Cable Trend

SCOPE SAVER TRAY/TABLE FOR LX200s

I frequently viewed ads in astronomy magazines for the ScopeSaver and always believed it to be a convenience item…a tray that would hold eyepieces, keypad and other items which are nice to have close by. An extravagant expenditure, I thought, to part with $100 for a simple accessory tray. I never made the association of the primary function of this accessory…not until I purchased my 10” LX200.

If you own an LX200, particularly a 10” or 12” model, you will appreciate the benefits of owning a ScopeSaver. If you are small in stature, or have a weak back, it will also come in very handy with the smaller and lighter 8” model. Stated very simply, the ScopeSaver allows the user to easily position the fork mounted OTA on the tripod in perfect alignment with the threaded portion of the tripod’s tension knob. I lived with my LX200 for almost a year before I finally purchased an SS, and I don’t know how I managed that long without it.

As you can see by the picture above, the engaging tip of the tension screw protrudes about ¾” beyond the surface of the tripod head. This screw must engage the threaded hole located on the bottom of the LX200 drive base. Unless the drive base is positioned EXACTLY in alignment with the screw, the weight of the OTA on the tip of the screw will bend or break the C clip which holds the screw to the tripod head. The tension screw and spreader then fall out to the ground. You are left holding a heavy (58 pound) OTA and wishing you had an extra pair of hands. All you can do is lay the OTA down, find the parts, and reattach everything with a new C clip. In the dark, this will burn precious viewing time. A box of 100 C clips was always part of my accessory case. During the year prior to purchasing the SS tray, I used almost the entire box of clips.

The SS tray comes with 6 mounting machine screws, which utilize threaded holes in the tripod head for attachment. Tray can be removed for...