PRIMA LUCE LAB SESTO SENSO + ARCO KIT FOR CPC
The PrimaLuceLab SESTO SENSO + ARCO Base Kit for CPC Deluxe HD 8" and 11" includes the new Sesto Senso 3-SC robotic focusing motor, Arco 2" rotator plus the adapters needed to fit the kit to Celestron CPC Deluxe 8" and 11" telescopes.
This kit is the ideal solution for those who want to transform their CPC Deluxe HD 8" or 11" into an automated imaging platform, adding robotic focuser and rotator control directly from an external Windows computer (not included with this kit) running PrimaLuceLab's PLAY software.
The kit includes:
- Sesto Senso 3 SC robotic microfocuser
- Arco 2" robotic field-derotator
- OnAxisLock2 1.25" / 31.8mm visual back
- OnAxisLock2 2" / 50.8mm visual back
- PL3600542 Adapter for Arco 2" to 2"-SC threads
- Explore the Universe Third Edition book
OnAxisLock2: keep every accessory perfectly aligned to the optical axis
Every accessory you connect to the telescope, whether an eyepiece, a diagonal, or a camera, must be held perfectly centered on the optical axis. Even a small amount of tilt between the camera sensor and the optical path causes field curvature and elongated stars toward the edges of your images.
Traditional visual backs use thumbscrew to lock accessories in place, which allow the accessory to tilt under its own weight. The OnAxisLock2 2" visual back included with every Base Kit replaces this mechanism with a concentric ring-clamp system: rotating the outer ring applies uniform pressure around the full circumference of any 2" accessory, keeping it perfectly centered and preventing tilt or lateral flex. The kit also includes the OnAxisLock2 31.8mm (1.25") eyepiece holder for using 1.25" accessories.
Long-exposure deep sky imaging on an alt-azimuth mount
An alt-azimuth telescope tracking a celestial object keeps it centered in the field of view, but it cannot prevent the field itself from slowly rotating as the Earth rotates. This effect, called field rotation, causes stars to trail in circular arcs during long exposures, making it impossible to do deep-sky imaging.
The Arco 2" solves this problem. Mounted between the telescope and your camera, the Arco continuously rotates the camera with a fantastic precision and at precisely the correct rate, automatically calculated by PLAY software based on the telescope's current pointing position. The result is that, when you add the optional 0.7x focal reducer, the CPC Deluxe HD can capture long-exposure deep-sky images without an equatorial mount or equatorial wedge, retaining all the simplicity advantages of the alt-azimuth design. Beyond field de-rotation, the Arco also lets you rotate the camera to any angle for precise framing of your targets.
Note: Some accessory configurations may result in clearance issues when pointing towards zenith. Because of this, we recommend using non-cooled cameras with side-mounted USB ports, particularly if the 0.7x focal reducer is utilized.
Sesto Senso 3 SC robotic focusing motor
The Sesto Senso 3 SC is the advanced robotic focusing motor specifically designed for Schmidt-Cassegrain, EdgeHD, RASA, and other telescopes with internal mirror focus systems. Developed and manufactured in Italy by PrimaLuceLab, it features key innovations such as the Direct Pulley Clamp (DPC) — a backlash-free, pulley-driven coupling that allows precise motorized focusing and manual adjustment at any time — with integrated position encoder that keeps track of motor position even during manual adjustments (also with Automatic Position Recovery option) and a high-resolution motor offering up to 2 million steps, ensuring optimal control regardless of the telescope’s mechanical reduction.
Learn from the book
The Sesto Senso + Arco kit includes the book "Explore the Universe through astrophotography: capturing pictures with telescopes and PLAY software" by Filippo Bradaschia. This is not a quick-start leaflet: it is a comprehensive guide to astrophotography that covers telescope optics, mount theory, camera settings and sensor technology, image acquisition techniques, image processing with dedicated software, and a complete seasonal guide to the best targets visible from your location throughout the year. This book gives you the deeper understanding of why things work the way they do, and how to get the best results from your telescope night after night.
Telescope, mount, cameras, EAGLE computer, dovetail bars, eyepieces, diagonal and guidescope shown in the photos are not included with the kit.
