Going from Dobsonian to tripod

[Bongo]

Hi,

I'm pretty much a newbie, so apologies if this is stupidly obvious!

I have a 130mm Dobsonian reflector* - it's not particularly heavy (3.7kg). I was wondering whether its possible to mount it on a tripod?

My main reason is that I don't have anything particularly steady enough to stand it on. Plus if I could get it another couple of feet higher then I'd be able to see things currently obscured by my neighbour's fence!

Assuming it's possible, what should I be looking for/ avoiding?

Any advice and tips would be much appreciated!

Thanks

 

 

* this exact one: https://www.astroshop.eu/telescopes/meade-dobson-telescope-n-130-650-lightbridge-mini-130-dob/p,54287#tab_bar_1_select

[apaulo]

if your handy with wood, make a 3 legged table as a stand, you could get a barrel and cut it down,  you could use an old table and cut it down to size.  or if you get really browned off with things, put your boot in the fence, haha only joking,,,,,, i think .  clear skies whatever your choice

[Cosmic Geoff]

Anything is possible. The question is, what solutions are within your budget, or your technical ability?  If you de-mount the optical tube, you could fit it with tube rings and a dovetail bar, and buy a mount with the standard Vixen dovetail clamp (alt-azimuth, equatorial, GoTo - your choice).

Or you could buy a steel tripod with a flat top, and figure out how to attach the Dob base to the flat top of the tripod.

Or you could make something out of wood and stand the Dob on top of it.

Or you could fix a sturdy wooden post in your garden, fix a board on top, and stand the Dob on that.

[Stu]

From this part of the spec….

A special feature of this Dobsonian telescope is that the OTA is connected to the single-armed mount via a prism rail (swallow-tail). As a result, the OTA can not only be removed for transport, but also be attached to any other astronomical mount equipped with a prism-rail. It is also easier to balance the telescope - something which is especially important with Dobsonians.
 

….. it has a dovetail already fitted so can be removed from the dob base and fitted to any mount with a standard vixen/synta clamp.

A lot depends on how much you want to spend. A giro style mount would work well, as would an AZGTi if you want Goto. It should cope with the weight.

AZ4 or AZ5 may be ok but may struggle to get to the zenith given the tube diameter. I’m sure others can suggest alternatives so wait to see what people say before making any decisions.

[Bongo]

55 minutes ago, Stu said:

From this part of the spec….

 

I can't believe I missed that bit! How embarrassing! 🙂

Thanks @Stu and @Cosmic Geoff for your input. 

 

[Cosmic Geoff]

If you choose another mount and use the dovetail bar fixed to the tube, beware of where the eyepiece etc end up.  Choosing an alt-azimuth mount with the arm on the same side as with the Dob base is least likely to result in a 'Gotcha'.

[Stu]

Yep, very true @Cosmic Geoff

I’ve always used my Heritage 150p and 130p scopes on tripods rather than using the dob base, works very well.

Have a search on the forum for Heritage 130p threads by @Mark at Beaufort, he has done some great mods in his 130p. Some are not relevant but the tripod and mounting solutions will be I think.

[Louis D]

Have you flipped over the mount to see if there is a 3/8" photo tripod female thread in the center of the azimuth axis?  If so, you can just screw it onto any photo tripod that uses a 3/8" bolt thread to attach tripod heads.  It would even work with a 1/4" tripod thread via an inexpensive 1/4" to 3/8" adapter.