Eyepiece and telescope pairing
Will the Celestron NexStar 4SE fit on the Vixen-class dovetail head (CG-5 / EQ5 class)?
Whether the Vixen-class dovetail head (CG-5 / EQ5 class) can carry the Celestron NexStar 4SE tube steadily, from the published tube weight and mount payload.
- Optical tube weight
- 5 lb
- Mount rated payload
- 22 lb (the EQ5 / CG-5 class German equatorial, a common home for a 150 mm to 203 mm SCT tube)
- Tube as share of payload
- 23%
- Dovetail
- Vixen-style, matching this mount head
Comfortable fit. The Celestron NexStar 4SE tube weighs 5 lb, well inside the Vixen-class dovetail head (CG-5 / EQ5 class) rated payload of 22 lb, so the mount carries it with margin for a diagonal, finder and eyepiece.
A mount's rated payload is for the whole instrument, not just the bare tube. The Celestron NexStar 4SE tube is 5 lb, which is 23% of the Vixen-class dovetail head (CG-5 / EQ5 class) 22 lb rating before you add a star diagonal, finder and eyepiece.
For steady high-magnification views many observers keep the real load below about 70% of the rated payload, because damping time grows quickly as a mount nears its limit. The eq5 / cg-5 class german equatorial, a common home for a 150 mm to 203 mm sct tube.
The mount to buy
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