New Scope: 20" f3.6 Lukehurst Dobsonian

[alanjgreen]

I picked up my new (and first ever) dob from Nottingham yesterday. Its a 20" f3.6 Lukehurst dobsonian. It has a 1/10 wave mirror. David Lukehurst gave a quick demo of the scopes features and answered my questions on collimation. Then it was time to dismantle and put all the pieces into my car. I had taken some duvets and pilllows to allow me to get everything packed in and there wasn't much room to spare... Everything was unloaded into my garage just before dark.

Today I have been making up some wiring to connect the various "enhancements" that will increase my use of the scope. David had fitted the powered ground board, 10K encoders and Nexus controller plus UTA dew controller unit (he cleverly wired the dew controlled up through one of the hollow trusses which is a neat solution) & secondary heater. He has added a few pass through holes in the corners that made it easier to get the cables out to the mirror box to connect up the fan & UTA dew system.

Once that was complete, I got my neighbour to help me carry the mirror box from the garage down to my shed (obsy). Assembly was a breeze as David numbers each side and each of the trusses so you get them on the correct side (easy).

I added the shroud then attempted collimation using the Howie Glatter laser & tublug.

The secondary was almost spot on and the primary took a half turn before the triangle shaped centre spot appeared in the tublug display.

I gave the Nexus a test with a false alignment on the sun and practised some push pull to find the imaginary mercury and mars. All seemed to be working fine.

Just had time to fit my astro systems scope coat and see how much spare material there was as the coat is for an f5 longer scope. Anyway, too much cover seems to make the job of putting it on much easier

Now, I just need a clear spell to get out and align the finder then we should be away!

Alan

 

[triton1]

Wow lovely looking scope and a monster to boot congrats you'll have years of entertainment with that,don't forget first light report?

[John]

What a superb scope Alan

You must be as pleased as punch with it !

I can still vividly recall the views that I got of M13 and M51 through a 20" Lukehurst dob under dark skies and that was 5 years or so ago now

I hope you get lots of clear skies over the coming months to enjoy that light guzzling capability.

[nightfisher]

Looks a beaut, should give stunning views, is the shed a roll of so you can use the monster dob in situ?

[alanjgreen]

1 minute ago, nightfisher said:

Looks a beaut, should give stunning views, is the shed a roll of so you can use the monster dob in situ?

Yes it is a roll off, with a drop down side to the SE.

David has made me some wheelbarrow handles so I can reposition within the shed if I need to get at something out of reach.

I tested the eyepiece level and at zenith I need to get on my tip-toes

The scope is BIG once you get it in the shed and I may not be able to stray too far away from zenith unless its E-SW direction. It will be part of the learning process to find the best floor location for the scope in the shed.

 

[JOC]

Wow, another one of those huge Dobs.  Do you need a step ladder or some sort of step stool to view through it or is it hooked through to a computer screen?

[DirkSteele]

Not jealous....... Much.

 

Looks fantastic!  Congratulations on the new scope.  I imagine it will give you some unforgettable observing experiences.

[Uplooker]

Congratulations on the new scope Alan.

I hope you get the skies to enjoy that big boy!

Not sure what your LP is like but scope should blow your socks off at a dark site?

[jabeoo1]

They are great scopes

 

[DeepSkyBagger]

Ooh... drool...

[scarp15]

Wonderful, look forward to your first light report.

[Scooot]

That looks fantastic. The nexus is a great add on  

[laudropb]

That really is a lovely looking scope Alan. Hope the skies are good to you.

[alanjgreen]

1 hour ago, JOC said:

Wow, another one of those huge Dobs.  Do you need a step ladder or some sort of step stool to view through it or is it hooked through to a computer screen?

Nope, I can see at the zenith by standing on tip-toes. The focal length is only 1800mm thanks to f3.6

 

[JOC]

6 minutes ago, alanjgreen said:

I can see at the zenith by standing on tip-toes

That sounds most useful, much more convenient I should think to be able to access everything from the ground - I've seen pictures on the net where people have to climb ladders and that can't be convenient in the dark!

[Paul73]

Blimey! You don't mess about! That is a proper Dob.

You'll enjoy that.

Paul

[Peter Drew]

If you haven't got one already I would recommend a Paracorr. I have a 20" F3.5 with a Paracorr and the star images and lunar craters are good to the edge of the FOV. I think you will love the scope, like most others I look forward to your first light report. 

[estwing]

congrats on the new scope. A 20" dob is a great workhorse for deep sky work....Arp's a plenty!...clear skies!

[Chris]

Congratulations Alan, that's some first Dob all right! 

[Paul73]

1 hour ago, Peter Drew said:

If you haven't got one already I would recommend a Paracorr. I have a 20" F3.5 with a Paracorr and the star images and lunar craters are good to the edge of the FOV. I think you will love the scope, like most others I look forward to your first light report. 

There is a Paracorr in the signature. Although, by the look of it, Alan doesn't seem like a chap to skimp on his kit; I'd guess that there might be a SIPS lurking in that Feather Touch?

Paul

[bish]

Fine scope. Can't say I'm not jealous!

[faulksy]

congrats alan, glad you have got your new baby. hope you take it somewhere dark. the nexus is great. did you buy the howie glatter from david ?

look foward to your first light report

[Daz69]

NASA just rang, they want their scope back Alan

Cracking bit of kit, congratulations! 

[ShrewView]

Wow that's a beauty.

Love the lectern that sits to the side. That's a handy idea.

Fingers crossed for those clear skies for you and looking forward to hearing about first light.

[alanjgreen]

2 hours ago, Paul73 said:

There is a Paracorr in the signature. Although, by the look of it, Alan doesn't seem like a chap to skimp on his kit; I'd guess that there might be a SIPS lurking in that Feather Touch?

Paul

No, no SIPS. I needed the 2.5" drawtube focuser so I can switch to binos. The SIPS only works with the 1.5" focuser version.

but, yes, I do have the paracorr2 - although I need to write down the settings and put the sheet in the shed... another task for tomorrow