. It's incredibly helpful to be able view an object for an extended period without needing to constantly realign the telescope. And this is the only drive available for this mount, so I'm going to keep it and continue to use it.
But there are two significant problems with this drive, and one little annoyance.
The battery pack is very cheaply made. I wouldn't be surprised if it needs to be replaced in a couple of years.
Once the drive is attached to the mount, you can't use the manual right ascension slow-motion control. Disengaging the drive requires finding a tiny black set-screw (in the dark) and loosening it (but not dropping it!) with a 2 mm allen wrench. To reengage the drive you have to line up the drive with the manual control and retighten the set-screw. This process is so complicated (and disastrous if you drop the set-screw and can't find it) that realistically you can only do fine adjustments in right ascension with the drive controller, and the maximum slew rate is frustratingly slow. If the drive had a simple clutch you could engage and disengage it as needed.
The minor annoyance is that the green light that's on the whole time the drive is on is really bright and degrades night vision. This problem was easily solved by a small piece of black tape.
I would recommend this drive because it's the only one available for this mount, but if Orion develops a new version, I hope they use a more robust battery pack and put a clutch on the motor.
By the way, if you're a casual observer trying to decide between a single-axis and dual-axis drive, get the single-axis drive. It's less expensive and easier to use, and it does what you need. The whole point of an equatorial mount is that you only need to track an object in right ascension, it's going to stay at the same declination forever.
Pros: tracks accurately
Cons: cheap battery pack, no clutch
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