Just wasted $150 on a 'premium' star tracker that can't handle my camera

I bought this tracker online after seeing nice pictures with it. Set it up in my backyard last weekend, spent an hour trying to get it balanced. My camera is a bit heavy, about 5 pounds with the lens, and the motor just kept stuttering. Ended up with a whole night of blurry, streaky shots of Orion. Has anyone found a good tracker that actually works with heavier gear?

3 comments

3 Comments

johnson.paul10d ago

Man, that's rough. I had a similar thing happen with a cheap tripod head. It was supposed to hold 8 pounds, but my 70-200 lens made it droop like a sad sunflower. Total waste of an evening trying to shoot the moon.

cameronn6210d ago

Cheap tripod specs are basically just creative writing. The real test is how it handles a slight breeze.

hayden1444d ago

Remember when GPS units first came out? My dad bought one that was supposed to be top of the line. We put in an address for a state park and it tried to route us down a logging road that hadn't been used in twenty years. Ended up with the truck stuck in a ditch, wheels just spinning. Felt like that tech was all promise and no real world testing.