Yawning Angel

Looks great! Best of luck with it!!

One thing I learned from a RoR build, Make sure the rails can't carry wet inside either on top or underneath. The best way would be to have a tiny degree of fall away from the scope room ? Both myself and @Astrokev had the same problem

Here are a few more photos. I’ve tried to faithfully represent the degree of lighting to my eyes. Red only, on minimum, 2/3rds of the diffusers installed

My observing chair, the seat of which is white

Illuminated on 3 sides, diffuser on the right (and left, out of shot) not fitted between as it needs a bevelled corner cutting

Close-up, lights off, camera flash

If you need a sample, I’m sure an offcut in a Jiffy bag can make its way to you

@JamesF

Does that help?

The controller joins your wifi as a device - you join it's network first, then bounce it over to the existing network using the app. From there you can use Alexa or their own app to manage it - or the IR remote it also comes with

I have the profile sitting flush in 9mm ply, the clips screwed to the same studs as the ply. I'd say you need 9-10mm to get it flush, any deeper and you'd have to space the clips on washers or look at drilling the profile (or glue?) - I can measure this tonight for you with more accuracy

It's worth a note: the clips as provided are very tight, and need opening out a little. I fitted the lower board, then the clips. Test fitted the profile to get the spacing, then fitted the top board. The profile fitted snug except for in one place where I needed to give it a little wiggle room with a small chisel - the evidence of this is neatly hidden under the profile ?

There are also light switch controllers, if you've a route for the cable run: Amazon...again

That photo was on the brightest setting, so the phone could pick up a reasonable image. Temporarily I'm using a controller with an IR remote, but it'll be swapped to a wifi one when the comms goes in

I, too, have no intention of using the disco setting, the strobe or any of the other silliness ?. Red for observing / monitoring the mount and white for working. I'd imagine some creative types could make up a 3 way switch to provide the connections correctly. 4 wires, Common and  RGB. 24V for the longer runs (12V for up to 5m) - I'll be using 'Routines' with Amazon Alexa or the app on my phone, as I'm an IT bod, rather than a soldering iron & electronics guru. I'm sure @Gina would have something wired up and printed off over a tea break ?

If you're planning a speaker install, then maybe a smart system would fit quite well?

For ref:

Recessed aluminium profile

WiFi LED controller

10m RGB LED strip

I managed to steal a few hours this weekend, so the scope room is fully lined now!

2 coats of Cuprinol on it all, then the aluminium channel went in for the LEDs. This meant that the LEDs had to go in, because it’d be a shame not to! There is some cable routing still to do, including drilling my lovely new wall, and the diffuser cover needs installing but:

Lights in the scope room: ✅ 

Last night I painted the scope room floor - 2 coats with a couple of hours drying in between, so I had time to do something else...

Sesto Senso!

I'd treated myself about a month back, but never got round to installing or testing it, so while I has a little down time, out came the allen keys. What a lovely bit of engineering - it drives the stock ED80's focuser with no problems. Very smooth and my calipers suggest it is very accurate too.

More painting tonight...

I didn't twig it was the outside...sorry. 

7 minutes ago, Gina said:

found it too difficult

This was where my whole idea stalled ?

Gina, does the evaporated moisture, from the heater, have somewhere to go? When I had delusions that I could build one, I'd thought to blow the hot air from the peltier sink up the dome like a car windscreen de-mist, then vent it out of a side louver vent

I've started the laborious task of painting all the exposed wood, before final fit of the LED lights and putting the foam floor tiles down. Leftover dark gray cuprinol on the underside on the rolling roof and on the floors, and a silver birch colour on the wall panels. The floor tiles are red, so anything dropped might show up, but thats unlikely to be a forever floor. 

I took the opportunity to have the AVX mount serviced whilst I crack on - the resulting clear skys the night it went would make you cry!

With construction work coming to conclusion, thoughts have turned to fitting out. I have the dado trunking waiting to go it, wire to run to the scope and my control box to commission. The control box is a lockable electrical cab - It'll contain a small form factor PC, USB hub, 12V hub, dew controller, 240V and network sockets, all attached to a mounted pin-board. Services in the bottom, scope supply out the top. The whole kit should be hung on a frame beside, but not attached to, the pier

With this in mind and some trepidation I cut the cigarette lighter plugs off my power leads and replaced them with banana plugs - almost sacrilege to the wonderfully well made Lynx Astro cables, but this fella will run it all Hobbyking-Powerstrip from a 12V PSU tucked up safe in the warm room

The list seems to be getting longer now, but the items are smaller at least. I sort of liked the old one:

Build Observatory
Mount Scope
Enjoy

Rather than:

Paint everything
Install floor covering
Fit internal door
Varnish step
Install trunking
Wire Sockets
Wire lighting
Commission network
Source desk
Shelving

Still, progress is progress, and I can work quietly in the evenings and the power tools are needed less

Fantastic result! I wonder if it's possible to make up a template for others with this problem to drill the plate without removing it? 0 seems to line up with the top bolt hole?

I’d stick with isopropyl, it’ll not lift the paint off the mount - acetone might not be so forgiving ?

I think @Rattler tried heating his with limited success, and ended up using a pallet knife?

Isopropanol may well soften it enough to persuade it to pop. It's always been good at removing leftover sticky from labels etc. It evaporates clean away, and is safe on electrics. Should be about £5 in a pump spray for the 99% grade

The jigsaw has seen a bit of action this weekend, cutting the floor fillets for round the cable ducts and pier, plus the wall ply cut out for the window 

Manage to install the majority of the aluminium profile in the scope room too, which looks very tidy! Small clips to screw on and it snaps into place. Just remember - cut aluminium is sharp!

The small sheets above the aluminium are temporary, to hold the spacing for the corner mitre

50 pages and that picture makes it worth it! Clouds aside, you must be chuffed!

To test, it’s on an extension lead ?

The idea is to sent the power from a socket in the warm side, into the scope rooms dividing wall cavity.

The led string then runs most of the perimeter, as I got a 10m length, in recessed aluminium profile with a frosted cover

I'm intending to sheet the scope side, so the profile should sit along the top of the lower panel 1.22m off the floor - which reminds me, I must order more plywood!

I’m going to run these in aluminium profile around the scope room, at about dado height. The controller supports Wi-fi and Amazon Alexa so voice activation rather than a remote I can lose ??

Disco observatory

Light test - fitted with masking tape?Red to white, min and max

32 minutes ago, JamesF said:

think I'm going to run out of stainless nails, which is irritating.  I shall have to order some more.

James, I’ve most of a whole box left over - msg me your address and I’ll send them south. Saves me storing them

Dodging the showers today, I managed to get more of the warm room panelled.

Putting 2m x 1m 9mm ply on a ceiling solo was challenging! I got a couple of cheap plasterboard props to help out - which turned out to be a fantastic way to spend £20!

Juggling the board in place I first propped it on a ladder, ducked under it and lifted it on my head - 6’4” me sometimes comes in handy. 

Once it was up there, the props could jack it tight against a couple of joists. That was when I remembered I’d not marked the joist positions in the face ?

Some careful measuring later and it was simple enough to screw it securely. 

The rest of the boards went in easily enough, and my 5yr old boys enjoyed helping Daddy ‘do screwing’. I call it a win that nobody died ??

?

10 hours ago, Astrokev said:

I'm using Cuprinol Garden Shades

That's what I was thinking too. I've a tin and a bit left over, in Urban Slate. I've still not 100% decided if I'm lining the scope room or leaving the stud exposed - so I was thinking of painting the stud and worrying about it later. I had also though it might coat the ply floor before covering it...just in case

Looking very smart Kev! Out of curiosity, what type of paint have you gone for? Exterior or a standard emulsion?

Here's the ply starting to go up, with the added 'bonus' of my excessively cluttered workmate, sporting the single most useful item ever - "Wonder Wipes"

For an idea of the size, that sheet is 2250 x 1220.