Alan White

Thank you all, very much what I thought folks would say. I have calmed myself and will cast the block over the weekend. Then I have the nice challenge of pier shopping. The plan to move is I hope longer than a couple of years as it means the daughters moving on and the dear old Father In Law not being in his annexe anymore. None of those are moves I encourage. But being able to move the pier to a new location and observatory in time would be good. That's a retirement job probably though and few years off yet still.

Fully agree. Indeed it is. I speak as a Visual Astronomer not an imager.

HELP me please folks..... My goodness, what to do, this is suddenly really stressing me out was so true last night and truer today. I have spent a sleepless night worrying over this......

Oh yes a 130FC now that would tempt me to get myself in debt......... shhhh.........don’t tell anyone I said that 😉

A bit late to your post, sorry. Have to agree with all the pointers given, a 150mm is a very capable scope, it should prove most useful, I have a 150mm reflector amongst others and it’s a firm favourite. Having a dark garden and sky is a major advantage, you are lucky. The one big thing is to not be disappointed with the grey smudges that you can see, they will most certainly not look Hubble like in anyway. But don’t let that put you off, a grey smudge is very far away and that light is very old hitting your eyeball. Time with your children is truly Golden time well spent, My now long passed Dad set me going observing and I continued that with my own two, now grown up. Time at the eyepiece or just watching the sky together is great. I sometimes lay in the garden spotting satellites with one of my two when they come home after a hard shift, one in the Police the other Ambulance Service.

Indeed it is Gina, thankfully not my one though. You see that plate at the bottom, it opens up onto Bondi Beach!

I don't either, far to young 😉 The Grandson for measuring belongs to Steve aka @Saganite I crept ahead on the quiet. No Crab Apples yet to test this theory out so far, only a sapling last year. Thank you, yes I have been making progress, but suddenly got very cold feet on the cast option as it is so literally set in concrete! I am now in a tizzie on just casting a foundation and then hang on and get a steel jobbie. By the way that hole of yours is looking deep and good, met any Australians yet? 🤣

HELP please !!!!!!!! OK, i NEED help, A pep talk or good advice PLEASE. So far I have dug the hole for the concrete foundation as posted in my Observing Area thread. It is 700 x 700 x 550 deep at present, see picture....it is also boarded over keeping people and rain out. As I had said, I was intending to cast a 10" concrete pier using spiral duct, this was from cheapness rather than desire. But having a duct makes me realise how much I don't like it. Add in after reading a lot more it needs a load of reinforcing too. And finding it will cost over £230 for the cast option to complete, the materials all add up! OK that is still just over 1/3rd of a complete Pulsar one and top........ So I have suddenly got cold feet over the cast option, after all, once cast, it's done and the height is set for good. The plan is literally set in concrete for the duration. We will move in years to come as the kids fledge and the Father In Law in his annexe departs us. So do I cast the base and just stop, have a breather and take stock. Then perhaps hang a metal jobbie on the foundation at a slightly later date? So that it can move with us, just leaving a concrete foundation under a concrete paved area. Or do I press on with a concrete casting and get a pier now? Oh my goodness, what to do, this is suddenly really stressing me out!! Any help greatly appreciated please

OK, mild panic over. Thanks to you and Gina for the confirmation to leave alone. My pier will be a little shorter than yours, but I am using with a refractor and may upsize at a future time.

I was hoping so Gina, as it is getting very difficult to dig now. That is a big lump of concrete. I hope 🤞that the 250mm (10") concrete pier will be well anchored by it.

Oh noooooooo, I need to dig deeper still as hole in new money 700mm (28") x 700mm (28") x 550mm (22") deep. I stopped as I hit a solid stone / clay bed and had dug enough, my back knows about this today.

It lasted longer than I expected it too, I had it down as 30 minutes, sales are slow 😉

Craig, that is super, really like that. Can I borrow a copy for an upcoming talk at my Astro Club please?

And you don't need to own it at that point, I am sure just a whiff at an Astro store or show is sufficient a dose.

A sad sight for a dark sky observer, but up your far North, what dark sky. I to prefer Hibernation, its fairly certain it will come out and be used again.

Indeed I did for an image, its deeper now and I used a more reliable tape measure to make certain. Especially with my dodgy knees.

Is that obligatory or optional? 😂 PS I have no Grandchildren at present time.

Well more is under construction ...... I sneaked a few hours this afternoon guv 😉 This is actually the last image, but I thought it looked better than holes as a starting image. So I cut out concrete pad with a diamond disc on my 9" grinder, very nice, kept wet it cuts well and no dust, but oh my goodness the slurry spreads well up the fences! The hole is extended to 700mm x 700mm from the original 600mm x 600mm, as I decided I need a few mm further from the office, aka cupboard as the scope may grow in time. So here is that cut hole, amazed it's so neat and straight....ish. And then I started digging and by goodness do I know about it now! First image part dug: Second image dug, perhaps: So here we go, the Observing pad takes its next turn within the saga, I best hope the ballast and cement turns up now!

A smell that I so hope to experience one day like @AdeKing, but its a while off yet.

So 'she' has arrived I am shocked that you could reject your older model for a new younger and racey one, shocking 🤣 Wonderful stuff Mike, it's been hard knowing what was happening. Looks really nice indeed, so await the first light report. Clearly not only FLO supply clouds with kit!

+1 for Earthshine

Great images Craig, also confirm the detail I am starting to observe after years of trying. Mike as in @mikeDnight has been able to tease this out for a very longtime, I have been trying for a long time and got my observing skills and eye in enough to start to see this now as well.

Nice images Paul. I looked out last night and saw the same fine sight, Venus hanging above The Moon, Eathshine lit and wonderful as ever. And what a sight to behold for just a short while, two of my favourite targets. This was with Mk1’s and then Binoculars as I was having a back resting non scope evening.

Interesting purchase Dave @F15Rules, quite the bargain buy.

🤞