EQM-35 Mount

I purchased the Sky-Watcher EQM-35 for astrophotography. (This is the EQM-35 Pro, by the way, even though the website doesn't specify that.) I am mainly using a DSLR, but I am also trying our some old SLR gear. The instruction manual for the mount is pretty light on set-up details, so hopefully you have experience with mounts or you have watched a number of YouTube videos. The SynScan instruction manual is good though (some typos, but fairly good, even for newbies). Overall, the mount and tripod are very solid, and you should have no problem with either visual observing or imaging. I would rate the mount and tripod 5 STARS, but I need to take off a star for the support documentation.

This is a very solid mount! I purchased it as an upgrade from my StarTracker Pro, mainly for use with my WO RedCat 51mm astrograph. I've also mounted my Meade ETX-90 and Canon EF 100-400mm lens. Polar alignment is easy, as is the one, two and three star alignment. The go-to function is reliable and nails catalogued objects effortlessly. I don't have an auto guider however, even on a one-star alignment, the mount tracks a target for about three minutes before trailing is evident when recording images through the RedCat. Criticisms are minor by noteworthy. First, the polar scope isn't illuminated, which is hard to understand given the price of the mount; it seems like a trivial thing to cut corners on. Second, the polar scope reticle is not aligned with 12 o'clock high, like on iOptron's polar scope, with the scope in the home position. That's a minor inconvenience, but again, something that shouldn't be for an otherwise high-quality mount. Last, the alignment star menus are limited and don't always include bright, well known stars even when they're visible. Quibbles aside, this is a fine mount which has stepped up my astrophotography game. Recommended!