Twilight I Adjustable Angle Alt-Azimuth Mount

This mount and tripod is very sturdy and the mount can be adjusted so the telescope can be aimed straight up. You need to use two screws on each extension leg or they will slide down. The instruction book is a poor copy and hard to read, but there is an online version, i like that it is white, easy to see at night! shipping was very fast

Two hundred bones may seem like a bit to spend on this thing but I'm glad I finally did. Worth every penny for what it is and what it does. Very smooth movement (wish I was this smooth, lol) and the slo-mo controls are a joy to use. The real kicker is that ES made this unit capable of various adjustments. The head can be adjusted for terrestrial or sky viewing. It can also be adjusted so that the Az slo-mo knob is on either side of the head at various points and the Alt knob can also be adjusted at various levels. I like options and this mount gives them to you. I've had a 120mm refractor, an ES 150mm reflector and a C6 on this thing without issue. I put my 11.5 lb. C8 on it for a couple weeks and the Az part of the mount started to scrape a bit. ES is replacing the part for me under warranty and their customer service is top notch. Is it the result of the 11 lb. C8 or was it a defective part to begin with? I don't know. It's rated at no more than 18 lb. load on the ES website page for it so an 11.5 lb. short tube SCT would be fine I should think. Nevertheless, it's a good unit from a good company with good customer service.

Ordered this to pair with a 120mm shorty refractor which is currently on back order, so I don't know how well this will perform under load. Shortly after I placed the order, I ran across several negative reviews of this mount. There were enough negative reviews that I cancelled the order. The mount was already shipping though and Amazon said I'd have to refuse delivery or return it. I wasn't home when the mount was delivered so I figured I'd have to go through the hassle of taking it to UPS, etc. Since it was here, I decided to open the box just to check it out. Although it comes with assembly instructions, there was almost nothing to assemble - put on the slo-mo controls and the spreader/tray and that was it. That a was pleasant surprise. The fit and finish are good. The mount seems stable with the legs (tubular) fully extended and the spreader in place. Actually, I'm not sure the spreader is even necessary, but that remains to be seen. The alt-az slewing movements are smooth as are slo-mo. The weight of the mount is noticeably less than my old C-8 tripod with EQ wedge. That's good because I want a grab-n-go and while my C-8 is not that much of an elephant, I don't consider it a GnG. The only issue I found is the threads on the az slo-mo control weren't cut quite right or the setscrew was off a bit. I had to use a pair of adjustable pliers to get the screw tight while worrying I was going to strip it or shear it off. I proceeded slowly and neither happened. People have said there's too much vibration or too long of a damping time with this mount, especially at high powers. Can't say without a scope mounted, but I intend to use this for low-power rich field and brighter DSOs, so I can live with a few seconds of damping. People have also commented about the quality of the slo-mo cables. They're ok, but they can always be replaced with knobs or better cables if necessary. There have also been comments questioning the ability of the dovetail bracket to hold a scope securely. I'm new to Vixen-style plates, so I can't comment on that, but the setscrews look like they'll do the job and again, the plate holder can also be upgraded. So, I'm not sure I agree 100% with the negative reviews. This mount looks like a decent value for the price and the basic engineering and quality look good. If you're into tinkering / upgrading there are a few things you could do to trick it out more to your liking. I might defork my C-8 just to try it on this mount for grins. I'm pretty skeptical about that working, but it might be a pleasant surprise as well. I'll post more impressions once I have the 120 on this thing and I try it out in the field.

Mount comes fully assembled except for a few knobs. Very sturdy especially when used with dampeners and a weight hanging from middle. Easily handles 102mm refractor or a 6inch Maksutov telescopes. Slow motion controls are a joy, especially at higher magnifications, very easy to keep the object in view. Various adjustments to fit different telescopes are an added bonus. Nice to grab this mount and a scope and not have to deal with power issues or doing star alignments.

This is the best manual alt/az mount in this size range. Nothing better than a decent manual, alt/az. I have two and I'm buying another.

Unfortunately when this arrived from Amazon it arrived with many missing parts. I knew something was awry right away when I noticed there was no rod or means to connect the mount to the tripod securely. Remembering I had seen a video on YouTube on how to put the Twilight 1 together, to YouTube I went. There I discovered the following pieces missing: 1. tension plate(connects the legs and holds the eyepieces) 2. rod that holds the tension plate 3. slo-motion controls 4. handles 5. 2 washers 6. e ring 7. bushing 8. camera adapter(not really wanted but not received either) What was received was the mount and tripod and nothing else. No means by which to connect the former to the latter. When I contacted Amazon they offered a discount if decided to get replacement parts locally(not a possibility) or a full refund. I took the latter. To Amazon's credit they refunded me in full before I even made it back to the UPS office to ship the Twilight 1 back. So there you have it. I was extremely disappointed in what happened(duh) and felt I should warn others of this experience. If I ever get the Twilight 1 I will do it directly from Explore Scientific. But this has left a bad taste in my mouth and I am exploring(no pun intended) other options. I was out time,gas and disappointment with this purchase. At least Amazon kept the purchase whole. At least.