Hey folks, Hope you're all having a great day out there!  I'm on the hunt for a new portable mount for astro imaging with a range of gear, starting from a camera lens/dedicated camera combo right up to a small wide-field refractor and camera. I just want something that I can leave set-up and just grab and put outside when the weather plays ball…which it rarely does here in Scotland! Lol! ;) I already own an iOptron CEM70G for my larger rigs, but I was considering one of the smaller iOptron Harmonic offerings, specifically the HEM15, HAE16C, HAE18C or the HEM27. Would greatly appreciate thoughts from any owners of the above mounts…as well as anyone else who wants to chip in with their opinions or other mount options. My final choice may not be an iOptron, I've just been happy with the CEM70 and its performance, so I've enjoyed the iOptron experience thus far. Thanks for any help and best wishes to all, Steve |
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I will not answer the poll, because as a owner of one of these mounts I might not be entirely objective and I do not want to influence your decision.
But I can share with you my impressions after 2 years of owning it.
The one that I have is the HEM27 with iPolar.
I chose it because I was looking for a setup that I could take with me when traveling by plane during holidays. So the main criteria for me was the portability.
What made me decide for this mount compared to others on the market was:
- it is small and light enough to fit into a cabin luggage
- compared to how small and light it is, it can carry a big payload without counterweight (about 12 Kg) - so no need to carry additional weight in my luggage
- the iPolar (the electronic polar scope) was the point which finally sold the mount. It makes the polar alignment extremely easy (before I owned an iOptron ZEQ25 with a classical optical polar scope and the difference is like day and night).
- and last but not least :-), the cable management in the saddle (one 12V port and one USB-A)
Performance wise, I am happy with it.
I used it with 2 OTAs so far:
- an TS-Optics 80 mm refractor
- a SkyWatcher 150mm Newtonian
Guiding is fine; I could go as low as 0.6 arcs. in a Bortle 4 sky and around 0.8 - 0.9 in my Bortle 7 sky (through and OAG). Maybe there are other mounts in this category with better performance.
At a certain moment, as iOptron launched other models since I purchased mine, I was considering also an even lighter one to save even more on the weight. I was thinking to the HEM15 or HAE16, but the difference in weight was negligible (now I do not even think it is possible to reduce the weight even further, having that the mount head weights about 3,5 Kg). Besides, the other lighter models were lacking the cable management which I really appreciated on the HEM27 to that point that I would not buy another mount without it. (but this is just my preference).
At a certain moment I was also thinking to a HAE version, so that I can get harmonic drive on both axes (HEM27 has harmonic drive only on RA).
But now, after 2 years, I do not consider that important at all. I just have to balance the OTA in the DEC and not to forget to disengage the clutch before mounting and removing the OTA as well as during the transport in order not to damage the gears.
Update:
One downside that I forgot to mention are the mount locking screws: you need to use an Allen wrench (provided with the mount) and it is very easy to lose it in the dark.
I hope it helps.
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I'm a very happy owner of a Proxisky Umi17R which has been fantastic and flawless. They also have other mounts depending on needs/budget, 17S, 20S, plus Ragdoll 17 Pro and 20 Pro. I know many people like to stick with a well known brand, but honestly the people at Proxisy, @Steven "Nøkk" Song, are superb with their customer service and responsiveness. They regularly release software updates for the mounts to give new features or fix bugs with hours, days, weeks of being notified of them depending on complexity. If nothing else, join their discord and take a look for yourself. https://www.proxisky.com/ |
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I have a HEM15 carrying an Askar SQA55 + ASI533MC pro. It's very light - lighter than the Star Adventurer 2i I upgraded from. My entire rig is around 10kg. I keep it all set up and move it outside when I want to image. It's a lovely little mount at a decent price.
Performance wise, assuming seeing is decent, it will happily guide under 1" for most of the night. I had a couple of nights of very good seeing recently, and it got down to as low as 0.4" which I had never seen before. One thing to note: it prefers a higher guiding rate than x0.5 for best performance. I run mine at x0.9 which seems to work well. Marginally better than x0.75 but considerably improved over x0.5.
My only complaint is the wedge it sits on. PA can be a little quirky - but I usually get there within 20 minutes at most.
If the HAE was available I may have gone for that instead. Although I do like the height of the HEM15. Keeps my camera well away from the tripod. The HAE16 looks kind of low, so it may require a pier extension in some cases.
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I voted for other... I've used a LOT of mounts over the years, but I can tell you now, my current mount has surprised me and impressed me more than any other I've purchased. The Emcan Astro EM31-Pro. I regularly see guiding at 0.3~0.6" RMS with a 120mm F/7 APO, full monochrome camera rig on it (easily 15~16kg), and the whole rig weighs less than 22kg, and I can carry it outside assembled... Here's a review I wrote about it.I did consider iOptron mounts when I made my purchase, however, availabilty of them in Australia was next to 0 at the time (and still is), and the pricing was actually unacceptably high for the most part too.
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I have an HEM15 too but only for travelling.
I like the Ipolar, makes it easy for installation, the weight of the mount is ideal for travellers who are looking for the max of a minimum rig.
But don't expect too much of this mount.
The mount is only reliable for 250mm and less and not beyond 30s frames without PHD2 guiding
Payload under 7kg.
Software is really old fashion especially the App.
Poor guiding specs with PHD2
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I’m 100% in agreement with Phil and his recommendation for 17r. It’s a great mount and the customer service is bar-none. I can’t say enough good things about the mount. Portability, price, weight limit, all just excellent.
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Thank you @Phil Wright for the tag! I hope I wont turn this into an AD so i'll make it short and attach an updated specs table. So in short, for Proxisky SWG mounts, the Ragdolls use stepper motors, while the UMi series use at least one servo motor on RA (with 17S and 20S using servo for both RA and Dec). If you're looking at a traveling mount, 17R is perfect for you with 13-20kg capacity and only weighs 3.4kg. Phil already provided a link to our website, so please allow me to also include an invitation to our official Discord server. Most of our users are here sharing their setups and experiences of our mounts, and we work tirelessly to provide after-sales services here. Link: https://discord.gg/FbQMVSyaVTThank you for your time!  |
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Also, you can get the Proxisky Ragdoll mount above with their new power saddle - which looks cool:  |
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Hey folks,
Hope you're all having a great day out there! 
I'm on the hunt for a new portable mount for astro imaging with a range of gear, starting from a camera lens/dedicated camera combo right up to a small wide-field refractor and camera. I just want something that I can leave set-up and just grab and put outside when the weather plays ball...which it rarely does here in Scotland! Lol! ;)
I already own an iOptron CEM70G for my larger rigs, but I was considering one of the smaller iOptron Harmonic offerings, specifically the HEM15, HAE16C, HAE18C or the HEM27.
Would greatly appreciate thoughts from any owners of the above mounts...as well as anyone else who wants to chip in with their opinions or other mount options. My final choice may not be an iOptron, I've just been happy with the CEM70 and its performance, so I've enjoyed the iOptron experience thus far.
Thanks for any help and best wishes to all,
Steve I use the ZWO AM5 N which is harmonic strainwave mount and is quite portable. It comes with a sturdy case which I use to carry to dark skies location. Am quite satisfied with the performance.
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Phil Wright:
I'm a very happy owner of a Proxisky Umi17R which has been fantastic and flawless. They also have other mounts depending on needs/budget, 17S, 20S, plus Ragdoll 17 Pro and 20 Pro. I know many people like to stick with a well known brand, but honestly the people at Proxisy, @Steven "Nøkk" Song, are superb with their customer service and responsiveness. They regularly release software updates for the mounts to give new features or fix bugs with hours, days, weeks of being notified of them depending on complexity. If nothing else, join their discord and take a look for yourself. https://www.proxisky.com/ Yes the new Ragdoll 20 looks very interesting and up to 30kg with CW, and for us UK buyers VAT is already included apparently 🤔
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In addition to what the others have said, the older HEM mounts always need a hand controller, whilst the new HAExC work also without a hand controller. There's also the HAE29C which is light and you didn't mention. One benefit of iOptron mounts compared to most other SWG mounts is that they have the power and communication connectors on the static part. If you keep your battery on the ground, this is the better option. If you can mount it on the counterweight bar, a mount with the power on the RA moving part is preferred. You don't want the power connector to move too much during the night and disconnect.
CS,
Alex
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I choose the Warpastron WD-17, mainly because of its silence (really really silent). I didn't want to worsen my relationship with the neighbors much more.
Whatever model you choose (the one that fits budget, weight, load capacity), if you hesitate between two models, choose the bigger/stronger one. SW mount are smaller and lighter weight that traditional mount anyway. I hesitated between the WD-17 and the bigger WD-20 or NYX101, but choose the WD-17 because of budget and weight, should have bought the bigger one in hindsight.
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Thanks to everyone on the thread for your help and advice…greatly appreciated…especially around the options I hadn't heard of before! ;) Lots to think over…as ever with an Astro purchase…but will let you all know what I decide on. Have a great weekend all and wishing you all clear skies, wherever you are in the world! Cheers, Steve |
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You should check Pegasus nyx mounts. The nyx88 for lighter 15kg or the nyx101 for 20kg. I use the 101 for my roof observatory and works flawlessly 💪🏻
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HEM mounts always need a hand controller, This was actually the second reason (after the iPolar) which made me decide for this mount.
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