The Sexiest Dob Ever Built!

[AstroJunk]

And the lucky owner is an IISer. Perfection!

Those little green men aren't from outer-space, they are jealous astronomers :eyepop:

Another magnificent (32" f/3.3) creation from SDM Telescopes!!!

[strongmanmike]

Wow! the perfect amateur visual scope! and yes, even a little sexy :evil2:....loooove to spend a moonless night under a Bortle 1 or 2 sky with that big spider! Who's scope is it? ed: I see, it is Allan Wades...and he is under Bortle 2 skies!!! :eyepop:

Mike

[PeterM]

oops I "red" Bottle 1 or 2...

[strongmanmike]

Oh yeah, that would augment a night with this beauty very nicely....:P

[glend]

Yes it's Allan's, he has a thread running on CN with a whole series of great photos of the build and more tecently onsite at Coolah.:eyepop:

[Tinderboxsky]

That was my first reaction too.

[wavelandscott]

Wow, it is gorgeous!

[AstroJunk]

I happened to be at Peter's workshop and helped strip it down for the final finish. I couldn't believe the detail and the build quality - and that's coming from another SDM owner.

With Allan's great design concept, Lockey's exquisite mirror set and Pete's incredible execution, this scope should be declared a national treasure!

[Rodstar]

More photos are here (http://www.sdmtelescopes.com.au/scope-showcase/sdm100-32-f3-3/) on the SDM website.

Looks amazing!

Can't wait to hear some observing reports.

[75BC]

That sure is one beautiful piece of equipment.
Something I will most likely only ever dream of owning.
Forgive me if I've missed something though but isn't that a Red Back Spider and not a Black Widow as the name would suggest?

[75BC]

Please disregard my ignorance in that last post.
I'm clearly not an arachnologist as I didn't know Black Widows and Red Backs look very similar. :(
I've been bitten by a Red Back and it wasn't fun so I know what they look like.

I'll go back to just admiring the craftsmanship of that sexy beast.
I have learnt something new for the day though.

[Allan]

Hi guys, and thanks for the kind words about my new dob. Sorry for not running a thread here for everyone interested, but it would have just been doubling up what I placed on Cloudy Nights. There's some good info and photos there for anyone interested.

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/576899-32-f33-sdmlockwood/

I won't rehash what's written in the CN's thread, but will mention I have had several great observing sessions with the dob already at my astro property near Coolah. It is nice and dark out there, Bortle 1 or SQM around 22.0, so a great place for a big telescope to go deep on deep sky objects.

Having owned telescopes up to 12" size for over 30 years, it's now a surreal experience that every time I see an object for the first time in the 32", its a lifetime best view. I definitely feel very spoilt at the moment by what the sky is revealing.

There's been so many highlights already. The colour that's on display in the nebula is fascinating. Like the green core in M42 that turns rust coloured and then pink in the outer sections of the wings. Plus the way the wings roll toward you in the eyepiece in 3D like a roll cloud in the sky.

My main joy is galaxies, which is fortunate, because they are everywhere you look. Galaxy clusters that previously revealed the NGC and IC galaxies in small scopes are now bursting at the seams with PGC galaxies down at magnitude 15 and 16 and 17. Then there's the countless number of brighter PGC galaxies that look like NGC galaxies in small scopes, complete with an endless amount of detail to observe. The big dob is a real galaxy machine and I've found it amazing at how much the universe of galaxies has opened up to me.

Then there's the big showpiece objects like 47 Tuc, Tarantula Nebula, Eta Carina Nebula, NGC 1365, etc that you can spend an hour with just to take it all in.

Anyone interested in upgrading to a bigger scope should look no further than Peter Read at SDM. He is a great guy to work with and will tailor make a scope exactly how you want. I've been lucky to observe with a lot of dobs overseas, and its a simple statement that Peter is making the finest dobs in the world right now. Fortunately he's here in Australia making them for us, or else we would all be on a 10 year waiting list for our dobs.

The Black Widow will make an appearance at SPSP for anyone interested in taking a look. I am looking forward to sharing lots of eyepiece time with all my astro friends and anyone else who wants to see some amazing sights through the eyepiece.

[strongmanmike]

DANG!!!!....Im going to the Texas Star Party this year which is on at the same time as SPSP...:doh: maybe you will bring it to SPSP again next year?
Hopefully there will be a big Dob or two at the Prude Ranch...? :prey:

Mike

[Allan]

Don’t worry Mike, I’m sure the dob will make many visits to SPSP. Enjoy the TSP. The big US star parties are a lot of fun.

[strongmanmike]

Well Allan, I really look forward to looking through your baby :thumbsup: and yes, the idea of seeing some of the northern delights for the first time ever and hopefully through something similar to your scope, is quite exciting! :)

Mike

[Sconesbie]

What an amazing piece of machinery. You should be very proud of what you have built.

How long did it take to make?

I'd love to have a look through it and open up what I have seen through my 10".


Regards
Scott