Hexy 635mm byclops bino---altitude pivot mechanism

[twinhexydan]

Hi stargazers,

Another leetle update on Hexy--I,ve bolted on the pivot mechanism for altitude control,,this consist of a pier and plate from an old mobility stairlift seat ,the blue blinkers are made from 18mm ply and the 16mm screw rod pivots between them. The rod will be drawn through a 16mm x 50mm long nut in a swivel mount by means of a 12v wiper motor /gearbox.-pics to follow. I,m installing a pulse width modulator (pwm) to control the speed ,this will be situated in the control centre just below the eyepiece area.

next post will be the other end of the rod where the motor /gearbox will pull/push the whole shebang skywards hopefully

byclops Dan

[swamp thing]

Lookin good Dan.

How much do you reckon that wee beastie is gonna weigh?

[twinhexydan]

Now thats an awfully interesting question to ponder over steve ,

when planning Hexy I knew weight would pose a very serious problem if I didn,t get my maths right, and as is plain for all to see the scope has weight --serious weight --and not just a few kilos over

weight is a relative issue so as long as balance is central in the equation -weight ,even large weight can be handled comfortably ,engineers around the world have made the most incredible huge things with movement simply from getting the balance just right , so along comes Huge Hexy and it does look cumbersome and unmanageable ,no doubt about it .

I did assemble Hexy complete a while ago to test this very issue to see if it was a problem--the initial test proved both azimuth and altitude to perform beautifully smoothly with both axis moveable with minimum exertion , I could literally move both with just one finger due entirely to the axis being mounted on sufficient bearings and finely balanced ===the only issue that showed up was the main mount bearing on the vertical shaft which had some flexure due to being single format and then I discovered by chance it had a cracked casing so I immediately set about replacing it with a double set of bearings which cured the whole issue --so now I,m well satisfied .

the relatively small motors that turn both axis will operate with ease due to the finely balanced format--so in one sense HEXY will weigh just the pulling weight required by the motors which I estimate to be in the region of a few kilos

Hexy is a static scope so doesn,t require any assembling between viewing and as you know the plan is to continue the static format onto a towable trailer

but in real terms I estimate the total static weight to be around 600 kilos [=====uuurrrrgghhhh!! maybe a better word than beastie could be BEHEMOTH

Lightweight Dan

[Gina]

Truly Astronomical :hello2: :hello2:

[swamp thing]

Heavy weight also brings stability too hopefully.

As you said heavy but finally balanced is not a problem only the stopping of large mass with inertia may prove problematic, but hexy's not going to be speeding about like a top, so I cannot see weight being a problem either.

It was more me just being curious. What kind of power source are you thinking of to drive it Dan?

[twinhexydan]

Thanks gina,

today I,m making the attempt to raise the scope to a vertical position by a winch as the scope is top heavy at mo due to the omission of the mirrors and cell weights , am trying this in order to fit the altitude pull rod onto the motor mount at the other end --if I manage to do it today I,ll take some more pics so you all get a better idea of what I,m trying to achieve .

winching Dan

[twinhexydan]

Hi steve ,

Curious is a very nice word to use ,---believe me I,ve had plenty of curiosity over this project --had to strain hard at times trying to get my head round varies concepts --I knew roughly what I wanted but materialising it is just one BIG other matter !!

I ,ve got several options for a power source ---the first being a couple of 12 volt car batteries wired in series and attached to the scopes mount , and the other is plenty of 240volt power outlets in my dome a few feet away to run a 12volt conversion unit --I did some calcs on the battery charge life /power demands of the scope for eight hours night viewing and it seems sufficient --so yet to be tested -????

Dinners over so it,s back outside to the tasks, Pip,Pip,

camera ready Dan

[twinhexydan]

HI guys and gals ,

another modification has been performed on Hexy, due to unsatisfactory results of the altitude screwed rod idea ,--the rod protruded out too far when hexy is at zenith --I replaced the whole 16mm rod assembly with a winch type steel cable --this was accomplished by welding a dual lane barrel to the gearbox shaft which allows two x 3.2mm cables to be wound/unwound together on the same journal, hence pulling the scope either up or down and keeping the scope stable --

the blue pivot now has a stainless steel eyebolt fixed to the swivel mount up there , to this is looped the cable and held tight by a drilled out 16mm x 40mm long nut to allow the cable to pass through both ways.

the other end has a speed controlled motor/gearbox 12 volt to winch the scope for altitude. this format is ultra smooth and much superior in every way to the rod idea , so now I have a smile tickling both my ear lobes

wincher Dan

[Gina]

Great stuff

[twinhexydan]

Hi everyone who might chance to look .

Finally--I,ve reached the marathonic end of the winch road --both cables are now in place to pull to zenith/nadir via the speed controlled motorised winch.

All I have to do now is install the cells and dummy granite mirrors to balance the tubes and then I can try out the new raising mechanism---moving on then to mirror making -finally

so here,s some pics for now----

happy viewing

[Chris]

you certainly do your home work Dan, great stuff!

[Gina]

What I would call heavy engineering from our perspective Very impressive

[twinhexydan]

Hi ,

it,s that beast maker again ===almost ready to do a final balancing act before I get entrenched in glass melting,

I remade two mirror cell holding rings out of 18mm ply--they needed updating--so here is my days work--2 hours actually-

and these are the dummy granite mirrors for testing the balance of the scope -prior to making the real mcoys

will be bolting this lot on very soon and see how good a seesaw I,ve made

then I,m off to the glassworks to make some glass pudding to fill the BIG belly

end ,s in sight now---Dan

[swamp thing]

Blimey Dan, did you just happen to have some black granite laying round or what?

I must drop in your yard if I'm ever up your way.

Projects looking great buddy. Haven't had time to do zip on mine for what feels like ages

You could well be up n running before me at this rate.

Keep up the good work.

[twinhexydan]

Hi steve my big mirror friend -thought you was taking a vacation and decided not to come home until the place had dried out a bit .Lol

Black granite ??--oh yeah--bought loads of the stuff a while back off ebay -kitchen refit -so I,ve got four big worktop sizes --these were meant to be made into mirrors until I got wised up about the stuff being unsuitable.

apart from dummy weights am going to use it for mirror grinding tools, as I,ve been told it,s ideal , so no waste after all.

an old lady got conned into parting with £35,000. before she passed away for the small kitchen this came out of which in my calcs makes each granite piece around two and half grand each .

I paid £100 for it --talk about depreciation !

Your welcome to a lump if you ever get near here.

Getting near for me now---finale Dan

[twinhexydan]

Hi everyone,

Afew more pics of Hexy,s metamorphic journey, ---

the winch only has to pull a few kilos ,I can actually push up with my finger !

the big gold weight on the tube end nearly broke my finger ,I now have a purple/black finger nail

dummy granite mirrors are inside the scope for balancing

got a mystery object for you all next

Dan

[swamp thing]

Ooh! Mystery object. I do like puzzles me.

You can't beat the old purple fingernail. Given myself a few of those with a club hammer over the years. Always a riot.

Great feeling when you release the pressure in em with the heated up paper clip through the nail aaaaaah!

[Gina]

Ooh! Mystery object. I do like puzzles me.

You can't beat the old purple fingernail. Given myself a few of those with a club hammer over the years. Always a riot.

Great feeling when you release the pressure in em with the heated up paper clip through the nail aaaaaah!

aaagggghhhh!!!! I've done it a few times too :eek:

[twinhexydan]

Right you lot, as I did,nt notice too much sympathy for my formidable pain ,so I won,t tell ya about this weekend,s serious plight with the 4 1/2 inch grinder which I picked up to grind some protruding nails on the misses dolls house project, ---the switch on the grinder was left in the on position (stupid design) so when I plugged in, the ruddy thing jumped and spun out me " left" hand catching me unawares and wrapping the cord round the wrist and taking off far too much flesh off me thumb and forefinger in the process---so now Doing lifes little essentials have become a little intolerable having only seven good digits ,which are being severally hampered by the soreness of three ---like trying the usual "grab " things

even the toilet wipe has to be accompanied with 15 folds of loo paper----- I feel like I,ve got hoof,s instead of hands--

Anyway the heads still attached so here,s a litle mystery object I,m making for Hexy---if you can figure this one --you will win tonight,s STAR PRIZE----lol.

any ideas ??

Ain,t saying nothing except it,s a twin hexagon board

there will be one pic each night of the mystery artefact

get thinking ---Waiting Dan

[swamp thing]

Be careful with them grinders Dan they really bite hard. They can cause some horrific injuries to nerve endings. I really hope your okay and wish you a speedy recovery.

I often shudder seeing freinds doing DIY with them, with safety guards removed, no gloves or any eye protection. Absolute recipe for disaster.

That's a toughie that mystery object.

[Beulah]

They look similar to mirror cell points.. Or £5.20.

[Gina]

Oh dear Dan That sounds very nasty Do hope you're not too badly hurt and get better soon Please be very careful with power tools - they can be really vicious

[twinhexydan]

Hey,

not a bad guess beulah, hadn,t thought of that one myself even, but sorry , hexy,s already got mirror cells ==

;'#

unpuzzled Dan

[twinhexydan]

Thanks gina ,

raw flesh does look nasty -makes you wince even if you,re not in pain.

Dan

[twinhexydan]

I think we,re due for another pic, so here ya go==

the twenty six keys are twenty pence pieces soldered to 6mmx50mm socket cup bolts and spring loaded to act like typing keys, sandwiched between two ply boards==this could be my bletchly park ENIGMA decoding machine for all those incoming alien messages==

any ideas how it will function on Hexy ?

Awaiting Dan