1. Stellarvue M002C Mount

Photo doesn’t do this justice - it’s a superb mount for a travelscope.

I use this mount on my old Manfrotto 055 tripod to hold my WO 81GT scope. Total weight is about 12 lbs which this mount handles with ease. Well engineered and built axes with no play in them. Drag and lock friction have good feel and the large knobs are easy to use. I am not using the optional riser on my tripod. The mount is attached to the top of the center column which I leave in the down position. Recommend a good tripod. Overall very pleased.

This mount represents one of the best purchases I've ever made for my astronomy endeavors. The mount is well made, operates smoothly and predictably...The M002 is as versatile as it is functional as it adapts to a myriad of tripods on its own or with one of the columns that Stellarvue offers...my grab and go game just went up ten notches thanks to this mount and stellarvue, and it didn't break the bank either.

Thankyou for the comment on my review from June 2020 of the M002. I just your reply today (December). I stand corrected! The stainless steel roller bearings are indeed there as described. I was expecting them as supporting the shaft, but makes perfect sense. Over the months I have used the mount it has proven to make all the difference in my enjoyment of my sessions. I'm using it for a "grab and go" 6" Newtonian reflector and the combination is ideal for my purposes. Apologies for the bearing misunderstanding. I've upgraded my review to 5 stars.
Cheers
Steve

My journey navigating the telescope landscape has been long and costly. It has taken quite some time for me to realize exactly what I wanted out of my stargazing sessions. I’m someone who is not interested in astrophotography, so the expensive mounts/tripods on the market aren’t really suited for me. But I own an Explore Scientific Comet Hunter (Mak-Newt) which weighs about 15 pounds and the only mounts available for that kind of weight are GEM. I searched for a long time, all I wanted was a non-go-to mount that I could quickly set up and start scanning the skies with, preferably an Alt-Az mount. The only mounts that fit my style were the Stellarvue M002 and the Losmandy AZ8. I went with the Stellarvue because I already had a Meade LX85 mount and tripod. I bought the Stellarvue extension column (M002C Head to Tripod w/ 10mm Bolt) and the Stellarvue M002.

The extension column fit the Meade LX85 tripod beautifully and I have a tripod and mount combo that is easy to set up and take down; it’s also lightweight! The mount itself functions perfectly, it’s smooth, never binds, and is made of quality materials. When you get your hands on the mount, it feels as if it’ll last you a lifetime. And I hope it does, because I’ll never need another mount.

Huge thanks to Stellarvue for making such an awesome product.

This is a very well made and solid mount. I purchased this along with an extension column for my ASGT tripod. Fit and finish of everything is first rate. The mount moves freely and easily. Overall very pleased!

When properly balanced, this mount moves smoothly in both axes. I am using it with a Takahashi Mewlon 180. With a diagonal and eyepiece, the combination is about 15 lbs and 26" long. Works very smoothly and is a nice quick to set up and use combination. I'm very pleased with the mount's performance. For the record, I'm using it with the 11" extension column and the handle. I like the fact that the saddle plate accommodates both Vixen and Losmandy style dovetail bars.

1. Mount performs extremely well and pleased with product.
2. When moving in altitude there is a faint mildly annoying buzzing sound that is not present when moving in az. Wiping the bearing surface with clean dry cloth did not eliminate. I think it must just be machined surface finish on aluminum rubbing on Teflon face bearing.
3. In a quest to find the source of the buzz and because Im an engineer I of course took mount apart. I found no stainless steel roller bearing as mentioned in product description? Each shaft is supported on 2 end by teflon bushings in the mounts box case. Also each movement has large teflon face bearings on friction surface. All good but no stainless steel roller bearing to be found. Bit confusing and maybe disappointing but mount works great.

Stephen: You do have the stainless roller bearings but they are easy to miss. They are on the knob side of the box and they are in between the two washers which are underneath the Belleville washer. So if you remove the knob, lift the conical Belleville and first washer you will find it there! Please contact us if you do not have them. We will gladly send them to you. Thanks for the review.

Solid mount, very smooth movements.Very high quality build.

I purchased this mount for visual observing with my Takahashi FC-100DF refractor. When sitting atop a Manfrotto 057 geared tripod, it is easy to nudge while observing, yet it also is very stable. The entire rig is lightweight and portable, and is a great grab-and-go mount. Very pleased!