Looking to get a Bintel BT252-B 10" Dobsonian ????

[Galactic G (Greg)]

Originally Posted by pgc hunter

It has nothing to do with the new "brake" system

My point was that when Bintel were running out the stocks of the scopes with the old "tension" system (as I should have called it) the scopes were very cheap. As soon as the new tension system was introduced they went up a couple of hundred dollars. Now with the dollar as low as it is the scopes have gone up a bit more.

What's interesting is that in Jan 2004 you paid AU$989 for the 10" scope. The dollar at that time was around 80c US.

[GeoffW1 (Geoff)]

Originally Posted by pgc hunter

the aussie dollar is now worth a measly 50-60 US cents.

0.64 to 0.65 US$ this week, but yes, the great days of US$0.85 to 0.90 are gone and won't be seen for a long while.

Now a question, because there are lots of people here with experience in the various fields (mine is the metalworking and manufacturing industry, with some plastics):

What parts in a Bintel Dob could not possibly be made in Oz for a mass market price, with commensurate accuracy?

I know the trouble is that the cost would still wind up too much, because our domestic market is tiny, but I am curious about the optics especially. The tubes can be made by any competent sheet metal worker, and the various plastic parts can be made here, as well as die castings.

Cheers