My New Observing Chair / Dob Trolly

[davewaldo]

Hi Everyone,

First off I'd like to say I love reading about all your ingenious ideas!

I thought you all might be interested in seeing the observing chair I built a few days ago.

The credit for the basic design and this great idea go to StephenMcnelly from his thread here http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=16325.

I had already made one of the Dob trolleys shown in the "Projects and Articles" section and it seemed to make complete sense to use this same trolley as a height adjustable chair.

It is made out of ply wood and timber with all the edges rounded off for comfort.

I think I may have over engineered it a little as it is far stronger than I shall ever need. One of the key features of my design is a seat surface wider than the trolly width (to fit a manly rump:P ). To adjust the height of the system one needs only to lift the chair off the hooks and hook them onto the desired height bolts, very quick and easy.

I have since made a little cushion out of foam and I must say it all works very well and is extremely comfortable. I have been using a garden chair up until now for my observing and I'm sure this little chair should really help me be able to make longer more comfortable observations especialy at lower or higher than normal seating positions.

Thanks everyone.

Here's some pics:

[Zander]

wow,
nicely done, looks very pro:thumbsup:
i might consider makin 1 myself with the spare trolley i got sittin out the back.

is it very sturdy when u've got it on the highest rung??

[davewaldo]

It is quite sturdy, it does sway a little if you move around but it doesn't slip because the wheels lift off the ground when you sit. If you sit still it is most secure and sturdy.

Best of all it only cost me $7 for the hooks and nuts & Bolts. I had the other materials lying around the place. I supose if you had to buy all the materials it might cost around $40 to make.

The reason I liked the idea so much is that I already take the trolley everywhere with my dob, so to take a small chair attachment is easier than taking a whole chair!

Dave.

[Zander]

awsome :)

sounds like a fun project to do over the weekend

[davewaldo]

Well I thought I would give a quick update.

I took this new observing chair / trolley out to cambroon on Saturday night, and I was quite happy with it.

It was easily sturdy enough once you had leaned forward to rest on the trolly platform (not on wheels). I did find it a little heavy to move around but no more so then most observing chairs. The benifit of my one I quess is that it has wheels :) .

By having this chair it made observing much easier and comfortable! I could sit for much longer and steadier than before.

I found changing heights easy in the dark and it all packed away small enough for my car.

Overall... a success!

[Gargoyle_Steve]

Hi Dave ... I saw you toting your scope along on the trolley at Ron's, I wish I'd known you'd also modded it to serve as a viewing chair. I don't need another seat, nor do I have a 2nd large scope - yet - but I always applaud clever design ideas!

(I DO happen to have a spare trolley at home, not being used - paid $25 at Bunnings, you cant buy the 2 wheels & tyres alone for that price. I should have bought 3 or 4 trolleys and modified them into go-carts.)

Anyway - love your simple design, great ingenuity that. I reckon your manual setting circles were a gem as well. Full marks all around.

Hope to see you at Ron's next time again - we should be able to enoy some fabulous Saturn views again then.

Cheers!

Steve

[davewaldo]

Thanks Steve,

You really can get some great buys with these trolleys... I think I paid about $30 from Super Cheap.

You also looked like you had a great setup going at Ron's I'm only sorry I didn't seem to have much time to come over and socialise. With all the clouds we seemed to be forever swinging the dob around to find clear skies.

I look forward to our next event at Rons!

[Orion]

Nice chair.

I wondering what happens if you lean back on it, you might fall back on the wheels and go for a ride?:shrug:

[davewaldo]

Yeah I guess if I was to lean back really far and kick my legs out I might go for a ride :scared: ... but I didn't find I had to balance on it.

I can lean back and rest my back against the trolley without feeling at risk of falling backwards. As soon as I sit down all the weight is on the trolley base and not the wheels, so there is no slipping.

All in all I find it a great chair for the money, its not perfect but does the job I ask of it very well. :)

[ballaratdragons]

:eyepop: Dave, I hope those cup hooks don't pull out while sitting on it.

Otherwise, great invention :thumbsup:
Very practical and simple.

[davewaldo]

haha... I guess those hooks do look like little cup hooks :lol:

But in fact they are quite large and have about 3 inches of thread diagonally bedded into the timber.

hmmm thinking of cup hooks makes me think of cup holders.

what if I added.......


Thanks everyone for your feedback!


Cheers.

[ving]

wow! thats a pretty sweet seat! :)

you do of course need cow print padding on it you know ;)

[stephenmcnelley]

That looks great dave, something like i wanted to do, now my old dodgy one is looking even more in need of a redo, lol.. glad to hear you made it out of old bits too, we neednt spend a lot of money on some of these things.

If you are not sitting on the seat it makes a good platform for beer, most crucially. Perhaps a small esky could be mounted to the other side of the trolley, but only to counterbalance the seat of course, we must be logical....

[stephenmcnelley]

Hi ving, just checked out your webpage, very cool, i do like your Copernicus good to see it there. More images to come?