Diy tripod help

[Stevp]

Hello everyone,

I'm after some advice on what feels to me like the daftest question, if anyone could point me in the right direction i'd be a happy man!

Having broken the clip at the bottom of my tripod leg, I've been weighing up a home-build replacement.

The tripod I currently have is the standard skywatcher aluminium tripod as supplied with the eq3-2. When setting up a couple of weeks back I tightened the clamp on one leg and the plastic clip split right through. I tried my best with superglue and g-tape but had no success. So now i'm stuck to using the tripod at it's unextended height, not ideal for me as i'm not the shortest of people!

And now on to my daft question, what are the clips (clamps, locks, fasteners, fixings....) actually called?! I've searched online extensively and I'm going round in circles! Also, can anyone point me the way of a supplier. I'm sure these things must be out there and i'm just not getting the right name.

My intention is to build (at least investigate) a new ash wood extending tripod to replace the aluminium one, but it seems i've fallen at the first hurdle!

Is there anyone that can put me out of my misery?

Cheers

Stevp

[JamesF]

You don't need any particularly special bits to make your own tripod. Standard nuts and bolts are most of the hardware you need. I'd suggest searching for tripod builds in the DIY section for ideas.

James

[JamesF]

Here looks like a good place to start:

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/61279-home-made-wooden-tripod-for-refractor/

James

[Tinker1947]

Got a picture of the defective part, maybe somebody will know of a part that will replace.....

[billhinge]

I have 2 wooden Berlebach's, big one and normal one. If you have the skill to make your own wooden tripod you won't regret it

I wouldn't worry too much about the fancy bits, just go with something that works as James recommends

The fittings on my tripods look custom made to fit the sizes of the legs which in turn are cut to fit the top plate that holds the mount so I suspect decent wood tripod manufacturers have them made in house.

They are just fancy ways to have fully adjustable leg heights and provide bracing and tightening to avoid vibration but you could customise for your own personal height preferences.

But have a look at this http://www.berlebach.de/?bereich=details&id=351&sprache=english

Then here http://www.carbonmods.co.uk/Departments/carbon-fiber-kits.aspx

If you want to be innovative you could make your own carbon fibre/kevlar fittings

[Stevp]

Thanks for the advice,

After looking at the links i'm even more enthusiastic about a wooden tripod. Oh how I wish I had the budget for the Berlebach!!

I'll keep an eye on ebay for the skywatcher tripod. It's the plastic clip at the bottom of the leg, that holds the extension that has broken. The tripod is fine at its lowest height, so not a lost cause yet. On the plus side, although my super glue effort wont hold the scope in place at height, it does have enough strength to support my dslr on an alt-az.

[JamesF]

Spare tripod legs often come up for not very much money on AstroBoot, so that might be another place to have a look at now and then.

James

[Stevp]

Thanks James, i'll take a look!

[Moonshane]

I made the tripod linked about and it transformed the comfort of observing with a frac. it's quite an easy project. all you need is a saw, a screwdriver and a drill. oh, and some wood.

[A320Flyer]

As a quick fix, you could try a 3" hose clip wrapped around the leg. Works for me.

Bill

[philhas]

How about http://www.firstlightoptics.com/clearance/berlebach-report-8023-ash-wood-tripod.html on clearance @ FLO

Phil

[cantharis]

Get a thick Jubilee clip - drill a hole in it so the screw will go through the hole , tighten the clip so that it goes all round holding everything else together. A cheap but strong and permanent repair.