This observatory has seen better days. It had been long left unused on my next door neighbour's property after the original owner passed away. When the house sold I made the new owners an offer.
This observatory is so old the badge for Sirius observatories has a 7-digit phone number.
The dome rotates but gets stuck... when it gets stuck you have to push the dome away from the wall. It's not hard to do, but this means it can't be automated which is the whole reason I wanted a dome. Basically I suspect that the roof may be eccentric.
While I was trying to figure out how to make it rotate without getting stuck I did not have the things that hold the roof down screwed in; of course, a storm came through which lifted the dome off the walls. At this point it broke off the bottom shutter. I've attached an aluminium plate where it broke and re-attached the shutter to the dome, but it's not well done -- it works, but it's not pretty and you'll probably want to do a better job.
The top shutter has definitely seen better days. It's crazed, has some cracks along the lip and has some holes in the lip as well. It's still weather proof because the dodgy parts overhang the lip on the dome itself. To be honest you probably want to replace the top shutter, though I'm sure it could be patched up with a fibreglass repair kit.
I had to replace all the wheels for the shutter when I got it as the originals were totally rusted up.
The original pulley mechanism was busted and I don't have all of the original pieces. I've got a "ghetto-style" system hooked up with some thin steel rope. It's functional, but it's not pretty. It makes an unfortunate squeal when it opens and I suspect one of the wheels has come off.
The observatory has two storage bays.
The observatory is up the back of my property which is about 350m long (we have 5 acres). Vehicle access
may be possible, but you might also need to carry it.
The dome itself splits in half and I think the walls are 5, maybe 6 separate panels.
I paid $1000 for it and I'm looking for similar offers. Believe it or not I've actually cleaned it up a lot from the condition it was in when I bought it.
Buyer is to dismantle / remove.
You can see photos of the observatory in this
thread here. I can get additional photos on request, but I'd encourage the prospective buyer to come and inspect.
Edit: edited to make it clear that this is the full observatory for sale, not just the dome.
