Little Observatory Build

[Alan White]

Looks a nice job.
How does the roof cope with sideways rain as the slide has a gap in the pictures.

 

[smudgeball]

The roof was slightly open for that picture.

There is a slight gap at that end which I have plugged with a rubber strip (still a slight gap so will have to see.)

I

[andy fearn]

Nice obsy,hope you have lots of enjoyment from it as i  have mine.

[smudgeball]

Can't wait !

Just an extension lead to reel out and slide off the roof.

[Alan White]

2 hours ago, smudgeball said:

Can't wait !

Just an extension lead to reel out and slide off the roof.

You make it even more appealing with that last comment about power.

Enjoy. 

[smudgeball]

Second monitor setup

 

And a final tidy up of the cabling

 

[Astro_king]

On 18/09/2017 at 13:44, smudgeball said:

My pier is a converted skywatcher pier with a base and some stabilising fins welded on by a local blacksmith.

So this....

Became this

It was then a case of digging out for a concrete foundation block.

Some mdf sheet I had lying around, painted to prevent moisture escaping too quickly from concrete.

Concrete poured and formwork removed.

 

So that was the start of my adventure.

 

I'll update with more once I've uploaded the rest of my images.

 

Neil

Looking good!

How much did it cost to convert the pier?

 

[smudgeball]

Morning

That was £75 to modify.

Only downside is I'm stuck with the three spreader feet to dispose of.

[Astro_king]

17 minutes ago, smudgeball said:

Morning

That was £75 to modify.

Only downside is I'm stuck with the three spreader feet to dispose of.

I was contemplating getting this but the three long legs at 48 cm each was too much for my little obsy.

You have given me hope

I am guessing you sourced the parts for the welding bit for the base as well from somewhere?

[smudgeball]

The blacksmith cut all the metal for me, I literally dropped off the tube to them and gave them an idea of what I wanted.

Round base, four 14mm holes and four stabilising fins.

They used 10mm plate, was a two man lift to get it round the back of my garden !

Neil

[Astro_king]

1 hour ago, smudgeball said:

The blacksmith cut all the metal for me, I literally dropped off the tube to them and gave them an idea of what I wanted.

Round base, four 14mm holes and four stabilising fins.

They used 10mm plate, was a two man lift to get it round the back of my garden !

Neil

Thanks mate.

I just got off discussing with Martin from FLO regarding this Pier and since he didn't have it in front of him he suggested the legs might be movable from the bottom to move the AZ pointer as it can't be moved from the top as it is screwed in.

I don't want the north of the tripod to have a leg facing dead north as that makes the mount to be too far out towards the south in my little observatory and my C8 would end up touching the door area.

Would be great if you could confirm if the tripod is adjustable from the bottom to move the pier in any direction? would also save black smith cost.

[ollypenrice]

On 07/10/2017 at 19:39, smudgeball said:

And last one for today with balance and cable check.

I did have a "moment" with the clearance at the back of the camera, but it clears with 10cm to spare.

 

 

You can always put a bit of counterweight at the front or back to fine tune the position of the OTA on the dovetail if you're flirting with a wall at one end...

Olly

[smudgeball]

34 minutes ago, ollypenrice said:

You can always put a bit of counterweight at the front or back to fine tune the position of the OTA on the dovetail if you're flirting with a wall at one end...

Olly

Thanks

All ok for clearance, I've run the mount round every position possible.

Had a good night on Wednesday to check things out for three or four hours.

Mostly polar align and then trying to remember how everything works again ! (been almost two years since I last used the Atik in anger)

The best bit of the night was when the clouds rolled in at half one and I just parked the scope, powered everything down and closed the roof

I looked at that NEQ6 and my back said THANKYOU !

[Sp@ce_d]

2 hours ago, smudgeball said:

Thanks

All ok for clearance, I've run the mount round every position possible.

Had a good night on Wednesday to check things out for three or four hours.

Mostly polar align and then trying to remember how everything works again ! (been almost two years since I last used the Atik in anger)

The best bit of the night was when the clouds rolled in at half one and I just parked the scope, powered everything down and closed the roof

I looked at that NEQ6 and my back said THANKYOU !

Nice build... an Obsy is a lovely thing to have & makes such a difference. The neq6 & my back was the deciding factor for doing mine. It won't be long before you'll be wanting to motorise the roof & automate from the house.. trust me ?

[smudgeball]

2 hours ago, Sp@ce_d said:

 & automate from the house.. trust me ?

RDP is working ..........

[smudgeball]

Last update for the weekend.

Starting to landscape and tidy up the garden around the obsy.

[MarsG76]

Your Obsy looks great...

You'll love having a observatory... loving my one... it makes setup and resuming imaging or observing so much faster and more comfortable.

 

[MarsG76]

Oh By the way, bit of my experience with cabling...

Even though you checked the cable clearance, still keep an eye on it... I thought my cable clearance was good... more than the 10cm clearance, And during a meridian flip a cable snagged under the DEC adjustment knob and destroyed the USB port in my 40D... another need to pull the 40D apart.. hopefully it'll be open and straight forward enough to de solder and solder in a replacement I got... surface mount soldering is always so much fun... not.