Mount Stu Observatory mkII

[adyj1]

Are your piers going to be effectively bonded to the base slab of your shed? If so, is there something that will stop vibrations from walking on the base from being transmitted directly to the mount? 

I may have got the wrong end of the stick though... 

Edited January 20, 2023 by adyj1

[powerlord]

they will be bolted onto the base with threaded rods, sunk through the concrete into the soil.

And then also the base bonded to the concrete.

I've been thinking about what I want to do with the floor - to be honest, the two tripods sit on slabs in Obsy mk1 and it's not a problem. Also - it's really all remote - the only time I'm in there is setting up, and for the odd planetary imaging session.

So at the mo my thinking is that I'll leave it for 3 months or so anyway for the concrete to push any water out, then probably paint it with garage floor paint. Maybe stick a wee rug in there. Then it's easy to brush out and keep clean.

If by then I've noticed massive vibration issues frankly I'd be miffed, but would then think about something on top

[powerlord]

Well tomorrow is the big day... concrete time.

I've been a bit worried with the low temperatures, as advice is not to do it below 5C.. and its gonna be -1 over night, start at 0, and only reach 5 around 3pm.. and might go below zero sat night.

But after lots and lots of googling and youtubing, and asking questions on builder sites - I think I have a workable plan.

Right now, the subbase is under a tarp, with a fan heater on low and will be all night (I'm trying not to think of the electricity...). In the morning I'll fit the DPM sheet, and I'll use warm water to mix the concrete and pour.

When we are done, I'm gonna put a few boards over the concrete - above it.. then another temp DPM sheet.. and then cover that with 4 king size duvets purchased from asda*.. then the tarp. That should keep the heat the concrete generates from escaping too much overnight and over the next few days as it sets.

Please sacrifice a virgin chicken tonight to bring me good luck.

stu

*yeh really. A 'frost blanket' for concrete costs 100s of quid as it's reused,etc... 4 king sizes duvets 13.5 tog - 10.50 each. If I can keep em clean, I'll give deposit them in charity clothes recycling.

 

[Graeme]

Good luck with the concrete pour tomorrow.

I've been putting mine off till the weather warms a bit, partly for the concrete but partly for me!

 

[adyj1]

On 20/01/2023 at 07:58, powerlord said:

they will be bolted onto the base with threaded rods, sunk through the concrete into the soil.

And then also the base bonded to the concrete.

[...] 

Sounds like a plan 👍 

Good luck with the concreting - it's certainly not going to be a traditional 'duvet day' 😁 

[powerlord]

well 8 hours of hard graft with 3 of us - and it's done - used everything down to 1/2 a bucket of sand.

mount bolts all sunk in covered in bolts and washers, with my templates back on top - leveled with a digital level.

then all covered in plastic, 4 duvets and more plastic. fingers crossed in 2-3 days I have a nice solid cake concrete base.

didn't feel the cold all day, by feet socket from water - at end of day big toe half way to frostbite I think - but stopped tingling after an hour so reckon it's ok.

phew! (to the concrete pour - I'm sure I'd have been fine with 9 toes)

[powerlord]

Well.. Base all done. Tomorrow shed assembly.

[powerlord]

Some pics from today's progress. Roof of course just attached with magnets just now until I work out and add rotating mechanism.

Pretty pleased with quality of shed. And it's not going to need much strengthening in walls or roof I don't think.

One bit of roof left to go, but got dark. That was about 6 hours work, just myself doing it. So last roof bit tomorrow, then I'll have a think how attach my roll and rotate mechanism, order stuff, and do that next week.

Other thing I might start tomorrow is laying in armoured power and ethernet.

 

Edited January 28, 2023 by powerlord

[Franklin]

Can't wait to see the roof mechanism in action👍

[powerlord]

Roof done, and shed bolted and sealed to. Concrete. So in a sense.. Now the real work can begin of getting the roof modified.

Though I had some plans, it's only now I can see what I have to work with that I can really work out how to do it. I'll work on a manual version first, and automate later.

I don't want to hang about though as roof is just resting on top just now, and with a tarp over the join to weather seal. One side of roof is quite light though which is good - can easily lift off and on myself. Makes the whole design process a lot easier!

So plan for the next week is:

Work out roof design, materials/parts required. Order materials, build roof mechanism.

Once roof works and is weather proof, I'll fit insulation, lay power and ethernet and fit all that stuff, and then probably automate door opening and locking as I fancy making that swish open and closed by remote/alexa, etc. "open the pod bay doors alexa" 😁

Once all that's done I reckon I might be about ready to fit piers.

My goal still stands to complete by end of February. Lots to do!

 

[Alan White]

Looking good, you are making very good progress.

As already said by @Franklin, I too look forward to your roof opening and rotate solution.

👍 On so progress to date

 

[adyj1]

Nice work.

If you mange to "swish" your doors Star Trek-style, I will turn a very special shade of envious green. 😁 

(My weak effort is the button that operates my roof motor being marked F.A.B. 😂) 

Edited January 30, 2023 by adyj1

[powerlord]

So, just keeping this updated - I've been working on how to ACTUALLY do the roof now I've got the thing in front of me. ~It's an interesting challenge, especially as I'm not a mechanical engineer.

I've been avoiding doing it all in CAD for time saving, but the drawback is you think you have a workable plan, even get as far as ordering some bits and bobs and then realise something just isn't going to work physically. And back the the drawing board. Like yesterday afternoon - I was nearly ordering everything then realised I'd forgot it has to work on the FRONT part of the shed too - where the door is... which meant my sliding design was as much use as a chocolate fireguard. luckily I'd not ordered the bits yet.

After some more thought, frantic sketches and virgin chicken sacrifices, I think I now have a cunning plan that will actually work*.. so I've ordered the bits. Hopefully will have em all by the weekend. I do like these mechanical challenges, especially when you have to work through all the models and movements in your head to see how they all hang together - you feel quite chuffed when you not only work out a way of doing something, but then realise that that thing can also serve a dual purpose, doing or enabling something else - it's like a jigsaw with parts all fitting together in your head till it suddently just 'clicks' and you think - that MUST work as it's just so elegant... *

In the meantime, I've ordered electrical stuff I need from screwfix and will pick that up tomorrow - hopefully have thu afternoon off to do that bit which is basically:

- patch into power through house wall into back of a socket, and take spur off it. Lay armoured cable down into lawn from there to shed (about 12m), and as it goes by my conservatory, I'll also being ethernet out the wall there, and it will join the cable run below the lawn.

At the back of shed, I have a corrogated plastic conduit that they will feed into, come up above the ground and into the back of the shed through a cable gland.

Inside the shed the power will meet a fuse box/RCD, and power will then feed into a steel box (a postbox! as they were nice and cheap, but big enough for thiis) - in the galvanised steel waterproof box, power will feed into a double socket, where there will then also be 2 x 4 way extensions fitted. All power needs will be met there, with plugs coming in the bottom of the 'postbox'. If there's room in there, I'll have the ethernet switch in there too.

That will complete the main ethernet and power needs - since I'll eventually be moving my existing 12v/5v power unit into it once I decommission the mk1 obsy.

I have ordered rolls of 7mm sticky backed, silver foil fronted closed foam which will be being put over all the walls and roof. But I want to get all the structural stuff done before I add that really.

It is infuriating that at this point I've not mounted the piers - even just as a test fit - but they each weigh a ton, and frankly if they don't fit now there is bog all I can do about it easily - so I am leaving that till near the end. Because they will just get in the way if I fit em now, and a test fit means I need to cart them all the way from garage into shed and then all the way back again.

I'm also trying to keep obsy mk1 on the go until I can transition all in one, which compromises how I do things. But on the other hand, it means like on a clear night like toniight is forcast to be, I can still be imaging with the two mounts in there!

*if it works it will be the work of genius.. if it doesn't.. well back to drawing board. Rather than go through it all beforehand... I'll hold my tongue and either bask in the glory of my own cunningness when it's a done deal, or try to forget I mentioned it until i work something else out.

[powerlord]

Got started on electrical, fuse box fitted. This afternoon swa cable gets sunk and all connected to ring along with ethernet.

Then lots of extruded Ali for strengthening and roof mechanism to fit!

 

[powerlord]

Just a quick update:

- electrical/ethernet now all completed - armoured cable laid under lawn along with ethernet, connected to house, and at shed fuse box fitted with RCD. Then my metal 'postbox' has my ethernet switch in there, and 8 power sockets connected to the fuse box. The postbox is open at the bottom (installed upside down), and so you just feed power plugs in there and plug em in - same with ethernet cables (I have my asiairs etherneted, but also have a wifi AP to provide in shed wifi for ease of using my phones/tablets/laptops with asiairs, etc). So that finishes all that.

I then strengthed the vertical corners of the shed with 3030 extruded aluminium bar - stuck into each corner with EB25 adhesive and then rivited in also all the way down each corner.

This is where the roof rotating hinge will be attached so needs to be strong. I will be adding further strengthening along the top of the walls all the way around using 2020 extrusion, and then a second layer half way down - overkill, but this will double as a storage rail - letting me hang and store stuff.

With the 3030 fitted, I then installed 4020 along the edges of one side of roof - I wanted to just quick-assemble one side of roof to finally find out if this was all going to work. So for now, just a few bolts holding the 4020 into the roof, on with the gantry bearings, and attaching the main hinge with M8 bolts and just before it got dark - I could - for the first time, gingerly try and see if it was all going to work out.

And thank the great all seeing spagetti monster - it is gonna work!!!

But that's it for the weekend. I next need to take the shed roof 4020 off, fit it properly with EB25, and lots more bolts, then using more 2020 as battons, strengthen the roof ends and across the main chord.

The main hinge then needs stops added somehow so closed, the roof 'floats' in the gantries, and open the hinge stops short of the wall - but these need to be very precisely fitted (under 1mm tolerance) so will be a job only done once everything else is fitted, tightened and spaces properly with washers, nylon/steel, etc.

Once I get the roof completed finished for manual operation, I'll post pics/videos but won't just now as it looks a mess.

I'm also going to have to modify the end roof section 'base' as its an L shape facing into the shed at present (as it used to be screwed to top of shed wall) - but now it would be better if it was an L facing OUT and more of a sort of V...

well:

|_

changed to:

  |

 /

not sure of a great way to do that other than block of wood and rubber mallet - so might not look pretty tbh.. but needs doing.

Anyhoo - that's it for this weekend.

stu

[adyj1]

Great to hear that you've had a successful dry run. Making good progress 👍 

[powerlord]

Just a few pics showing electricals and test fit of main hinge and runners.

 

[powerlord]

LlA quick update:

waiting on more extruded aluminium to strengthen various bits, so in the meantime:

- I completed the stregthening of the roof at the weekend, reqworking the edges of the roof with metal bending tools so it now bows out and acts like a 'hat' for the whole observatory.

- I removed the doors and replaced the rubbish plastic slider wheels (not bearings, just a plastic wheel stuck in a plastic hub) that the door hangs from with real bearings and wheels

- I stregthened the door at the edges with bits of wood, sealed onto with EB25 (loving that stuff), and then have cut slots in door and fitted an electromagnetic lock.

- I added magnets to the top and bottom of the doors - this makes them move far smoothly and less rattly - as they now pull themselves towards to wall rather than rattling about.

Its all runninig quite smoothly now, and with the door stengthening it feels quite robust now. To get a really solid and clean seal between the doors though, I need to strengthen the lintle with ali extrusions which should hopefully arrive at weekend. these will also be the main bars that the motors attach to.

For now, where there are holes where stuff has been removed I am leaving, but have got some butyl tape and a circular cutter, which I've tried as a clean way to fill them, and that seems to be ok - just want to leave it a week first and see how it goes before I do the rest. Alternative is too tape inside, little bit of filler on outside then sand and paint every one - which frankly seems like hard work. I can also pop a bit of paint over the butyl tape. I've got a tin of anthacite spray paint, but not tried it for a match yet, but hoping its close enough to cover scratches here and there, etc.

Pictures attached - most of the rough stuff will be either covered in insulation (wood, inside panels, etc), or cleaned up later. I realise my metal work on the edges is a bit 'hammer finish'.. mainly because.. it was finished with a hammer... but it's as good as I can do - and with the anthracite finish it's really not that obvious.

For rest of week, I'll be working on the ESP32 microprocessor code to control release 1 of the automation stuff - roof and doors open/close and door lock, with internal buttons to control, plus API integration with alexa and a remote control. Other releases planned, but thought I'd do it in stages rather than big bang. But I think I am going to automate before I move on to other tasks like insulation, floor, mounts, etc - as it'll be easier to experiment without it being full of stuff, and lets face it - the design is only in my head - if it turns out to be mince and needs throwing a way and rethinkinig - better that I have a clean canvas to work with that a finished observatory to start to have to take to bits again.

And yes,  @adyj1 that includes audio amp and speaker so esp32 can play star trek open door sound effect when doors open - goes without saying this is clearly a core release 1 requirement!

 

Edited February 15, 2023 by powerlord

[powerlord]

Most important bit done... Naming..

 

[adyj1]

4 hours ago, powerlord said:

And yes,  @adyj1 that includes audio amp and speaker so esp32 can play star trek open door sound effect when doors open

Make it so, Mr Powerlord 😁  🖖

I am using esps for the roof automation (with a gate opening motor) and integrate it with Nina through the MQTT plugin rather than ASCOM. Not necessarily my final design but does mean roof operations are not solely dependent on the imaging pc... 

[powerlord]

Progress slow. Had to change approach to roof a few times. It's roughly working now, but I'm beginning to realise I'm gaining very little from the complexity.. The roof ends up just about as high over the side wall as if I'd just done a horizontal roll off.. And it's so light that all that would need is to extend extruded Ali out each side to do that... I'm wrestling with the sunk cost fallacy here I think.

 

 

Edited February 21, 2023 by powerlord

[adyj1]

9 hours ago, powerlord said:

It's roughly working now, but I'm beginning to realise I'm gaining very little from the complexity..

That's a shame, as it does work. I'm impressed with how light you've kept it.  

Reliability is the key, though... 

[powerlord]

Yeh it just felt.. Clunky. I did first take which took days, stood back and thought I'm just not happy with it - all brackets and bearings and just looked amateurish. So I tore it all down and tried a different design, which was that. It was cleaner, and tbh worked fine but still felt a bit naff. Just not good enough. Plus, as I say, practicalities of stuff like the door still having to open ended up making the rotation off no lower than a roll off, and would be more difficult to automate. So.. Tore it all down again, and am now trying an old school roll off with a twist. So far so good, but unlike prior attempts this one will need slots cut in the roof to test it.. And I'm loath to cut slots into roof only to find that also is not satisfactory.. On the other hand I am now seeing roofs and brackets in my sleep, while waking the dog, while working..... and this just needs to be getting DONE. Argggggg

Raining today. Tomorrow, angle grinder time.

My main take away so far for others is, though you are not assembling the roof as part of the shed, DO assemble the roof ON the shed. Otherwise you find that your roof sections are not quite straight with shed roof walls later and it's a lot harder sorting it once it's all built...

 

 

[powerlord]

Finally! Happy with this. Needs some tweaking to run smooth and the outside bars will be cut to about

 

 

the current size, so not long at all.

 

[carastro]

Won;t those sticking out roof spports be a bit dangerous for people walking into them?

Carole