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  #61  
Old 11-11-2019, 05:08 AM
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Rainmaker (Matt)
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Marc, I have a 7m AutoTrail FB that has lost the gloss, I am happy to bring it out to Quialigo so that you do not run out of work....

Nice job on the dome....if you need a hand to install the dome send me a PM, happy to take a drive out Windellama way...
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  #62  
Old 11-11-2019, 03:28 PM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PaulSthcoast View Post
Hi Marcus,

cut and polish and super resin you say ?

Sure its not all the elbow grease ?

Great work, looking good !!

Paul.
Thanks Paul. And yes, plenty of that! I'm glad it's done! My wife pitched in as well so that sped things up a bit.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rainmaker View Post
Marc, I have a 7m AutoTrail FB that has lost the gloss, I am happy to bring it out to Quialigo so that you do not run out of work....

Nice job on the dome....if you need a hand to install the dome send me a PM, happy to take a drive out Windellama way...
Sure Matt - swing by and leave it with me for a year or two. It'll be as good as new when you come back to pick it up.

And thanks for the offer, I'll let you know if I need a hand!
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  #63  
Old 18-11-2019, 10:18 AM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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The weather here has been appallingly windy for most of the last few weeks, preventing me from oiling the deck (because of dust) and assembling the obs. This week is looking better though so I've oiled the deck now and should be able to reassemble the obs on Friday when low winds are expected.

The oiled deck looks nice! A bit of work to keep it that way, but oiling is easy!
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  #64  
Old 18-11-2019, 10:47 AM
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h0ughy (David)
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Looking good, I made the mistake of buying 4litres of merbau decking oil only to find out after I rolled it on the it was a decking paint and not oil. I did do it early evening. So I got stuck with a dirty brown green instead of a beautiful finish like yours.
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  #65  
Old 18-11-2019, 02:59 PM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Originally Posted by h0ughy View Post
Looking good, I made the mistake of buying 4litres of merbau decking oil only to find out after I rolled it on the it was a decking paint and not oil. I did do it early evening. So I got stuck with a dirty brown green instead of a beautiful finish like yours.
Aaaarg, nooo! I was careful to buy the "Natural" Cabot's Aquadeck. All oils have pigment in them (for UV protection) but the natural one is only lightly pigmented so the natural colour is enhanced (darkened a bit)
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  #66  
Old 22-11-2019, 05:03 PM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Dome is up!!!!!

Got the dome assembled today. A neighbour helped me lift the dome on.

Tons of work to do still tho!!

All progress pics HERE
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  #67  
Old 22-11-2019, 05:48 PM
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Looking great Marcus,

I was going to ask you how you plan on waterproofing the base but from your first photo it comes with a base
In South Oz I’ve used agapanthus around my deck and once it grows actually preserves the edges of the deck from our harsh sun. Also acts as a good fire retardant. Could possibly be classed as a weed over there though?
Have enjoyed watching your build from the start!

Cheers
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  #68  
Old 22-11-2019, 06:21 PM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Looking great Marcus,

I was going to ask you how you plan on waterproofing the base but from your first photo it comes with a base
In South Oz I’ve used agapanthus around my deck and once it grows actually preserves the edges of the deck from our harsh sun. Also acts as a good fire retardant. Could possibly be classed as a weed over there though?
Have enjoyed watching your build from the start!

Cheers
Thanks Darren!

I'll be running a bead of silicone around the outside of the walls at the base. Because they're decking boards, water will simply drop through before it makes it inside. Same as my last obs - zero water ingress around the base. The false floor (marine ply) will have fly screen underneath to keep the bugs out and carpet over the top for comfort.
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  #69  
Old 22-11-2019, 06:44 PM
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That looks wonderful Marcus. When is the dome-warming-party?

Best
JA
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  #70  
Old 22-11-2019, 07:14 PM
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Looking good Marcus
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  #71  
Old 23-11-2019, 11:44 AM
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That looks wonderful Marcus. When is the dome-warming-party?

Best
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Quote:
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Looking good Marcus

Thanks guys!
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  #72  
Old 23-11-2019, 01:59 PM
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Great work Marcus, are you sure you don't want to cut and polish some more f/g.
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  #73  
Old 24-11-2019, 01:04 PM
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Marcus ..... I've been watching this come together ...outstanding job indeed....Love the wooden deck and stairs to.

Col...
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  #74  
Old 25-11-2019, 10:15 AM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Quote:
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Great work Marcus, are you sure you don't want to cut and polish some more f/g.
Thanks Matt. Ummm, no thanks. I am missing the Mr Miyagi voice in my head tho ... "wax on ... wax off"

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Marcus ..... I've been watching this come together ...outstanding job indeed....Love the wooden deck and stairs to.

Col...
Thanks very much Col.
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  #75  
Old 01-12-2019, 12:33 PM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Fit-out started

Fit-out underway:

1) Attached wheel covers and dome motor
2) Installed insect screen, false floor and carpet in that order
3) Attached wall seam covers
4) Installed pier

Next steps are to clean the telescope mirror (not looking forward to that), run power, install the electronics & sort out cabling, install the mount and route cables, install the scope, connect everything up and then pray everything still works!!
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  #76  
Old 02-12-2019, 07:20 AM
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multiweb (Marc)
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Oooh nice! Getting very close now.
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  #77  
Old 02-12-2019, 08:22 AM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Oooh nice! Getting very close now.
Thanks Marc. Yes, I can see the end of the tunnel now!

Last edited by marc4darkskies; 04-12-2019 at 02:57 PM.
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  #78  
Old 07-12-2019, 04:53 PM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Power is in! I also did my back in! Note to self: always limber up and hydrate before wielding a mattock into hard ground!
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  #79  
Old 11-12-2019, 01:15 PM
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I did a number on my back when digging the trench but it's getting better now. I was next intending to move the scope to a suitable place, disassemble the front truss assembly and clean the primary, but that's waiting for a few more days until I can lift some weight.

In the meantime I've started installing the electronics. My DIY uninterruptible power supply is installed (top orange box in the schematic diagram). The picture shows (from left to right) the 12V power supply (for battery charging and running telescope-side equipment off mains power) sitting on top of the box containing the inverter (for the mount power brick, lights and any other 240VAC stuff I want to keep running during a blackout).

The scope electronics will be attached via a heavy gauge cable to the Inverter input and will run off the battery during a power outage provided the Battery -> Inverter switch is "on". Note that the battery can be disconnected from both the PSU and the inverter to avoid charge leakage while not in use.
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  #80  
Old 15-12-2019, 12:27 PM
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marc4darkskies (Marcus)
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Mount is in.

Still to go:
  • Clean telescope mirror
  • Install Ethernet cable from house (wireless is too slow)
  • Install telescope
  • Sort out all the spaghetti
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