peir

[jonnyboy]

Hi

Does anyone know if i can buy a heavy duty Pier to fix a eq6 to or anyone who makes them.

cheers. As I am knew to this i have been doing alot of reading and from what i can make out is that it is better to have a solid pier so i think i shall do that instead of a tripod if i can get one.

[MartinB]

Jon, you have come to the right place. Arthur (Ambermile) is our resident engineer and his piers look the business. Check out www.ambermile.co.uk or pm him.

Great idea btw

[Tinkerbell]

Try John Rose at <info@astrodevelopments.co.uk> He is in the process of developing a new pier.

[GordonCopestake]

You can buy piers with casters on from anyone that stocks skywatcher stuff.

try:

http://www.opticalvision.co.uk/product.asp?numRecordPosition=1&P_ID=482&strPageHistory=&strKeywords=&SearchFor=&PT_ID=68

[jonnyboy]

I want something heavyer than them cheers anyway

[GazOC]

The tripod that comes with the EQ6 is more than enough to take a ED100, big piers are expensive.

[GordonCopestake]

If you dont need to move it dig a big hole, put an old cardboard carpet roll tube in the hole then fill the lot with concrete. Whilst the concrete is still wet insert your bolts into the top to screw your mount plate to. Voila!

[Greg]

Why do you want a pier....

I take it you want a more permanant mount???

Or are you thinking about something bigger than the ED100??

[jonnyboy]

Yes i do want a permanant mount as i think it will be easer to set up every time i use it. And when i get used to every thing i might go for a bigger scope to get more light as i have a ED100, oh and what is the biggest tube i could mount myed100 on with a eq6.

cheers

[Ambermile]

Well. I've seen a C11 and the EQ6 didn't seem to even notice it. Also, Andy Ellis had an MN76 with the Megrez 80 II and that again hardly fazed the mount.

Arthur

[GazOC]

I've got a 10" Meade SCT with a ED80 piggybacked on my EQ6 with no problems. I wouldn't worry about the ED100.

[jonnyboy]

Thanks for that. What is a focal reducer and would i need one with a ed100.

[GazOC]

Thanks for that. What is a focal reducer and would i need one with a ed100.

For imaging a focal reducer would be handy. Atik and Antares do a decent basic (imaging only) one for £20

[GordonCopestake]

Take a look at Bill Arnetts list of observatories:

http://obs.nineplanets.org/obs/obslist.html

Pretty much every single one of these uses a permanent pier and it will give you some ideas as to whats involved

[jonnyboy]

They have some gear. They definitely look sturdier on the permanent piers.

[MartinB]

Would something like this meet your needs Jonny?

http://www.keckobservatory.org/

[GordonCopestake]

It's not very big though is it?

How about something like this:

http://www.eso.org/projects/owl/OWL_design.html

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

I can just imagine the letter from Ambermile Engineering to Santa being written as I write this. It's enough to give anybody aperture fever.

Captain Chaos

[GordonCopestake]

Even Arthur has to aspire to something

[Ambermile]

I have just bought a 16" f/5 mirror set because I can't get the 22" into the back garden... I suspect that even *thinking* about Dear Santa letters for another year or so will see me incapable of fathering...

Arthur

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

Is that for the finder for the Dobmonster?

Captain Chaos

[GazOC]

I have just bought a 16" f/5 mirror set

Where from Arthur?

BTW I seem to remember you posting a picture of a big Dob that was powered by Meade DS motors, have you still got it? I;ve got the parts here...

[jonnyboy]

very funny lads. just a pier will do.

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

Right then, joking aside, I am currently trying to come up with a simple design for a pier which will index the EQ6 head so that it goes back in the same way every time I take it off. The HEQ5 is easier to sort in this respect as it has a machined spigot underneath which can be used to line it up each time its mounted (see scrapheap challenge pier in the workshop section). However the EQ6 mount head doesn't have the appropriate parts sticking out underneath so I may have to cobble up an adapter plate which is lined up to the pier with dowel pins or similar.

The plan is to avoid using the supplied azimuth knobs as that way I can get the alignment right each time without fiddling. The altitude setting will remain fixed, hopefully, so that it is totally plug and play as per HEQ5.

Any clues welcomed at this stage guys.

PS Plan B is a roll off shed to let me keep the 'scope permanently mounted and do away with this polar bear alignment once its sorted out.

Captain Chaos

[Ambermile]

I have just bought a 16" f/5 mirror set

Where from Arthur?

BTW I seem to remember you posting a picture of a big Dob that was powered by Meade DS motors, have you still got it? I;ve got the parts here...

That big dob (20") belonged to Steve Chambers and yes, it had full Autostar goto. Was rather slow getting anywhere though so we'd have to push to a target and then sync on it to start the tracking. I would not wish the building of another one on anybody - it took ages to get the right (correct) angle on the Az drive cone alone

Arthur