Daft lil' job but I just HAD to...

[SteelRat]

My mate from way back has been goin on about gettin a scope fer a while. Interest is re-ignited whenever he see's the 100r. Lives in a high rise with no balcony and only want's one to look at the moon. Alt-az mounted 'frac me-thought, but the spectre of expense always comes up.

Well I ain't flush enough to buy him one but I got really old 60mm sat in the shed with the mower. Focuser was bosted so I fixed that. Put a cheap lil' finder on it from the box o bits under the stairs. Now then - no diagonal or 0.965 eyepieces. Only EP's spare are a couple o plastic bodied 1.25 inchers.

So buy a 965 diag and some eyepieces? Buy 965-1.25 adapt and a 1.25 diag? Buy a hybrid diag?

Can't afford any of the above options right now so back in the box o bits for a looksie; cheap plastic 1.25" focus drawtube from some piece o junk, pair of old binos with no lenses but still got prisms...

Hmmm... balsa wood still up on top o the kitchen cupboards? Yup. Superglue in the draw? Yup. Any black paint left in the tin in the shed? Shake shake... yup.

Well it was an hour or so o fun at least. Here's the bodged beast, a view o two towers in the dist from the garden, a test o the beastie at x90 and last is the finished gift-scope.

[SteelRat]

I'm sure others here have built NICE diags before, but I'm happy with this one even if it is made o plastic, balsa, super glue etc. The 965 end is metal at least - another part robbed of the blind bins

Here's a couple o test shots o the Moon with the 'beast of bodgemin' and my mobile phone. Scuse the shakey images - handheld can be such a pig when yer outta practice.

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

Well your mate is going to be happy with that, you're happy with the gift, that is a definite result. Glad to see people spreading the word as it were.

Captain Chaos

[GazOC]

Very nice Matt, it should make a decent lunar/ planetary scope.

[SteelRat]

Cheers gents. It'll be part-payback for the lappy case I recieved off father birthday last year, and always being well stocked up with gin and good food for when me n the wife visit

Venus and Saturn looked pretty sweet through it Gaz, so the obj and eyepieces must be pretty good to cope with the 'new' prism diag It's an old 800mm(ish) jobbie I think so, what's that? Er... (calc keys tapping) f13(ish). Pops up past max on the moon pretty good. My moon pics don't do the views justice really so am pleased.

Heh, balsa and super glue - if only I'd got some gaffa in there somewhere I'd have an ATM flush

[Whippy]

Blimey, that's class Matt. Are you secretly McGuyver or something?

[dazza1639]

Great Job, old scopes make good gifts for beginners. 60mm 'fracs are great lunar scopes, I've just given a similar one to my nephew, he loves it.

Darren

[Cloudwatcher]

Brilliant! Not only will you have a very happy friend but you have probably saved the planet with all that recycling!!

You may have started a trend! I'm off to root through the bits & bobs box right now!

The A-Team lives!!

[Caz]

There will be a presenters job on 'Blue Peter' coming up for grabs in the non to distant future..

Seriously Matt, all credit to you, another job, very well done... 8)

Caz

[geppetto]

Love it 8)

Well done mate

[philsail1]

Those are images that "NASA" would have been proud of 10 years ago!

Well done - and it's made someone happy!.

Regards,

Philsail1

[SteelRat]

Heh, thanks peeps Looking forward to 'presentation-day' now.

[Stardust]

Looks good and I'm sure he'll be well chuffed

well done

[barkis]

Tell you what Matt, there is definitely a job for you with the Blue Peter gang. You put the sticky backed plastic lot to shame.

Nice job indeed by International Rescue.

Ron.

[SteelRat]

Do I get a badge?

[barkis]

Do I get a badge?

:nono: :nono: Just a well done I'm afraid.

[SteelRat]

Heheheh, cheers Ron

[Jaffa007]

Read with great interest your work mate. I've got my first propper scope [20yrs old] sitting in it's box in the loft. Unfortunatly, it also has a .965" size. I don't have an spare bits to convert to 'standard' size draw tube, but do have access to a work lath.

So first I was going to machine up an adaptor, so I can use my 1.25" E.P.'s, but my question is, will the standard size E.P. actually work? i.e. will I be looking at the (e.g) Moon, down a dark tube, so to speak?

Just seems a waste it sat in it's box, I know my Mum wouldn't of wanted it too be either.

Thanks guys.

James