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Old 08-05-2015, 08:12 PM
Alasdair
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DIY mount for binoculars?

I know there's a long and honorable history of people knocking up all sorts of astronomical contraptions out of junk - many of which have worked extremely well. My current needs are simple: a device to hold a pair of 10x50 binos steady and which allow them to be moved about. A DIY tripod and mount, so to speak. I've seen lots of whizz bang telescope mounts all over the Internet, but for me it doesn't have to hold a big weight, just to be steady, and movable both in height and in pointing angles.

I could make something tripod-ish out of pvc piping or odd bits of wood, probably, but the mount and bracket... there's a fiddly bit.

Any ideas or examples of similar projects?

Thanks!
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Old 11-05-2015, 12:08 PM
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barx1963 (Malcolm)
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Here is the thread on my homemade bino mount:
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...d.php?t=116122

I have the plans that I can email to you. Be warned they take up a bit of room and will need to be stored under a bed or in a spare room!!

Malcolm
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Old 15-05-2015, 09:52 AM
Wavytone
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The luxury model I made 16 years ago - it consists of an electric wheelchair which has a tubular frame that plugs into the top of back the chair. To this I made a wooden cantilever which places a small scope (or binoculars) in front of the observer at the perfect position for observing.

The electric wheelchair provides fast slewing in azimuth, and vertical height adjustment to suit the observer, as well as footplates to keep your toes out of the dewy grass.

The cantilever consists of 4 x tassie oak strips (put the strength where its needed) with some bits of lightweight maple acting as spacers. At the back it has what's left of a dec shaft and counterweight cannibalised from an old mount no longer used.

Between the ends of the cantilever is a crude altazimuth mount so the user can point the scope anywhere, consisting of a wide "U" made from 4x laminated birch shelf brackets (a few dollars from Ikea), two "lazy suzan" bearings on either side provide altitude bearings, which were basically large diameter ballraces running in pressed aluminium disks (also cannibalised from something at Ikea) and the azimuth axis is a $10 bicycle front-wheel shaft with bearings and locknuts, bolted to a plate of 10mm aluminium scrap that serves as the cradle to which the scope attached. The altazimuth mount was made so that it rotates quite freely, with friction to hold the scope provided by using a DVD bolted on the shaft with the edge running between two felt pads that provide adjustable drag.

The cantilever also swings up and down freely so it accommodates observers ranging from kids to tall adults, as well as accommodating the changing eyepiece position for objects at the zenith v low down near the horizon.

In practice it provide quite stable and surprisingly free of vibration and would be able to support binoculars or compact scope up to a Celestron or Mead 8" (the scope in the pic is a Mead 4" f/10 SCT).

Note there is also an accessory tray for eyepieces and other bits & pieces attaches to the armrest. A deluxe version could include electrically heated blanket to keep the observer toasty (from the wheelchair battery), red LED lamp and a shelf for laptops/iPads. Reversing lights might be desirable too as having the wheelchair back over someones toes in the dark is unpleasant.

Net cost was maybe $50 and some scrap parts.

More pics available if this grabs your imagination.
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Last edited by Wavytone; 15-05-2015 at 10:11 AM.
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Old 15-05-2015, 11:14 AM
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mswhin63 (Malcolm)
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I suppose as we are getting into weird designs. I made a Bino Chair that I initially designed to rotate and can also lay back as well.

Still not complete due to University studies and now health recovery I have not been able to complete it 100%.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos?p...01953767744541

It will be completed though and the basic concept has already been tested and is working well.
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Old 15-05-2015, 11:52 AM
Alasdair
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Such engineering magnificence! Chairs - with wheels - and fine mounts attached! This sort of thing is stratospherically beyond my meagre abilities. I was hoping to bodge something up out of a bit of pvc piping and various bits of wood. I do have a old pushbike I can use for parts - assuming I can get the frame apart; maybe I can somehow turn the axle assemblies into a mount, if I can find some way to lock them into place...

We did once also have an old wheelchair (not motorized though), which belonged to my late mother-in-law. But that's long gone.

I rather like the idea of a job which looks cheap, cheerful and plain junky, but still works really well.

I'll have fiddle this weekend.

Thanks, folks!
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Old 16-05-2015, 08:43 PM
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RobF (Rob)
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May be of interest - I hacked up a bino mount with aluminium sections, along with some metal plates and brackets from Bunnings. Bino mount fitting from andrews. Sitting on a tripod scrounged from my first scope (1980).
All the moving joints "lubricated" with milk bottle cutouts.

https://picasaweb.google.com/UserRob...60983466449538
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