bottletopburly Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 Pier coming on ,tube arrived today from metals4u though they never cut square so now another job of squaring up ,just need pier base supports i have a friend who is drawing them on cad so i can get lasercut then a matter of getting welded together. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darknight Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 is that a brake disc on the bottom, or just steel plate, looking good though, I really need to do mine this year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 13, 2017 Author Share Posted July 13, 2017 6 hours ago, darknight said: is that a brake disc on the bottom, or just steel plate, looking good though, I really need to do mine this year It's a 300mmx10mm disc laser cut with a 55mm hole in centre Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laser_jock99 Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 Best DIY pier I've seen for a while- no cardboard tube full of concrete or 'wobbly bolts' for leveling in sight! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 17, 2017 Author Share Posted July 17, 2017 1 minute ago, laser_jock99 said: Best DIY pier I've seen for a while- no cardboard tube full of concrete or 'wobbly bolts' for leveling in sight! Thanks ,I have a friend do me a drawing on cad for base support plates so i can have laser cut ,see attatchment i have it in dwg and DXF formats too if anyone wants a copy PM me BRACKET.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 27, 2017 Author Share Posted July 27, 2017 Last piece of the jigsaw has arrived hopefully have it welded in the next few weeks 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 28, 2017 Author Share Posted July 28, 2017 Just had a quote to have pier powder coated white by a local company came in at £30 not bad at all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jkulin Posted July 28, 2017 Share Posted July 28, 2017 My mate is designing something similar but with full length supports at the side. Just a quick question, how are you planning on rotating the pier adapter so that you can align north or are you just going to drill holes after rough alignment and then just use the AZ bolts for perfect alignment? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan White Posted July 28, 2017 Share Posted July 28, 2017 That is looking a fine pier, look forward to the completed pictures soon. Powder coat sounds good, but why not Hammerite it,no one will see it will they? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 28, 2017 Author Share Posted July 28, 2017 3 hours ago, Jkulin said: My mate is designing something similar but with full length supports at the side. Just a quick question, how are you planning on rotating the pier adapter so that you can align north or are you just going to drill holes after rough alignment and then just use the AZ bolts for perfect alignment? Before having powder coated , I will set up and Pa I haven't tapped pier head down yet so once I PA I will gaffa tape pier adapter to top plate and drill and tap . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 28, 2017 Author Share Posted July 28, 2017 (edited) 4 hours ago, Alan White said: That is looking a fine pier, look forward to the completed pictures soon. Powder coat sounds good, but why not Hammerite it,no one will see it will they? I could paint it but powder coat will give me a better finish and I will ? at It lols Edited July 28, 2017 by bottletopburly 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jkulin Posted July 28, 2017 Share Posted July 28, 2017 (edited) 4 hours ago, bottletopburly said: Before having powder coated , I will set up and Pa I haven't tapped pier head down yet so once I PA I will gaffa tape pier adapter to top plate and drill and tap . Thanks, so will you temporarily bolt the pier down to the concrete before marking up the pier adapter? Maybe it's me being paranoid, my mate who is sorting out the design doesn't want to machine elongated holes into the top of the pier so that the top plate can be adjusted perfectly, but I think he's being a little too cautious on the stability front. Edited July 28, 2017 by Jkulin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 29, 2017 Author Share Posted July 29, 2017 4 hours ago, Jkulin said: Thanks, so will you temporarily bolt the pier down to the concrete before marking up the pier adapter? Maybe it's me being paranoid, my mate who is sorting out the design doesn't want to machine elongated holes into the top of the pier so that the top plate can be adjusted perfectly, but I think he's being a little too cautious on the stability front. Yes temp bolt , set azimuth adjusters equal and adjust pier head to suit then hold with gaffa tape , once it's tapped into position you will have plenty of adjustment on the azimuth bolts , I didn't want elongated holes either . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nightfisher Posted July 29, 2017 Share Posted July 29, 2017 Looking very good, i have been toying with getting a pier made for my star discovery i contacted a local firm a few years back and he quoted a very reasonable price, think i might have to speak to him again 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 29, 2017 Author Share Posted July 29, 2017 21 minutes ago, nightfisher said: Looking very good, i have been toying with getting a pier made for my star discovery i contacted a local firm a few years back and he quoted a very reasonable price, think i might have to speak to him again Do it ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted July 30, 2017 Author Share Posted July 30, 2017 (edited) Pier base filled , Edited July 30, 2017 by bottletopburly picture update 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laser_jock99 Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 On 28/07/2017 at 16:12, Alan White said: Powder coat sounds good, but why not Hammerite it,no one will see it will they? Have you seen the price of a tin of Hammerite- powder coat for £30 is probably cheaper!! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted September 9, 2017 Author Share Posted September 9, 2017 Finally got the chance to have pier welded up by a friend , so probably won`t be for a few weeks yet just need to setup and PA then drill and tap pier adapter onto top plate then send off for Powdercoating 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan White Posted September 10, 2017 Share Posted September 10, 2017 Now that is looking very nice indeed, once powder coated it will be spot on. Does not look a DIY job in anyway. Are you willing and able to share your drawings so others can copy at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted September 10, 2017 Author Share Posted September 10, 2017 (edited) 4 hours ago, Alan White said: Now that is looking very nice indeed, once powder coated it will be spot on. Does not look a DIY job in anyway. Are you willing and able to share your drawings so others can copy at all? Certainly the tube is 750mm long making it the same as a standard eq6 pro tripod at lowest setting , ordered from https://www.metals4u.co.uk/mild-steel/c6/tube/c2239/tube/c56/139mm-od-x-5mm/p8864 now phone up to order as you will need cut to length, you pay for a meter but they will email you the order then pay through link on email PLEASE state though that ends must be square cut as first order wasn`t very good but they sorted it pronto ,very good service , Base plate , top plate , and fins were ordered through https://www.lasermaster.co.uk/easy-order very easy to order, base plate choose washer type,material thickness 10mm mild steel 300mm dia then specify how big centre hole i did 55mm then in comments box i asked for six holes equally spaced 15mm dia, 35mm in from edge to centre of hole , Top plate as above washer type 10mm mild steel ,12mm centre hole 175 mm in diameter though i matched this to my pier plate (holes for pier plate to be drilled by me at a later date ) Fins x3 (i had a friend do me a drawing) chose rectangular 8mm mild steel 140mm x75mm i then sent a drawing in DWG format see attachments (there is three formats lasermaster use the DWG format ) Owl hole is 85mm in dia and 90 mm down from top of tube to centre of hole , and was cut using an 85 mm hole saw , i drilled a 6mm hole first through tube ,i already had holesaw but similar to this https://www.bltdirect.com/85mm-holesaw-drill-bit-accessory?adcid=pla&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2diG0ZCa1gIVpr_tCh1cPQwlEAQYASABEgLYPPD_BwE you will also need the arbor aswell https://www.bltdirect.com/arbour-for-32-125mm-holesaw-accessory DRILL SLOWLY i had a local company quote £30 for powder coating, any questions just ask, feel free to use drawings and use i had them drawn so no copyright, this pier was made to be used with my skywatcher 200p newtonian so bear this in mind and adjust tube length to suit your needs . BRACKET.dwg BRACKET.dxf BRACKET.pdf Edited September 10, 2017 by bottletopburly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted October 6, 2017 Author Share Posted October 6, 2017 Pier back from powder coaters 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laser_jock99 Posted October 7, 2017 Share Posted October 7, 2017 Very professional looking pier. Nice! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted October 7, 2017 Author Share Posted October 7, 2017 2 hours ago, laser_jock99 said: Very professional looking pier. Nice! thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottletopburly Posted October 14, 2017 Author Share Posted October 14, 2017 Bolted down 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N3ptune Posted October 15, 2017 Share Posted October 15, 2017 Wow very nice pier, the powder coat was a good idea for the looks and against corrosion. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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