Constructing my Observatory "Stage 5 complete & Finished"

[Striker]

Hi all...

Stage 1 has been completed with the slab today.....if you can see in the pictures I have had the pier slab done seperately...it has no contact with the outer slab what so ever....the pier slab dimensions are 800 x 800 x 900 deep but the pier does bell out at the bottom to 1100 wide at a depth of 900.

The slab dimensions are 2800 x 2800 x 130 deep.

Over the next week or 2 we will start on the wall and roof construction...I will keep you all posted with pictures....

I would like to thank Mark Hodson for his helpful tips regarding building such an observatory........Thanks.

But I have a long way to go.

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/Stage%201.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/Stage%201b.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/Stage%201c.jpg

[jjjnettie]

Will you have it finished before the cold weather sets in?
Even partially finished it will give some protection from the wind at least.

[Striker]

Estimated time to finish.....2-3 weeks....

[mch62]

2-3 weeks:eyepop: Yours is going to be finished before mine:confuse3: .
Bugger that , no more help from me:whistle: :P :P

Just pullen your leg.

How long before we have some new toys to play with Tony:D

Can I see them before they get sold:whistle: LOL:P

Mark

[jackenau]

As they saying goes onwards and upwards. Looks and sounds like one stable base.

Ken M

[wavelandscott]

Like most, I am keen to know what "toys" will call this observatory home....and when they will be for sale...

Looks like an impressive start!

[Rodstar]

Yes Tony, what scope have you got planned to go on that lovely slab?!!

[Striker]

I should have all my equipment by the end of next week......except some accessories coming from the states....

And NO I am not selling any of my new toys.....I promised everyone that I would atleast keep them till Christmas....lol

[mch62]

Xmas Tony , that will be a record if you can hold out.:D

[Striker]

Rod,

A Celestron C11 SCT with the Orion 80ED Guide scope on a EQ6 with the astromeccanica upgrade on a pier 10" tube made out of stainless steel filled with river sand and bolted to the pier slab.

Then probably up for sale......lol

[ballaratdragons]

NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! Not the C11.

I want you to get the Meade 16" Newt on the EQ with GoTo. That's the one I want! oops, I mean you want. hehehe.

[beren]

Looking good Tony, apart from the scope and pier whats the plan for the shelter a roll off roof shed type ....been following this at cloudy nights ,Skyshed , very nice
http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/419111/Main/418155#Post419111

[Astroman]

Whats the difference between river sand and say some other type? Does the river sand dampen out the vibrations more?

BTW your setup is almost the same as my idea except you get yours next week and I have to convince the wife :P Also you are getting the C11 I plan to get the C9.25

So far Observatory looks great.

[RAJAH235]

Whatever he decides to buy, It may last a little while longer because it will be bolted down. Hey Tony, weld the nuts on!!! :P :D L.

[gaa_ian]

Good on you Tony ..
A man of action you are indeed .... It will be good to have another observatory to check out on my next visit to SE Qld :D

[ballaratdragons]

But if he welds the bolts on (when he gets the 16" Meade with EQ and GoTo) how am I going to buy it off him for $1500 in a couple of months?

[Striker]

Let's get this straight...I'm keeping this scope.....lol.....I will just delite this post if I change my mind....hahaha

I will be having a roll off roof......a little similar to Marks observatory he is currently building.....it will be wooden structure with Exterior Cedar panels with a steel roof with colorbond panels.....Picture's will explain the roof mechanism easier...so be patient...cause I'm not..hehehe

River sand is said to have more dampening charecteristics...I dont know why...just what I have been told...

Stuart...that is once nice looking shed...mine wont be any where near as good looking as that....very very nice....

[ving]

ouch!!!:eyepop:

looking very solid so far tony :)

[rumples riot]

Nice slab Tony, sounds like a good setup you are going to have, keep us posted with lots of photos.

[Comet Hunter]

Looking good Tony, I take it the next get together is at your place then... :)

[Striker]

I doubt it Andrew as the skies are very light polluted where I live....but I dont care...I will do the best I can with what I have.....but offcourse your all welcome...$10 entry + $5 parking fee...and bring your own drinks....oh and pick some dinner up for me on the way through......lol

[h0ughy]

Striker

Do you have any plans (drawings, sketches) of what you are building? I am on the scab for anything at the moment construction wise, to consider for my backyard.:astron:

[dhumpie]

Its going to look very nice wheneverything is set up and ready to go. Will you be getting Andrew to go over and have a look once you are done and when everything (the toys I mean ;) arrive?

Darren

[Striker]

Houghy...nah...I have an idea what to build in my head....I am getting my neigbour to help build it as he is a retired- Carpenter...

I did get some ideas of this web page...and of Mark Hodson.

http://obs.nineplanets.org/obs/obslist.html

Darren anyone is welcome once it's all set up......fee's apply....lol

[h0ughy]

Well I look forward for the progress photos

[Rodstar]

Tony, I'll be very interested to see how you find the C11. Assume its the GST.

I ordered one of those, but had a LONG wait, and in the end, after being told 5 weeks later that the scope had not even left the US yet, I cancelled it, and went with the LX200.

I have heard great things about the optics of the C11. The criticism always seems to be with the standard mount. Sounds like you've got in place the necessary plans to address that issue.

Regarding price, I emailed about 8 different suppliers around Australia, and the best price, by almost $400, was with Astronomyonline. They charged $4,400. The others were around the $4,800 mark. That was in December 04, not sure what the prices are like now.

Good luck

[Striker]

The good thing about Andrews where I puchased my C11 SCT is that he doesn't charge you anymore to buy it as OTA..he just simply takes the $1500 off the mount cost and sells it as is..the OTA cost me $3000....plus $25 shipping....It would have cost me more to get it from the states......

You could if you want buy the 11" SCT with a EQ6 mount for the same price as standard goto package...Lee is happy to do this....

The OTA also comes with everything standard above the tripod...IE....40mm eyepiece...1.25 diagonal...Finderscope...Mount plate for EQ6 or CG-5...and another OTA adapter....

I think its a bargain....

P.s....My pier has just started to be made.....the proposed cost of th Stainless steel pier to be made is around $1500....lol....free for me because I am Striker.....lol

Cant wait to see it...will be about 2 weeks though..

[mch62]

Geeee , Tony , stainless steel , thats going to look perrrrty.

You will enjoy pollishing it every chance you get I bet , or is going to get painted?

Be a shame to paint it .

Mark

[Striker]

Nope I wouldn't paint it.....and I dont think I will polish it either....it may reflect stray light...I will see once it's set up....

My father inlaw is a boiler maker and they only deal with Stainless steel work now...so I am happy....he brought the base plate over yesterday.....400 x 400 x 15mm thick disk...the base plate alone ways about 35kg's....We are still unsure exactly how the pier will be...so we are going to make our final decission once I get the EQ6 and do some measurments.....

[Sausageman]

Thought you guys would like to see our C14 just after installation.
Lots of additions since, but no photos.
We built the whole building from scratch. a very difficult thing to do.
The pier goes 3 metres into the ground and was filled with concrete, it still moved, so we have now put a casing around it, and filled that too. That fixed it.
Mike

[ballaratdragons]

Tony and Mike,

I hope you are both going to paint the inside of your obs with Matt Black paint!

[Striker]

This is what I have planned in my head for the pier...it may change and possibly will....

Approx total height between 1 - 1.1 meter's high starting at a diameter of 300 to 350mm and finishing around 200 - 250 mm diameter at top of pier....rough sketch

[ballaratdragons]

Tony,

That looks like it will be a well constructed unit.

Well done!

[mch62]

A good general rule of thumb for a pier is for it to be about the same diameter as the objective.
This how ever is going to depend on the height of the pier and clearance if an GEM .

This is my new pier for my Newtonian fork mount made from 350mm steel piping concrete filled.

The foundation base is 1200x1000x900deep. Struck sand stone at 900.
This base bells out about 200mm more .
The pier is about 1000 high.

This mount will be able to handle up to a 18-20" newt if need be.

My old 6" refractor mount was 200mm steel pipe 1600mm high and did have a small amount of vibration but far better than a tripod but the height meant I needed a larger diameter.

I learnt from this and hence every thing is well and truly over done for the new mount.

I can't emphasise not scrimping on the pier and base and Tony looks to have that sorted out.

[h0ughy]

I think ken left out the pot plant on the top! looks like a rocket!

[rumples riot]

Sorry Mark but I have to disagree with you there. With my pier I used a 145mm pipe for my 10" standing at 1700 high. I will admit that I get some vibration when I touch the pier but it disipates in about 13 seconds. I do plan on filling the pier with kiln dried sand in the future to dampen this minor problem. At present I get no vibration when I am imaging. The theory that the pier has to be the same diameter as the scope is a bit of a myth. While I understand that bigger is better, the reality is that it does not have to be as large as we think. I consulted friends who are engineers and surveyors involved in civil construction ( I also am involved in the building industry and know from experience) and they were all of the same opinion, that it was unnecessary to go to such extremes. This would prove a costly excercise.

My point is that you can go for the bigger diameter if you have the money, but if you don't want to spend a lot of money on this item, you can still have a fine pier on a smaller diameter.

[slice of heaven]

What about for visual RR ?
I have to do one for an 8", with the hopes of maybe fitting a 12" one day.
Rather than 'bigger is better , wouldn't ' better to be safe than sorry' apply?
I've no idea.

BD , They dont really have to be painted blurk..er..black.

Slice

[mch62]

Sorry to disagree with you but a look at most piers both amateur and professional tends to show other wise and I have seen some that are regreeting there undersizing.

A lot of the observatories amateur and professional I have visited here and abroad have quite substantial piers and footings.

Some being quite massive.
Look on the web.

As I said it does depend on the type of scope and height

A light short tube 10"SCT is not as demanding as a long 2+m Newtonians or refractors when it comes to the torque induced on the mount and pier.

You then have to take into consideration future upgrades and extras placed on the OTA .

So what i am saying is a 16"SCT doesn't need a 16"pier if only 1400mm high but if it were on a multi story builing then yes it would and that is not uncommon.

13 secs is worse than my tripod and you may be happy with that :eyepop:

You can hit my pier and mount with a sledge hammer with the vibrations being dissipated with in the mass virtually instantaneously and that satisfies my needs both now and the future.

[h0ughy]

I think I detect a bit of pier envy here in this post?????????????:P

be thankfull you have one!

[slice of heaven]

Sounds like 'pier pressure' to me.

[Striker]

Hahah Slice...

I know I am going overboard with my Pier......but when it's costing me Nothing...why not...and I would much prefer to go to big then too small....never know when my next upgrade or accessories could be....lol

If I had to pay the $1500 for my pier then I would of probably glued a few Aluminium cans together and called it a pier...or maybe not.

Everyone will have their own opinion...as long as your happy with yours then thats all you can ask for.....

Just from what I have read up and seen....the piers on this forum do seem to be too small by a fairly large margin....but like I said...if it works...good on them.....I'm not going to publicly knock anyone's Pier...if they didn't work I'm sure it would have been pulled down by now....

P.S I have received everything today accept the Astromeccanica set....

I will keep you posted.....

[Jonathan]

The rigidity of a pier would also vary a fair bit depending on what material its made from. Stainless steel and mild steel are not very rigid or hard compared to higher grades of steel. That said it's probably cheaper too buy a larger diameter of mild steel than a smaller diameter of something tougher and stronger. But when it's free you can't complain. :)

[mch62]

It comes down to weight of it filled with either sand or concrete that reduces the "Q" factory.--vibration and flexing.

The pipe in reallity only a container to hold the mass but in some cases will add stiffness.

You can use card board form tube (sonotube) filled with concrete and rio bar .
The form tube being discarded later.
Also use form ply and make a free form square base of concrete and rio bar and again remove the form ply.
A concrete storm water pipe is relatively cheap $100 depends where you live. Again fill this with concrete.
Many cheap alternatives are available for a solid pier .

Tony's is steel steel filled with sand mainly because he may one day need to move and doesn't want a permanent structure left behind.

[[1ponders]]

Gee Tony the design of that pier looks remotely familiar :P Clad there's no copyright involved :D

[Striker]

Paul...I was wondering what you were referring too....but now when I think about it....I imagine you mean the Mapleton Observatory.....I honestly didn't even look at the Pier at Mapleton but I do remember the cone shaped upper section like what I have suggested.

I was planning on doing a different plan until the neighbour suggested this........but you can take the credit...Paul.

Thanks Mate.

[[1ponders]]

:lol: you couldn't have gotten it closer without tracing it. :P

[Striker]

Because of the possible law suit from Paul...I have changed the configuration of the pier...I will keep you posted.....

Bloody Queenslanders....lol

[h0ughy]

paul,

do you happen to have a picture so as to directly compare the two

[[1ponders]]

I just might H0ughy. If not I can certainly take one when I'm up there next week.

[[1ponders]]

Here ya go. this is viewing it from side on, front on the shape is the same as tony's. The pier is black so I've adjusted the contrast and brightness to bring out the details a bit better

[[1ponders]]

Whoops forgot the image

[ving]

hey that looks like mine paul!
you steeler...er! :P

(I wish)

keep us posted tony... looks good. just dont turn the "cone" upside down for the sake of being different :P

I think my quota of pier jokes has been more that exceeded for the day.... so I'll sit on "the dock of the bay" till more come around.

gah! why did i type that?

[astroron]

Hi Guys ,I built my pier before I built my observatory, the pier in the first picture is a 90mm steel pipe buried 1mt into the ground filled with Mary river sand,the hight is also 1mt, it still vibrated so I surrounded with a concrete casing 20inches in diameter with a spacing if 12mm thick rubber 100mm wide which is the thickness of the concrete floor which the observatory was built on, It doesn't vibrate any more
The scope is a 20cm Celestron Ultima 8 purched in the USA in 1990.

[Striker]

That looks like a big improvement............A twig to a nice solid concrete pier...well done.

[mch62]

Now those are piers to be proud of , glad to see no flag poles:P :D
The Mapelton pier is a work of art and from seeing it close up works fine .
How big is that pier for the 11"Paul??:D

Mark

[[1ponders]]

I'd have to go and measure it Mark, but the following image should give you some idea of its dimensions considering its a C11 scope.

The lower concrete part of the pier extends a further 1meter below the floor to a 1m x 1m x 1m concrete footing that is separate from any other structure. Even the part coming through the floor has about 15mm gap all the way round to keep it isolated from the observatory floor.

[ballaratdragons]

And the 15mm gap gives you somewhere to sweep all the dust. LOL

[Striker]

Yuck...its square...mine was going to be round.....lol

[ballaratdragons]

Tony,

Just use a round square! Best of both worlds.

[MiG]

While the strength of various types of steel varies greatly, the stiffness is pretty much identical.
There's a big difference between stiffness (modulus of elasticity) and strength. Hardness is related to strength.
The larger diameter section will have a much greater bending stiffness and probably strength (it depends on the size difference) than the small one.

[Jonathan]

Mig- just trying to use simple terminology for people to understand, not everyone works with the stuff everyday. :work:

There's some nice piers there people. :)

[MiG]

I'm just saying that when it comes to rigidity, steel is steel regardless of type.
No point wasting money on expensive high strength steel when rigidity is the design criterion.

[Sausageman]

Ballaratdragons,
Yes, we have painted the observatory black.
Here is a pic of my Son sitting inside, with our computer.
We are using Lap Tops because we only use Solar Power and they use less power than tower systems.

Mike

[Sausageman]

If you want to see our site visit
www.seti.org.au
and click on the Boonah Space Centre link.

We could certainly do with some help with the construction, so any of you guys want to volunteer?

The site is an hour's drive south west of Brisbane just past Aratula, heading for Warwick.

Volunteer's get special privileges on using the equipment.

I might post this message as a new thread as well.

Mike

[Striker]

The important mounting plates to go on the pier have just been completed....as below.

Again all stainless including the Nuts and Bolts

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/Mount2.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/Mount1.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/Mount3.jpg

[slice of heaven]

Damn nice job you've had done on the plates Striker.
No patents pending I hope.

Slice

[Striker]

Change of plan with the pier......this is definetly confirmed now as you can see by the above picture of the mount plates......

[beren]

Looking good Tony , you must be the luckiest stargazer around with getting equipment on time, unbelivable .

With the mounting plates just a question about the fine tuning of the RA axis , is there a bolt or extension that the two RA axis screws can adjust against .

[Striker]

Yes Stuart......it has the original extension off the EQ6 mount plate....you can see the screw hole in picture 1...just have to screw it in.

The trick is......its who you know......and how you can take advantage of them....lol

[Astroman]

do you have drawings for the mounting plate striker? Mainly after the holes and diameter to fit the EQ6 head.

The other bits are pretty self explanetary from the pics.

[Striker]

Andrew......I dont have any drawings but I can make some basic ones up....I just took all the measurements of the original EQ6 mount plate....

Give me an hour and will get you some measurements.

[Striker]

Its only basic Andrew but I hope it helps....

[h0ughy]

you guys that can build things are amazing. very cleaver! now can you build me a cloud scatterer!

[ving]

I'll have one of those thanks... what do they cost?

[ballaratdragons]

Tony,

Why do you tempt me?

[h0ughy]

have the apollo missions started again!:)

[Astroman]

:lol: Ken,

Tony, by the looks of the pics and the sounds of your signature (C11 Has arrived.) Can I assume you have both the eq6 and C11 now? Have you tried both together yet and got a pic?

[Striker]

Yes Andrew...I posted the pic in another thread but here it is again.

[Astroman]

mmmmmmm nice setup. Does it handle the weight of the C11 and Orion Refractor okay? There must be aboout 15kg ontop of the mount, by the looks of it pleanty of room for more additions :)

Well done great setup and now I am officially 100% Jealous.

[Striker]

I have added more weight then what is seen in the above picture....but they rate the EQ6 for 25KG's......I believe I have around 20kg's ATM......

[ballaratdragons]

You will have to sell the C11 and buy a 5kg heavier telescope! LOL :D

[h0ughy]

nice looking rocket launcher!:)

I bet the new smell makes it even better!

[acropolite]

A nice EP tray around the perimeter would be good Tony.....and perhaps a small compartment for snacks, mini bar, TV, shower cubicle and of course a dog flap.....:lol2:

[Astroman]

Found a pic of Tony's Scope in a year or so.

http://www.franco-sgueglia.com/immagini%5Castronomia%5Cosservatori o%5Cnuove_immagini%5Cimages%5CCRW_0 012.jpg

[slice of heaven]

Hows things progressing?

[Striker]

Everything is going really well.....I wont say perfectly but everything is working out as planned...I must say their is a lot more work and planning needed to build a workable observatory then first thought....we bought nothing cut to size...everything we bought was in like 6 meter length meaning lots of cuts and cleaning up.....The site still looks the same with the slab but we have been working hard to get it right....we have built all the walls and completed welding the steel roof together...we have also put together the roller roof system...I picked up the Colorbond roof today and the Chamfer boards are being delivered on Thursday.

We wanted the roof finished before we put the pine walls up not wanting them to sit out in the weather for a week or 2.

I will be posting some pics around Tuesday of next week.....everything should move along quickly now that all the ground work is done.....

Pier is going along slowly but high quality....this should be finished by the end of next week.

I estimate the majority of building will also be finished by the end of next week with painting, lanscaping and extra's done over the coming weeks..

I will take progressive pictures as we assemble on top of the slab next week...pending weather.

[Astroman]

Great news Tony. Glad to see it is going so well for you.

Can't wait for the pier pics :)

PS anyone in Adelaide know how to make a dome rotate freely on a slightly out of round base? :)

[slice of heaven]

Excellent!
Cant wait for the pics.
Your definitely not wasting time...Keep at it.

[slice of heaven]

How far out of round Astroman?
Throw up some pics on a new thread and see what solutions members can come up with.

Slice

[Starkler]

Tony I know this thread is all about the construction of your observatory but what about the scope?

Have you had the C11 out under the stars yet on its tripod ?
How does it compare to the LX that you had ?

[Striker]

No Geoff......I am trying to set up the Astromeccanica set to run through the computer I just built...priority is the observatory.....the scope hasn't seen the outdoors as yet....not too far off now...give it around 2 weeks max...I hope.

[Astroman]

Watch the clouds roll in everyone!

[rumples riot]

Tony you should at least spend a night testing collimation and so forth in case your scope has a fault. Or is this because you dont have a tripod for it? Did you only buy the mount and the OTA?

[Striker]

I have the EQ6 tripod...everything comes with 12 months or 2 years warranty....so their is no rush...only around 2 weeks away.

[acropolite]

More Pics please Tony.....:D

[Striker]

As requested......Pier is almost completed...just have to weld the mount base plate on pointing in the right direction and all is complete.....I have filled the pier up with sand since this photo only 1 hour ago....its solid...very solid.

[ballaratdragons]

Tony,

How are you going to move it all when you sell your house!

[Astroman]

So whens the launch date? Thats a beauty there looks brilliant, a piece of art. Out of curiosity, whats the height of the pier as it stands?

[Striker]

Andrew...height was determined by the height of the observatory walls used...pier height is 1100mm.....

Here is a picture of the pier filled with sand and with both the mount plates sitting on top.(to be welded on tomorrow).

[h0ughy]

thats a very impressive pier. I can't wait for the rest to be built around it.

[iceman]

Wow looks awesome Tony.. you could go for a ride on that.

[ving]

looks lovely tony!
gunna paint it black?

[ballaratdragons]

Tony,

That is a very classy looking project. Good to see you didn't rush in and just stick a steel pole into concrete.

I applaude you for your patience, especially with a new scope waiting to go atop that pier.

I was serious about 'what if you move'. I can see that the pier can be removed, but will the building be constructed in a way that it can be dissassembled and moved? (just thinking ahead).

[beren]

Wow Tony thats awesome , very cyberpunk and classy , i have to ask how are you getting this project by the Missus this is a little bit more noticable then getting a Nagler posted to a PO box .

[Striker]

If I ever moved I wouldn't take the shed.....it would just become a garden shed or kids cubby house....the pier would obviously be removed and the roof supports for sliding onto would also be removed....which just leaves a standard 2.8 x 2.8m shed.

Saying this...I have no intentions of moving in next 20 years....

Ving...not sure what to or if to paint the pier.....I will assess the situation once I have it all set up.....I like the stainless steel finish but if it causes problems it will most definetly be painted or coated with something.....

Ken.....I have that much to do that this has kept my patience under control....sometimes I just boot my PC up and get the scope to slew all over the place while indoors.....I am having problems with the Astromeccanica upgrade...well software issues, so this combined with constructing the shed is keeping me real busy.

So much more involved in building a shed then first thought....but its been fun...you should see some real progression this week if the weather holds out.

Stuart its called Negotiation...lol

I promised I would give her some money to spend if I had any left.....its not looking to good for her....haha

NO I will buy her something....maybe a Digital SLR....she hates camera's but this may sway her.

[ving]

and if she doesnt like it tony, you can use it for astro photos :D

[Striker]

Stage 3 complete....

Been working really hard and things are starting to pay off and work out well....

Here is some pictures and the roller wheel system.

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/stage%203a.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/stage%203b.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/stage%203c.jpg

[slice of heaven]

It's coming along nicely Striker. Really taking shape.
Hows the roof for rolling, easy enough by hand?
Where's the power supply coming from to power it?

I cant see any dampcourse under the framework ..naughty,naughty.

[[1ponders]]

Very nice Tony. :2thumbs: Looks like I'll have to make two trips to Bris Vegas soon. One to christen Marks and one to christen yours. Any projected completion date yet?

[ballaratdragons]

Tony,

Good to see you have a very low pitched roof.

On the website with thousands of obsevatories the majority of roll-offs have high pitched rooves which block a large part of the sky when slid open. I don't think you will have that problem. Good thinking.

It is looking gooooooood!!!

[h0ughy]

Striker,

How did the structure go with the storm the other night? Were you affected.

[Striker]

The storm didn't affect it all....we have used braces and hard wood for support..

As far as damp course...all joins have been painted prior to joining and the bottom damp couse will be put on by Sunday....

It is really easy to push on and off...well I can do it with 1 hand....thats easy.

P.S. The frame work is actualy off the concrete by around 15mm.

Power is still being decided....I do have external powerpoint but i will get a electrician in to provide power more then likely...

[slice of heaven]

Its a credit to ya.

Cladding this week?

I'm turning green....with envy

[Starkler]

If your getting a trench and power cable run its probably worth getting alarm cable run at the same time , maybe even a cat5 cable so you can control your scope from the comfort of the house :) ( or surf IceInSpace from the observatory) :lol:

[seeker372011]

looking better and better

[acropolite]

Nice work Tony. But I reckon it's really one of George W's ICBM missile solo's.... :P

[Rodstar]

:eyepop:

That is simply amazing Striker. A credit to you and those advising you.

Just a thought.....when the roof is open for viewing, a rather nice undercover area is created behind the observatory. Have you given any thought to concreting that area, and putting a doorway through to it? I can only see one spot for a doorway at the other side. It might just make the observatory a more easy space to manage if you are hosting an IceInSpace starparty!!

Like many others have previously said, I am a tad envious. You must be very good to your other half to get permission to build that in your backyard!:)

[ving]

umm... your walls are see-thru!! :eyepop:

:P

keep the updates coming tony :)

[Striker]

Rod....I will be only having 1 door.....the rest of the site will be filled with either some kind of rocks or Bark for landscaping...I am allergic to grass...lol

Good point about the covered area...maybe down the track it could be an option

Regarding the misses.....its called "what she dont know wont hurt her"....hehehe

[iceman]

Looking great Tony.. how many stages are there? :D

[astro_south]

Looking great Tony. Will you be doing up invitations to the ribbon cutting ceremony soon?

Are you going to seal the edge of the roof near the rollers from dust and critters? The ventilation would be good for cool down, but eventually I think you would end up with some serious dust on the equipment inside. What do others do with a similar setup?

[Striker]

5 stages Mike.......

Stage 4 will be the building finished.
Stage 5 will be the finished product with scope and interior finished and painted..and maybe landscaped.

Andrew...its not finished...it has to have flashing put up yet.

And yes the opening ceremony will be televised with my beautiful Delta Goodrim cutting the ribbon.

[Striker]

Stage 4 complete

I still have 1 facia to go on as you can see by the gap....its all undercoated with the just the scope set up with out the computer......just finished filling up all 920 nail holes from the air gun with putty.....that was fun..."NOT"

I tested out the scope last night for the very first time while my family was over for dinner.....everything seems to be working properly...big test will be once its all set up with goto and guiding enabled....

Exterior will be finished mid week...then I will be working on the interior.

Here's some pic's of my progress.

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/stage4c.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/stage4d.jpg

http://www.users.on.net/~striker/stage4b.jpg

[[1ponders]]

Yeah that looks ok :P:D

:cool: looking smick Tony. :cool2: I know how tall you are so how are you going to reach that eyepiece?

[Starkler]

Is it just an illusion or will the roof hit the scope if you try to close it with the scope pointed up ?

[[1ponders]]

I was wondering that too Geoff. But i though 1 stir a day was enough:)

[Striker]

Answer.....tilt the scope to the side...I can set the scope on its side with around 25 cm clearance.....

My measurements for the pier height and wall height is about perfect....if the pier was lower you would lose a fair bit of view from the walls and you would be bending over for viewing all the time...

For 90% of viewing the scope is at pefect height....no need for any ladder or stool.

[Rodstar]

Tony, looking better and better all of the time. Congratulations. I know where I am visiting next time I am in Brisbane!

Are you going to keep it white? I assume observatories are usually white to keep them as cool as possible....You could try a hot shade of pink? (Just a suggestion).
:eyepop:

[Striker]

NO......the undercoat is white.....the misses hated it...so I have got a nice bright fresh Blue with some white features....

[stringscope]

Looks fantastic Tony. I am really envious!!

Is the roof insulated?? I imagine you will get a fair bit of raidant heat off the inside off the roof from the Brisbane sun.

Have you got a dust cover for the scope when not in use? CAS has a 14" LX200 in a similar (very well ventilated) roll off roof observatory on Mt Stromlo (one of the few to survive intact) we (CAS) are getting a made to measure dust cover made for the scope. I was up there several weeks ago during daylight and the amount of dust in the observatory was most noticeable. Admittedly there is a fair bit of construction work up there at present.

Cheers,

[Astroman]

Thats looking awesome Tony, I clap my hands to you. :clap:

How is the Astromecanicca kit going? how well does it perform?

[acropolite]

Tony Wrote

Tony, If it were me I would be putting some sort of interlock to stop rolling the roof open or closed when the scope is in a vulnerable position, maybe a lightbeam sensor with a couple of solenoids. :D

[iceman]

Looks fantastic Tony! How did first light go?

[Striker]

Everything is going well......I have only done the very basic tests....nothing to bother writing home about...just wanted to test collimation on visuals.....I wont be testing the Astromeccancca kit until I have it all hooked up to my PC which should be later on this week......there was some software and driver issues regarding the kit but this seems to have been fixed.......I also have to properly polar align.

The roof will be insulated but not yet...maybe over the coming months....

I have the scope covered at the moment but I also would like some permanant dust cover...even something that is insulated....will check it out.

OK gtg...back to the painting.

[ving]

looking great tony. so its usable now huh?

you going to put in a water feature? ;)

[seeker372011]

looking great

[ballaratdragons]

Tony,

I am not too clued up on the weather up there but is there any chance of condensation dripping off the tin roof onto your goodies?

Down here condensation is so bad it's as if it is raining inside if a tin roof is not lined.

Just a thought to keep your goodies dry.

[Striker]

Not sure Ken....but everything will be covered anyway.....cant be too careful.


Just got a quote for putting the power on to the observatory......OMG.

Lets just say I am looking at alternative options......lol

[xstream]

Well done Tony!

Extension lead and powerboard looking good is it mate?:D

[mch62]

Just thought I would give my initial impression on the Astromeccanica upgrade on Tony's EQ6 mount.
As requested by Tony I polar aligned his new set up last night for him and did a few other tests for him as well.
I steered Tony towards this kit as it has a very good feature which reduces the overall PE of the EQ6 as standard as well as other mounts via mechanical means.

By removing the intermediate motor gear box a source of PE , overall PE is reduced.
You still have the PE of the main worm and gear wheel .
The back lash is also reduced and only the play between worm and wheel remains.
Instead of a spur or planetary gear box a timing gear set up is used and the reduced ratio of 4:1 and the increase motor torque allows for high slew speeds.

The other good feature is the increase torque of the new motors allows for heavier pay loads.

The pictures don't really show it but Tony's set up is quite big and heavy with the ED80 sitting on top of the C11 the weight is quite a distance from the centre of balance of the mount and as a result 4 , yes 4 , counter weights are required..

The AM kit showed no signs of struggling and the motors were very quite.
Max slew is also quite high 4degs /sec +.

After polar aligning using the in built polar scope on OCTANS (and yes they are just visible from Brisbane ) and a fine drift alignment , Tony fine tuned the tracking rate .
It was little fast at first.
The visible PE was quite small and done at over 600x , the amount used for drift alignment as well.
This lack of PE correction was always on our minds as the DA1 controller does not have PE correction but relies on auto tracking for corrections during imaging.
The guys from AM stated PE will not be of a concern with the kit.

We didn't get time at this stage to measure or graph it but over the coarse of doing the fine adjustment , test stars remained within the inner circles of the illuminated Eye piece and the PE seamed quite small.
It will be interesting to get an AVI of it , Tony.
Further refinement and tweaking will see even a better result.

I am sure Tony will give further updates as he explores the functions and adjustments , but over all a very impressive upgrade worth it for the power handling increase alone.

The only major gripe is the very basic destruction manual.

Not for the beginner not familiar with basic terminology of mounts and drive trains.
I am sure Tony will go into the fun we had a week ago trying to figure out the soft ware.

Any way look forward to the grand opening Tony , and it looks like you are going to beat me to the punch there.

Had fun playing with your toys.

Mark

[Striker]

And thankyou very much Mark for your help last night......I now have found a sure and real easy way to Polar align. "Call Mark".....lol

I still have some minor things to do with the observatory but after that my steep learning curve to Astrophotography will start...

Thanks again.....will keep you al posted.

[Astroman]

So does Mark come with a "How To" on polar aligning?

Sounds great guys, glad to see the Astromeccanica kit performs very well, but I think some sort of PEC would be better. But with the 80ED acting as a guide scope you probaly wouldn't need it for short exposures.

Well done again, can't wait for episode 7

[Striker]

Stage 5 complete and Finished.

I have finished the majority of the building, painting and landscaping.....I have put down some dark Blue Marine carpet and some rocks for landscaping......I still have to insulate and paint the interior and some more other minor jobs....

I have posted a pic of the simple roof locking system.....

I am so excited having an observatory....I can open the roof in around 10 seconds...longest time taken opening the 2 bolt locks...and to close in about the same time....

I still need to put a path in through the rocks but i'm just glad to get of the mud for the time being.

I wont post anymore stages...this will be it unless I change something dramaticly..

As a Final word...I am very happy with the job we did on the observatory....and cant wait to learn all about astrophotography in the near future.

And also a special thanks to those who influenced my decission in the structure in particular.

[ballaratdragons]

Yahoooo! It looks great Toe-nails.

It suits the yard and doesn't look out of place.

Here is an Idea: put some shade cloth under the roof rails and grow ferns under it. Then people will think it is just a shed with a fernery connected to it!

[ballaratdragons]

Like this:

[h0ughy]

That is absolutely fabulous! i want one. :2thumbs:

[Starkler]

Next step, hook it up to the web so we can have fun driving Tonys scope remotely and watch real time video :)

Well done, it looks great Tony :thumbsup:

[acropolite]

Geoff Said

You have run a lan cable out there haven't you Tony??? :P

[ballaratdragons]

As long as it doesn't have Audio as well!!! :D

[xstream]

Just think. He won't have to use the dog house anymore! :D

[acropolite]

BTW Ken, where is the barbie and beer fridge in the artistes impression... :poke:

[[1ponders]]

No John, he'll be permanently in it. Hence the really comfy chair to sleep in:D

Looks great Tony. Where's the bar fridge? Or the kettle for tea or coffee for those long cold winter nights.

[Striker]

No Lan line......I have a Linksys wireless Router....if I do want the net all I need is a Wireless card...But I dont need the net.

I'm sure I will add other comforts as time goes on....pending on how long my stays are.....lol

I want to name the shed as well...maybe even put it on the door.....hehehe

[ballaratdragons]

Another contest: Name Tony's Shed!

Shedservatory.

[xstream]

-StrikeMeI'mOut- :P

[ballaratdragons]

Sorry, I forgot. Here's 2 barbies and a beer fridge to make up for forgetting!

[h0ughy]

are they the hot and cold running maids!

[ballaratdragons]

Hehe! It's Plastic Hilton and Polly Propylene.

[acropolite]

I thought it was the Barbie sisters....:P

[ballaratdragons]

No Phil, these are the Barbie sisters. This is what they will do to Tony's Shack after the opening night party.

[h0ughy]

wow, tha is amazing they left the scope completely alone!

[Rodstar]

Naming suggestion:

As it is capable of transporting you to anywhere in the Universe, is coloured blue, and has at least one good looking sheila hanging about, maybe you should call it the Tardis.

[Comet Hunter]

Looks pretty smick Tony, nice job!!

[ballaratdragons]

Yeah Houghy.

Thought it was about time to stop destroying Tony's scopes and just wreck everything else he has!! :evil: :bashcomp: :evil: :wink2:

[h0ughy]

thats a shame bcause Barbies love to play with plastic C11's :D

I wonder what they could have done????????????????? :bashcomp:

[ballaratdragons]

You're just tempting me to go berserk on Tony's new scope aren't you Houghy!

[h0ughy]

me nooooo !! I am sure you would never do such a thing as you are a righteous and upstanding moral individual! :D

However a little fall from grace every now and then does lighten one's heart a little. just don't put a can of beer in the eyepiece socket :work:

[ballaratdragons]

Your a wicked person!!!!!!! I will see what I can do but my pooter keeps crashing every few minutes (still!!!).