Started work on the shed obsy

[Pete D]

Crawling underneath is all good in theory but when it`s dark your going to headbutting your scope a lot. Is 6 FT the outside measurement just remember you will loose about 6" from the interior depending on your framework size plus any plywood for the interior walls.

[RobertC]

Well i've been out still digging away, then the rains came. Covered in mud and wet through i've called it for a while till the rains have gone. Nearly done digging the extension though. On the plus side to getting wet through i've managed to find all the supplies i will need for my mount except the form as i'm still at college through the week, i shall be going this weekend to the store though to try and find one.

Crawling underneath is all good in theory but when it`s dark your going to headbutting your scope a lot. Is 6 FT the outside measurement just remember you will loose about 6" from the interior depending on your framework size plus any plywood for the interior walls.

6ft is the interior measurement, the scope will fit it's been put in the shed before i took it down and i have no issue getting around or under. The interior will be just left as shed walls as i don't need to bother with insulation, only my warm room will be upgraded to warmth and better walls  

-Rob

[Pete D]

Sounds good. Don`t envy you doing it in this weather though, but it will be worth it when it`s finished.

[RobertC]

Sounds good. Don`t envy you doing it in this weather though, but it will be worth it when it`s finished.

Just got back now from the DIY store and B&Q, neither had any of the 8" piping although i did get some wood and m12 threaded rod for the pier. Just got to cut it down to 3 lengths.

Back to working on the digging now, again.

-Rob

[red dwalf]

Proper builders merchants for the pipe might be the better bet than b and q.

ask for brown waste pipe, its tough stuff but easy to cut.

[RobertC]

2 hours later still haven't gotten this damn tree stump out, getting there just still the root that is holding it firmly down is deep below. 

Proper builders merchants for the pipe might be the better bet than b and q.
ask for brown waste pipe, its tough stuff but easy to cut.

Don't suppose the merchants called 'travis perkins' will sell the pipe will it ? It's not listed on the website and that is the only real one nearby.

-Rob

[red dwalf]

Might be worth a quick phone call to find out, got loads of it at our local merchants in various diameters.

[Clockwork_Orange]

Ok if your after a piece of 8" plastic to use as a former. just google :- drain center. They are part of the Wolseley Group.

I use them at work, good company they have branches all over the UK, use the branch locator on the web site to find your nearest one. You may end up having to buy a 3mtr length unless your local branch happens to have a length that has been damaged in transit .

Regards

John

[RobertC]

Ok if your after a piece of 8" plastic to use as a former. just google :- drain center. They are part of the Wolseley Group.

I use them at work, good company they have branches all over the UK, use the branch locator on the web site to find your nearest one. You may end up having to buy a 3mtr length unless your local branch happens to have a length that has been damaged in transit .

Regards

John

3.7 miles away is the closest one, i will have to make a trip. Thankyou !

[RobertC]

Since i had no power to my workshop shed where all my tools are i have been using handtools to build the form that will be below the mount for to tighten the tightening bolt that attatches the eq5 mount to the pier.

It is still a little rough until i do a temporary rewire so i can use my belt sander but it's in its basic shape. The threaded rods have been cut down, i should of done the measure twice and cut once but somhow miss cut one segment so two rods are slightly longer but shouldn't be an issue. 

Today has been a day of rain and wind so no further progress on the digging has been done, two images of the form and rods.

 

I have decided to go for a 10 inch diameter pier instead of an 8 inch due to i would like to have the brake disk fitting completely flush instead of hanging over the edge.

-Rob

[Gina]

You should get yourself an extension lead - then you can use power tools   I found power tools virtually essential when I was building my obsy.

[RobertC]

You should get yourself an extension lead - then you can use power tools   I found power tools virtually essential when I was building my obsy.

I don't have an extension lead that is 50ft long, my other shed is right at the top of the garden. The observatory is down near the house so i will be using an extension lead till i do the rewire

-Rob

[RobertC]

Very nearly finished digging out the area for me to extend the walls today, managed to remove the tree stump at last but the roots are slowing me down. Should be finished by tommorow and hopefully make a start on digging out the area for the pier to sit.

-Rob

[Gina]

I think my long extension lead is 100ft long   The one I'm using from the house to my obsy ATM is a 50ft one.  One day I'll get round to connecting the inner end of the armoured cable to the mains supply then I can replace the outer end connection with the armoured cable.  Sooo many things to finish

[Tinker1947]

It appears that you sort out one problem but that creates two more.......nice hole by the way.....

[Gina]

It appears that you sort out one problem but that creates two more.......nice hole by the way.....

Ain't that the truth!?

[SnakeyJ]

Well done with that stump - they can be real s*ds. Still waiting for my op after wrestling with mine

typed on my mobile with Tapatalk

[Clockwork_Orange]

It will be well worth the sweat and toil when finished Robert.

Regards

John

[RobertC]

It will be well worth the sweat and toil when finished Robert.

Regards

John

It will be nice to just roll off the roof and get going instead of lumping all the gear out, trying to do it for as least money possible.

-Rob

Well done with that stump - they can be real s*ds. Still waiting for my op after wrestling with mine

typed on my mobile with Tapatalk

Well it has taken me nearly 3 days of sawing and digging, finally out now so i can proceed with the pier foundation digging tomorrow

-Rob

[Pete D]

Once you have finished your Obsy the thing I find takes the longest setting up is getting all your layers of clothes on to stay warm.

[RobertC]

Well today i've finished digging out the extension area and then shifted the mound of growing dirt, not easy without a wheelbarrow ! Finally getting somewhere now

You can see the area i have dug out here, roughly 2ft extra room for my warm room. 

After i did some maths and worked out the area i should start to dig the hole for the pier i started the dreaded hole, saying that it took lot less time that removing that stump ! This is the hole so far, measures 3ft x 1m x 1.25ft. I'm not sure if this is big enough but looks fine, can any vouch for that ?

-Rob

[red dwalf]

depth is the most important factor, rather than the width

[SnakeyJ]

depth is the most important factor, rather than the width

Have to agree with this, I think the key is to sink it down deep to find stable ground rather than spread out.     Mine was a bit lighter than recommended at 500 x 500 x 1200mm, though the bottom 600mm into very solid ground.    I did add quite a lot of odd rubble with the concrete to stretch the ballast out for the job.      

[dmahon]

Personal opinion: A lot of people build their piers far larger than necessary.

1m3 of concrete is a whopping 2.5 tons. Then again, you only want to do it once so why not over-engineer it a bit? I think 2/3m x 2/3m x 2/3m would be fine (3/4 of a ton) and give a big enough base to set the vast majority of piers on too.

[Gina]

Personal opinion: A lot of people build their piers far larger than necessary.

1m3 of concrete is a whopping 2.5 tons. Then again, you only want to do it once so why not over-engineer it a bit? I think 2/3m x 2/3m x 2/3m would be fine (3/4 of a ton) and give a big enough base to set the vast majority of piers on too.

Mine's about that size (2/3m cube) and certainly seems fine - really solid