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Desert Sky Astro DSV-1 Steady View Alt-Azimuth Mount

4.7 (3 Reviews) Read Reviews Write Review
Brand Desert Sky Astro
Part Number
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Reviews

4.7 (Based on 3 Reviews) 100% of reviewers recommended this product.
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    1. gmduke

      gmduke New Member

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      User Notes:
      1204203240
      Feb 28, 2008

      5.0 Impressions of the DSV-1 Alt-Azimuth mount purchased used

      Pros:

      Excellent quality and performance; Very stable and versatile

      Cons:

      None

      Comments:

      I had been wanting a good Alt-Azimuth mount to compliment my GOTO GEM mounts. A friend offered me his Desert Sky DSV-1 mount at a price I could not refuse! It came on the Surveyor style tripod that is supplied by Desert Sky and it is a very sturdy and stable setup. The mount is very heavily constructed of machined aluminum. After mounting my C130 MAK I noticed that the Alt adjusting knob would not keep the OTA fixed unless perfectly balanced. I removed the heavy duty aluminum knob and saw that the teflon bushing had been compressed to the point where the knob was rubbing directly on the shaft. I contacted Raul at Desert Sky for help and he quickly emailed me to assure me there was no problem and that this could be easily corrected. He sent me very detailed instructions including illustrations as to how to disassemble the head and rotate the teflon sleeve to a new position. The disassembly was easy and allowed me to see just how well this mount is made. All surfaces are precision machined and the Alt shaft rides on two heavy sealed ball bearings. The thick teflon bushing can be moved many times if wear necessitates it. I ordered the second dovetail head from Raul and installation was very easy. The second head includes a handle for adjusting. It also can be installed in two positions - with the dovetails aligned or with one 90 deg offset from the other for using an angle bracket for camera etc. I now use this mount with my C130 on one side and my C102mm f/5 refractor on the other side. Total weight with accessories can approach 20 pounds but the mount handles it with ease.

      Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? Yes
      Was this review helpful? Yes / No
    2. cosmic109

      cosmic109 New Member

      Skill Level
      Unknown
      Time with Product
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      User Notes:
      1187860140
      Aug 23, 2007

      5.0 Desert Sky Astro DSV-1 Alt-Azimuth Mount

      Pros:

      Great build quality; Can handle two medium sized scopes; Adaptable to different tripods

      Cons:

      None

      Comments:

      This is a solid good looking alt-azimuth mount that has the capability to carry two medium sized scopes. I'm using it to carry both my Celestron C80ED and an Orion 100mm f/6 achro. It handles both scopes with no problems and the movements are smooth as silk. This is a knockout combination in both looks and application. I'm able to do wide field viewing with the Orion and medium-high power viewing with the Celestron. I can't say enough about this setup!!

      The DSV-1 is made of solid aluminum, with large silver aluminum knobs to adjust the tension in both directions. It can be ordered with one or two dovetail clamps, and three different color choices. You can order the mount to fit a standard camera tripod or a surveyors style tripod (which, I prefer and use).

      Raul at Desert Sky is a pleasure to work with and aims to please his customers. You can visit his site from the "Where To Buy" tab of this page.

      Again, before you buy any alt-azimuth mount, add this one to your list. A fantastic mount!! Recommended.

      Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? Yes
      Was this review helpful? Yes / No
    3. jbrand

      jbrand New Member

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      Unknown
      Time with Product
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      User Notes:
      1168642800
      Jan 12, 2007

      4.0 Good mount for a small-medium scope

      Pros:

      Solid, easy to use, smooth action, Raul is easy to work with

      Cons:

      None

      Comments:

      In my endless quest for the correct balance of "grab and go" and aperature, I recently purchased a SkyViewPro 127 mak (Orion). This scope ships standard with a Vixen-style dovetail and 1/4-20 tripod socket. I had planned on mounintg it on my Bogen 501 fluid head. The mount carried it admirably for terrestrial viewing, but above 50 or 60 degrees elevation, it had problems.

      I went looking for a new (afforable) mount. I ran across Raul's post on AstroMart introducing his DSV-1 mount. http://www.astromart.com/classifieds/details.asp?classified_id=402361 he has since put up a web page here: http://www.desertskyastro.com/ after some consideration, and several emails back and forth, I ordered one, Single dovetail clamp, black.

      Raul kept me informed of progress on my mount, sent me a couple pictures he took using it with his own 127 mak. It arrived as promised, in good shape. This is a fairly heavy mount. Very solid, all metal, no plastic. It looks great. I mounted it to a ProMaster SystemPro 2 (Bogen clone) tripod and we were off. Since my scope already had the dovetail, I did not need to fool around with rings or other accessories - slipped it into the clamp, tightened the knob, and was ready to go.

      The mount has a very smooth motion, and adjustable tension via large knobs on both axises. The motion is in fact so smooth, that if you do not have any tension set in azimuth, a breeze or non-level tripod will cause your scope to rotate like a weather vane! The right side of the mount, opposite the scope has a handle you can use to move the scope in both axises - very comfortable. I suspect the 127 (8-9 lbs) mak is at the upper end of what this mount will carry well. It does a fine job - if it were heavier, some type of counterweight (or another scope!) might be necessary on the opposite side of the mount, as it carries the weight off center. If you put a bigger/longer scope, of the same weight (a larger refractor say) on it, it might also have issues. For the 127 it does just fine - even with a binoviewer attached. A beefier tripod might extend its capabilites a bit. This one is a keeper. On a side note, I have been considering exploring it to a "dual dovetail" model, to carry my 80mm refractor opposite the 127. I've seen this combination of high-power-norrow-field and low-power-widefiled used by others and it looks great.

      Bottom Line: Would you recommend this item? Yes
      Was this review helpful? Yes / No
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