Hey RickJ,

Thanks for that reply. I learned that these compromises have been largely accepted by the astronomical community at these price ranges.

The setting circles are important to me because I would like to not have any electronics on the mount. I want to learn things about the sky that electronics will cheat me out of. Aside from the fact that I cannot afford the more expensive GoTo systems, I would like to be able to put myself in the shoes of the fathers of modern astronomy. Electronics back then didn't exist, and their setting circles are less accurate than ours today, but I'll allow myself that cheat. However, I'm discovering that the electronic GoTo mounts are more affordable than no-electronics precision mounts.

So you recommend Losmandy? What is your opinion on the Vixen GPD2? I don't want a lot of gear. In fact, one set will be fine for me, but I expect it to work well. So if it will cost a lot of money at first, so be it because that will mean that I won't have to spend much in the future and it has the capacity for growth into astrophotography. Thanks again.