From Micro Obsy to Dual Pier Observatory - via Hard Work, RSI, Back Ache & Melting Credit Card!

[ArmyAirForce]

After lots of trial swinging it closed, I narrowed down the areas that were rubbing until eventually it would close with just a little force to overcome the friction of the slight sag as it closed onto the rollers. It is shown below in the closed and open positions.

The flap was removed once again and brought back to the workshop for painting, inside and out. By the end of the day, the outer surface had two coats of green applied. Tomorrow I'll get the brown done on the inside. The inset picture shows the planed and curved bottom edge of the flap which allows it to swing open without catching on the top of the front wall.

[ArmyAirForce]

August 3rd - Today, I trimmed and fitted the soffits to the front and rear. Starting at the front, they needed cutting down in width and length to fit.

On the rear, there's no facia over the felt, so both the bottom and side parts of the soffit was fitted. Lots of nailing and all the holes pre-drilled undersize to prevent splitting the wood.

[ArmyAirForce]

The front flap had been painted brown in the inside between other jobs this morning and later in the day, it was refitted. Two more bolts were added to hold it shut. You can also see a small curved piece of aluminium sticking out over the roller. This helps the flap to lift and roll in over the front wall top edge.

Here's the aluminium stip seen from the underside of the flap. Once they were fitted, they were all removed again so the wood could be painted.

[ArmyAirForce]

The soffit at the rear was painted in green on the underside and in bitumen where the roofing felt will wrap over.

At the front, the bottom of the soffit was painted green. I'm so close to getting it all watertight.

[ArmyAirForce]

The postman also brought this 600lbs winch for the operation of the roof.

To end the day, wifey and I went to the park and trimmed the top and park side of the hawthorn, clearing my South East to South South West view of stray hawthorn branches. We filled a wheelie bin and three, half ton dumpy bags with six feet tall thistles and hawthorn clippings.

There's a possibility that Friday night into Saturday morning will be clear, so I may well try and get the 200PDS mounted and do some planetary. The last time I was able to image Saturn properly was 2014. After that, Saturn was too low from my old observatory to be seen.

[ArmyAirForce]

August 4th - Another long day today. 11 hours in the sun and four of them painting 96sq/ft of roof! The morning started by infilling the openings in the soffits. For some reason in the shed design, there was nothing solid in the front to attach the roofing felt to. I broke up some of the last remaining parts of the unused shed walls and used the timber to create a solid front. That was painted in bitumen and left to dry while I went on a quick B&Q trip.

Once again, the Durham store let me down and I came away without half of my shopping list, though still managing to spend another £100! One of the items I did get was 25 metres of armoured mains cable to bring power to the observatory.

Once home, it was time to fit the felt. I used the ladder to spread my weight across the roof so I could reach. Each roll was a metre wide. After tacking the first strip in place, I painted bitumen under the upper edge to help to glue it down. Balancing on the ladder wasn't easy and my knees really hurt now, despite the plank to kneel on.

[ArmyAirForce]

Second strip! There was an overlap of about 5 inches onto the first layer. Both the first layer and the underside edge of the second were painted with bitumen again and weighted down to dry. It was going tacky quite quickly in the sun. The upper edge of the second layer was also stuck down with bitumen.

The third layer was a repeat of the second, being glued at the lower edge and nailed at the front, onto the new infil wood I added in the morning. Then it was time for the roofing paint. This is an oil/bitumen based paint that is compatible with roofing felt. It helps to seal the felt surface, but it is silver and has a heat reflecting additive. The normal garden shed gets quite hot in the sun and I didn't want the observatory doing the same thing.

[ArmyAirForce]

It's odd stuff, as when the tin is stirred so that it is ready to use, the paint turns gold/bronze and stays that colour as it is brushed out. It doesn't take long after that to turn silver. Painting on the felt was hard work however. The paint is fairly thin, but after applying a dollop to the surface with the brush, the brush needs to be worked in all directions to get it to work into the felt grit. I found a few left, right, up and down first, followed by lots of circular motions worked best. However, after four hours painting, my wrist is killing me and it hurts to type!

The lengthening shadow of the paint tin told me it was taking a long time! I started at the highest point, balanced on the ladders and worked down the roof. By the time I reached the lowest strip of felt, I could reach while standing on the ground behind the observatory. My knees were thankful!

[ArmyAirForce]

So after four hours, the silver was done! There's a few drips off the bottom edge of the felt onto the green which need a light rub down and the green painted again. I also need to paint the roof edging wood green and get that nailed on. It was 8pm by the time I finished the silver, so I wasn't going to start painting anything else tonight.

The felt has added quite a bit more weight to the roof, so there's a few areas that need a trim or the wheel heights shimming on the front and rear walls. I knew with such a long span, there would be some tinkering needed to get it all working.

One of the things B&Q failed on was an eye bolt for the winch cable to attach to. I may have to weld on up myself. I'm also waiting for a 'V' pulley to come in the post. I need this to run the winch cable over the rear wall. Without these, I'm not going to be able to shut the roof on my own, so tomorrows observing may have to go on hold. I'm not sure wifey is going to get up at 2 or 3am to help close up!!

[ArmyAirForce]

August 5th - I wanted an eye bolt at B&Q yesterday, but they had none and I really needed it to get my roof working. I found a screw in eye in my hardware box, but wanted a better fixing, so hacksawed off the screw thread and welded on some M10 studding. My lathe was used to keep it aligned while I welded.

While I'd been preparing the eye bolt, I painted the facias three coats of green, baking in the sun between each coat. With the bolt finished, I went out to fit them - two across the front and two down each side. That hides the edge of the felt and helps to hold it on against wind pulling the edge up.

[ArmyAirForce]

At the bottom of the runners, I added two springs, left-overs from old Jeep brake cylinders. These act as bump stops for the roof.

Inside, I mounted the winch. It was mounted sideways as this required less space, due to clearance needed for the handle movement. At this point, I was still waiting for the postie to deliver the 'V' pulley needed for the top of the wall. I was still working towards getting the observatory operating that evening, but needed the whole winch set up working to close the roof.

[ArmyAirForce]

Finally, about 2:30pm, the 'V' pulley arrived. It needed to be mounted above the height of the rear wall and far enough out to allow for the wire rope hook and crimp to not hit the pulley when fully close. I also fitted two much larger gate bolts to lock the rear edge of the roof.

At the front, now that the facias were on, I could add the catch which holds open the front flap.

[ArmyAirForce]

The roof was still catching the top of the rear wall, so I added this two ramps for the wheels in the middle of the roof. These lift the roof wall before it reaches the rear wall, preventing any jamming. You can also see the other end of the eye bolt sticking out. The excess thread still needs trimming off.

The small gate bolts that were removed from the rear wall, were added to the ends of the front flap, locking into the roof runner at either end.

[ArmyAirForce]

With those last little jobs done, all the tools were packed away and the vacuum cleaner was brought out to clear the dust, shavings and swarf from the floor. The roof was working as planned, so I had a quick stop for food and then got the mount and scope fitted. You can just see the Moon between the camera and finderscope.

First Light!

Here's a DSLR Moon shot from a video. Nikon D3200, Jessops x2 Teleconverter and Skywatcher Explorer 200PDS. 15% of 3,000 frames stacked. Not a bad reward for all the hard work.

[Swoop1]

Congratulations on First Light Stephen!

[ArmyAirForce]

I managed a quick Lunar close up with the ASI178MM and 742nm IR Pass filter before it clouded over. Still a daylight image. It was due to clear again, so I switched off, closed the roof and waited.

The "Moon Duck" crater formation.

Good job I closed the roof, because it rained for a short time. I was rewarded with a rainbow over the observatory which must be a good sign!

As it got darker, I took my daughter out to look at the Moon for a while and we got a brief view of Saturn rising, before it went behind those tall trees you can see below. I think it's about to come back out the other side, so I'm about to head back out.

[andy fearn]

9 hours ago, ArmyAirForce said:

I managed a quick Lunar close up with the ASI178MM and 742nm IR Pass filter before it clouded over. Still a daylight image. It was due to clear again, so I switched off, closed the roof and waited.

The "Moon Duck" crater formation.

Good job I closed the roof, because it rained for a short time. I was rewarded with a rainbow over the observatory which must be a good sign!

As it got darker, I took my daughter out to look at the Moon for a while and we got a brief view of Saturn rising, before it went behind those tall trees you can see below. I think it's about to come back out the other side, so I'm about to head back out.

congratulations on a fantastic build, and end result. That looks a bit of a climb to get into the obsy ??    hoping you and your family enjoy clear skies.

[ArmyAirForce]

6 minutes ago, andy fearn said:

...That looks a bit of a climb to get into the obsy ??

Cheers! I'm still some way from being finished yet and one of the jobs still to do are some fold out steps for the door way.

[M40]

A great build, thanks for sharing👌 

[malc-c]

An excellent build, really enjoyed reading this, thank you for bringing us along on the journey

[ArmyAirForce]

Thanks guys. Still lots to do. I need to route the mains power out there and sort lights and power sockets. Mini warm room, steps to get in, edging strips, the landscaping around it, mount the second scope, paint touch ups. I want some neoprene fabric around the piers to cover the holes in the floor so I can't drop stuff down there!

I got about four hours out there last night from 10pm until 2am, watching and imaging Saturn, Jupiter and Mars and spotted a meteor streaking through the Plough. Not great seeing conditions but enjoyable being out and appreciating the much darker Bortle 5 sky compared to my old house which was Bortle 8. Towards the end of the session, M45 and Taurus were rising over the garage - a sign that the longer, darker nights are coming.

I'm sure some of you are wondering about the cost? Materials prices have risen quite a bit since we first moved and I was planning this, so it's a bit more than I was hoping for, but if I include the second NEQ6 Pro mount ( 2nd hand ), the price tag is around £4k.

Edited August 6, 2022 by ArmyAirForce

[ArmyAirForce]

August 5th~6th - The promised clear sky did appear last night and I was out for about four hours. Seeing wasn't great and combined with the low altitude of the planets and not checking the collimation of my scope this year, the results weren't spectacular. It was however, very enjoyable to have a permanent set up again and to be out imaging. The seeing wasn't great, though it did improve around 1am. Saturn only reached 20 degrees due South.

The two tall trees off to the East South East, seen above in the rainbow picture, only hid Saturn for about an hour, but as it was still in the early stages of rising, that location wasn't the best place to image anyway, so I don't see them as being a problem. The rest of my view through South to the South West is great. I hope to be able to catch Pluto in a long exposure; a target I've been wanting for years but could never see from the old house.

 

After I'd tried Saturn in OSC and 742nm IR, I switched to Jupiter, still rising in the East South East. It wasn't until later that the seeing and increasing altitude, allowed anything half decent on Jupiter. No GRS visible while I was out.

 

By 01:40, Mars was rising over the garage in the East and was just viewable over the roof. The OSC camera didn't give me anything but an orange fuzzy Mars shaped object, but the 742nm IR Pass filter and ASI178MM picked out some surface detail, even though it was only at 16 degrees altitude and twice the distance of its closest approach in December.

 

Today, I've done nothing except a little tidying in the workshop, ready to paint the wooden trims to hide the joins in the shed panels. The muscles in my right forearm are still very sore from the roof painting, so I needed a day off to rest.

[AstroNebulee]

4 hours ago, ArmyAirForce said:

August 5th~6th - The promised clear sky did appear last night and I was out for about four hours. Seeing wasn't great and combined with the low altitude of the planets and not checking the collimation of my scope this year, the results weren't spectacular. It was however, very enjoyable to have a permanent set up again and to be out imaging. The seeing wasn't great, though it did improve around 1am. Saturn only reached 20 degrees due South.

The two tall trees off to the East South East, seen above in the rainbow picture, only hid Saturn for about an hour, but as it was still in the early stages of rising, that location wasn't the best place to image anyway, so I don't see them as being a problem. The rest of my view through South to the South West is great. I hope to be able to catch Pluto in a long exposure; a target I've been wanting for years but could never see from the old house.

 

After I'd tried Saturn in OSC and 742nm IR, I switched to Jupiter, still rising in the East South East. It wasn't until later that the seeing and increasing altitude, allowed anything half decent on Jupiter. No GRS visible while I was out.

 

By 01:40, Mars was rising over the garage in the East and was just viewable over the roof. The OSC camera didn't give me anything but an orange fuzzy Mars shaped object, but the 742nm IR Pass filter and ASI178MM picked out some surface detail, even though it was only at 16 degrees altitude and twice the distance of its closest approach in December.

 

Today, I've done nothing except a little tidying in the workshop, ready to paint the wooden trims to hide the joins in the shed panels. The muscles in my right forearm are still very sore from the roof painting, so I needed a day off to rest.

Amazing images and so pleased your out imaging in your fantastic observatory at last. 

It's a real credit to your hard work, congratulations 👏

[ArmyAirForce]

August 7th - This morning, after a big tidy up in the workshop, I started painting the cover strips which are to cover the joins in the shed panels. While the first coat on the first side was drying, I did some welding on parts for security measures for the NEQ6 mounts. I'm not going into any details on these, but they make it much harder to remove the mounts from the piers.

The cover strips got two coats of paint on each side and by early afternoon, I was able to start cutting and fitting them. All the lengths needed trimming and the cut faces painting.

On the front, side and back lower cover strips, I stopped them short of the top of the wall. Because of the shape of the tongue and groove cladding, if they had gone all the way to the top of the wall, they would be overhanging the scalloped edge of the T&G, allowing rain water to sit in that gap. Instead, I cut them a bit shorter and chamfered the top edge to encourage any water to run off.

[ArmyAirForce]

I haven't put any cover strips on the front opening flap yet. Adding the normal 3/8 inch thick strips would stop the flap from opening properly, as the cover on the flap would interfere with the strip on the top. I can probably cut some wedge shaped strips that will allow the flap to open, but I can't cut them just yet. When I was cutting some of the wood for the odds and ends to finish the other day, my bandsaw blade stopped, though the motor was still running.

Upon opening the saw up, I found this rather poorly looking drive belt. While it hadn't snapped, it was stretched and falling to pieces, resulting in it jumping off the drive pulley. By cutting very gently, I was able to carry on the other day and get the observatory up and running. However, it was somewhat past its best! Perhaps I'm just too optimistic expecting a drive belt to last more than 22 years!! 😉 After all, my lathe belt had lasted 30!

So those bits have been left for now, but all the lower corner and panel joints are covered now. The corner cover strips have also been fitted to the roof section. Just the front and rear roof cover strips to go. Before fitting the far corner strip, seen below, I drilled a 13mm hole for the armoured mains cable, just under the roof runner. So the basic observatory structure is now virtually complete externally.

Obviously, lots still to do inside, but I should be able to get the second mount fitted tomorrow. Wifey did some back-filling of the earth behind the observatory, levelling it to some degree. That still needs some more work around the roof runner legs. I need to put some concrete edging extending back from the right side of the observatory towards the rear leg. This will separate the new lawn ( yet to be started ) from the weed membrane/slate area behind the observatory.