Robert Bateman Reviews

This accessory, which incorporates a nicely etched reticle, can get one reasonably close to polar alignment in a few minutes, with practice. It must be calibrated first by rotating it against a fixed object (or bright star like Polaris) in order to check the reticles centering. It is a bit fussy to work with, as the 3 stars that you align with in the reticle are hard to place correctly due to the wandering (precession) that occurs. Theres a 10 year gaps in the etched lines that you place these stars in, so one has to do a little guesswork. Scale is not quite large enough to permit pinpoint accuracy. The construction is adequate. The fit can be sloppy in the polar barrel of the mount, and is subject to wandering. Can be overcome by shimming w/brass or teflon tape. Tightening down on mount barrel is hard to get just right. Polar Alignment is far better with it than without it, and there are no higher quality polar scopes to be found anywhere at any price. Good enough setup to autoguide on with reasonable care.