Need a favor, please, if possible.

[eddie3000]

Could someone who owns a SW MN190 please give me the ota measurements please? Diameter and length. And the finder scope too? I still haven't had my new scope delivered, and I would like to take a look at some carrying cases tomorrow. I was expecting it this week, but it won't make it until Monday.

Thanks!

[fatwoul]

If nobody has answered by this evening, I will measure mine when I get home from work.

I'd like to know the answer to this too, as putting the telescope in its battered cardboard box is going to get tiresome before long. So far I've not been able to find a suitable case.

You'll like the scope, though. I love mine, and I've only had it about three weeks.

[eddie3000]

Thankyou fatwoul! I have been looking around and all the flightcases and other cases are pretty pricey. I'm going to look at some soft bags tomorrow, and unless something really convinces me I am probably going to go the DIY way (make a case out of plywood or something). If I go the diy way, we can join our creative imagination foces to optimize the design (if you are interested in DIYing of course).

[fatwoul]

...If I go the diy way, we can join our creative imagination foces to optimize the design (if you are interested in DIYing of course).

Absolutely. I work at a university, so some of the fabrication might be achievable too, if necessary.

I was looking at Peli cases yesterday, and by the looks of it they only make one that would be able to hold an MN190, but its completely the wrong shape in every other respect.

[fatwoul]

OK, I'm home, the MN190 is next to me, and I have a tape measure.

The OTA is approximately 953mm long, including the front cover, and the three collimation bolts on the rear.

The diameter is a little more tricky to measure, it being a cylinder and all, but I make it no more than 300mm including the tube rings, at their broadest (from the hinges to the bolts). Without the rings, the OTA is 240mm at each end, where the metal ends are slightly bigger than the tube itself.

At its greatest (with the diagonal turned completely outward from the OTA), the finderscope protrudes 158mm from the body of the tube. With the finderscope's diagonal turned inwards, it protrudes around 140mm (including one of the adjustment screws on the outermost side of the finderscope)

The finderscope by itself measures 133mm from foot to top (with diagonal down), 201mm long and 72mm wide (because of the adjustment screws again).

Hope that helps. My scope will be out of its box this evening, so if you need any more measurements let me know.

[eddie3000]

thanks for those great measurements. Sorry for answering a bit too late, but I've been out doing a few things.

Tomorrow, if I have time, I will do a sketch of a rigid case with those measurements. I'll get back to you tomorrow to discuss the DIY matter.

Thanks again.

[Astro_Baby]

Have you considered soft bags - Orion (US) and Geoptik make padded bags for scopes. I lug my 200 in one of them - the finders and other bits ride in a standard ally case from Maplins.

[eddie3000]

I looked at some softbags this morning. The ones I liked were expensive, and not big enough. There were a couple of models that might fit the mn190, but I didn't like. In the end I'll be going the DIY way.

One little question: Do you normally dismount the finder scope before putting the scope away? A case that holds the ota with the finder scope attached is considerably larger (aprox. 40x40x100cm vs 30x30x100).

[Cornelius Varley]

I would take the finder off the ota before it gets knocked off.

Peter

[fatwoul]

Yeah, I always take the finder off. Just remember to put it on when you are balancing the scope on the mount. I keep forgetting and it causes all sorts of trouble.

[eddie3000]

I have finished sketching a case. I thought of using 10mm plywood. I don't know the exact cost, but it should be something like 52euros for the wood cut to size, 12 euros for a 200x100x2 80kg/m3 piece of poliurethane foam for the interior (the specs aren't for a particular reason, it just what's readily available:D), 10 euros for some varnish or paint, some folding hanldes and some sort of metal latches to keep it closed. I guess it should cost about 100-110 euros, more expensive than some of the softcases I've seen, but much tougher.

I've been designing it all afternoon, and it's going to measure 102x42x31cm. My car boot is 103 cm wide!

The finder scope has to be removed, and there will be enough compartments for the finder scope, eyepieces and probably more. After placing and sticking the foam, I'll have a go at covering it with some fabric/cloth. I have quite a lot of it as my father in law sells it, and he often gives me suitcases full of out of date samples.

It'll be strong enough to be used as a bench as well! It should weigh about 12-14 kilos. A bit heavy maybe.... I guess I could put wheels on it, duknow.... I could use 5mm plywood instead on the sides, it should bring the weight down to about 8-10 kilos.

Any ideas?

If I get to it, I'll post photos of the entire process.

[Digz]

Id love to see the sketches. At present I have my scope stood on end in the lounge (I hope thats not gonna do any damage to it) but I think Ill ultimately want to make a case for it so getting a sneak peak of your sketches would be much appreciated.

[eddie3000]

Only I understand my sketches at the moment. Tomorrow I'll spend some time, if I have some, making some more intelligible ones. That way you can contribute in improving the design. It's a quite simple really, basically it's just a box:D.

BTW, how do you post a file (jpg, bmp, or whatever) here? Do I have to use an image hosting site?

[Digz]

That would be good, to see Eddie. To post an image you can host is on an external site and link to it or create a gallery here and link to it. THis can be done using the icons at the top of this box you see when typing a reply.

[eddie3000]

Let's see if this works....

http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/6455/scopecase.jpg

[eddie3000]

Yes, it works!

The dimensions can vary depending on the scope, but that´s the idea. Becasue the focuser protrudes, I decided to make some compartments along the case where you can put things like EPs and the FS, and other small accesories. As you can see there's about 1-2cm spare space between the scope and case. That is where the poliurethane foam is going to go, stuck with contact glue, and then covered in fabric stapled to the plywood. The small compartments should also have foam and fabric in them to make them soft.

Basically, the top lid lifts off entirely. I thought of putting hindges, but I think it won't be as practical and it'll make the construction a bit more tricky and more expensive (not much though).

Some sort of closing mechanism like the ones found on flight cases should be used, and a few folding handles on convenient places.

My initial design's estimated weight was about 12-14 kilos. I'm working to bring this value down as much as possible without sacrificing too much box strength.

Any other ideas?

[Deneb]

Also you might like to know - the ota weighs around 10kg, so add that into the weight factor as well..

Nadeem.

[eddie3000]

Thanks for that. A box that size weighing about 25kilos (with the ota inside) shouldn't be too bad for moving around. I'm still wondering whether putting wheels on it or not. The lighter the better though, and that's what I'm trying to figure.

[Digz]

thanks for the sketch eddie, much appreciated. Seems a sensible design to me, I presume you are going to make a timber frame and clad that with the ply? Id be tempted to clad the inside and outside to make a sturdy frame.

[glowjet]

Another alternative to consider, I shall be making boxes for my set up in due course, ply clad over a strong white wood frame together with ample use of standard 2" black foam and egg box foam for protection, now heres the alternative, I shall, for transportation use a collapsible sack barrow with 6" rubber wheels I obtained from Netto`s for less than £10 last year, it will take all the gear at one go, the only thought I have had is to upgrade the wheels to 8" soft rubber as this may be better over uneven surfaces. I think these simple barrows can still be had at reasonable cost.