Another great result Scott, 20 minute hand guided subs!!
Love what you're doing, combining old with new, well, old with newer to be more precise. That Astro Optical gear was obviously built to last and the quality holds up with the optics of today.
There was an Astro Optical shop I used to visit in Melbourne during my early days of film astrophotography in the mid 80's and early 90's, there was a retail section below what was known then as the Southern Cross Hotel in Bourke Street ( Now gone but where the Beatles stayed in Melbourne during their Australian tour).
The guy that ran the shop then seemed old to me at the time but he was probably about my age now
, he was always friendly and extremely helpful. I wonder if it had an affiliation with the Sydney store of the same name?