Abstract: An equatorial mount for optical instruments that affords quick setup. A safety trunnion which receives any of a plurality of pairs of declination studs on the telescope or camera is provided with a safety access channel that has a first vertical segment and a second angulated segment forming a crook therebetween. In the event the trunnion assumes an inverted position, the declination studs will slide into the crook between the two segments and be retained in the equatorial mount by the angulated segment. The plurality of pairs of studs permit the instrument to be rotated about its longitudinal axis and reinserted should the eyepiece or viewing lens be positioned at an inconvenient angle. A guided sector drive provides an inexpensive device for driving the equatorial mount in right ascension to track a celestial body.