My SDM truss dob is coming!

[Starkler]

I received an email from Peter Read last night containing some teaser pics of my new scope in production.

The scope will have a 15 inch f4.8 Mark Suchting 1.6" thick mirror, feathertouch focuser, telrad, encoders for the argo navis fitted and heated secondary. I wanted basically the best of everything :D

Delivery is scheduled for 30th June :party:

[Rodstar]

Great news Geoff! You must be very excited.

I assume, given the colour of the woodwork at the top of the truss poles, that when the stain is done, all will be that rich cherry-brown colour? It should look fantastic.

Where is Mark up to with the mirror?

[GrahamL]

looks fantastic geoff :thumbsup:

[beren]

Awesome setup Geoff, congrats look forward to a first light report

[norm]

Looking great Geoff - can't wait for the low down report!!! :thumbsup: :)

[wavelandscott]

Wow, looks and sounds great!

How tall will the eyepiece be at zenith?

I've been thinking about some day moving up in size but, I do not want to go up on a ladder/or step...

I really look forward to hearing about your experiences and what "bells and whistles" that you end up putting on it.

Good Luck...and I guess this means rain through July for people in your area!

[davidpretorius]

having looked at Paul Haese's in the flesh, I can assure you that these are top of the line.

You will not be disappointed.

GOTO was scary in terms of how fast the big guy spun around 180 degrees.

VERY VeRY impressive engineering!

[rumples riot]

Yeah Peter does a great job with these scopes. You will not be disappointed.

[Starkler]

Yes Rod, I think thats the default colour offered, and I have no complaints as I think it looks great.

The mirror was finished at end of April. Most of the wait time for that was obtaining the blank. once mark had that, the mirror was completed in about a month.



181cm which happens to be my standing eye height wearing shoes.
Funny that :D The mirror focal length was chosen just for that reason.

You might notice that the mirror box looks taller than on some other truss scopes. This is because the alt bearing need to be higher up to balance the thinner than normal mirror. The thinner mirror will cool in 70% of the time of a full thickness mirror as normally used in obsession scopes.

[matt]

Excellent news, Geoff:D

I'm sure she will be a beauty and an object to treasure for many years.

All the best:thumbsup:

[Starkler]

I just received an update from Peter including some more piccies.
I'm particularly pleased with something Peter said in the email, quote,

" I had the scope assembled and out under the stars tonight to do a test for pole length and the scope is spot on but even more important YOUR MIRROR IS ABSOLUTELY SUPERB!!!"

:D

[iceman]

It looks really sweet, Geoff! Are you going to BSG? I'd love to take a look through it there..

[Starkler]

I certainly am :D

[Astroman]

Very nice Geoff, looks nice.

[Rodstar]

Geoff,

I was chatting today with Peter Read, and he realised, as we were talking about your scope, that he does not actually know where you live (so he can deliver your scope)! You may wish to tell him if you want to see it any time soon....:P :lol: :rofl:

BTW, you must be a very tall man to be 181cm to the EP. That would have to make you about 6' 4", wouldn't it?

[Starkler]

That hasn't even been discussed yet. I didn't make any assumption that he was going to truck it down to me:shrug:


Actually 6' 2 1/2" last time I checked some years ago. Maybe I've grown :lol:
I just checked again, 180cm wearing my comfy slippers, so 181cm will be just right wearing shoes :)

[Dave47tuc]

Yeh its fun observing with Geoff,:rolleyes:

He is tall and I'm on the other end of the scale, so it can be very funny me trying to look into his Vixen because he sets it so high.

Hey Dave come and have a look, good on ya Geoff, have you got a ladder for me:P

Oh good luck with the scope mate:thumbsup: I will bring my step ladder when we observe next:D

[gaa_ian]

Good on you Geoff, sound like it will be a great scope.
we are in the process of upgrading our Club 18" with an Argo Navis & have already received the new TV 27mm Pan & 13 mm Nag.
Looking forward to some clear skies (it is supposed to be the dry season !)

[Starkler]

You would laugh then seeing me view jupiter near zenith in the refractor on the eq5. To get down to the eyepiece I'm kneeling on a mat on the ground :lol:

I've bought some wood to make new legs to raise it up to normal persons height :whistle:

Yes Dave, bring a ladder because I wont be bringing one :lol:

[Rodstar]

Geoff, as far as I am aware, Peter has personally delivered every scope he has ever made, even travelling over 2 states (Vic-> NSW-> QLD) and back again in some instances, at no cost. Mindblowing, I know, but true.

So, even without using any standover tactics (bearing in mind your height :doh: ), you can expect a personally delivered scope in the next couple of weeks.

[skies2clear]

Geoff, great stuff. I think you made a good choice on both counts:

SDM scope and
DSO (Mark Suchting) mirror.

Both superb choices,

CS
Nick

[Starkler]

Peter emailed me some more pics now that the scope is completed.
Its coming tomorrow! :)

Get ready Melbourne for a month of continuing rotten weather :whistle:

[Dave47tuc]

stunning:eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :eyepop: :whistle:

First light will be a treat:thumbsup:

[iceman]

What a beautiful looking scope. I can't wait to see it in person.

You didn't get servocat did you?

[Starkler]

Nope no servocat. I'm a visual only observer and dob pusher ;)

Yes Dave, it looks every bit as good as I had hoped :) Theres more to this story which I'll post about after I receive the scope tomorrow ;)

[Sentinel]

If I had a telescope like that arriving tomorrow, I probably would not sleep all night. And the next few nights if it was clear.

Like Christmas as a child all over again!!

[gts055]

Hi Geoff, i've just seen the pictures of ur new telescope. Wow, thats a beautiful looking thing. And with that mirror u will have exceptional performance when the seeing allows. Congratulations on ur new purchase, and wish u a great night for ur first views.
Mark H

[rumples riot]

Pity you did not get the servocat Geoff. Some suggest that having tracking allows the brain to focus more on the detail and less on the movement. This in effect means about 1-2" of aperture difference.

I really love the servocat and would not be without it.

Enjoy your SDM, they really are lovely pieces of furniture.

[xstream]

Wow Geoff, She sure looks beautiful. I can't wait to see it at BSG.

[acropolite]

Very nice Geoff, a true work of art.:thumbsup:

[Astroman]

whoa sexy beast. Love the finish on the SDM scopes. Peter is a master and magician

[CoombellKid]

Congrats Geoff, looks like a real beauty!!!

regards,CS

[Rodstar]

Welcome to the SDM family, Geoff! You have many wonderful months (and years) of pleasure ahead of you. She looks absolutely gorgeous!

Regarding Servocat, I don't have it either. Sure, it would be nice sometimes to have tracking, but my SDM scope is such a joy to handle that I actually enjoy manually pushing the scope to keep up with the object, and the motion of the scope is so smooth that it is no effort at all. Any slight vibrations from moving the scope settle almost instantaneously after it is pushed, so observing at 360x or more is fine. At lower powers, of course, the object stays in the FOV long enough to get a nice long view without moving it at all.

I had Peter pre-drill my scope ready for servo-cat in the coming years. I figured at this stage I would rather the $$ for eyepices. That is a real factor given that servo-cat is $2,500!

[Ric]

A beautiful scope Geoff, the final wait must be agonizing.

Cheers

[wavelandscott]

Wow, what a pretty scope!

Enjoy it...and thanks for bringing more rain to our drought stricken land...your civic mindedness is muchly appreciated.

[AstroJunk]

http://www.sdmtelescopes.com.au/SDM017.html

Another welcome to the family from me! I'm sure you will enjoy the full moon tomorrow:P.

It is difficult to describe just how well these scopes perform - I could hand track my 20" with ease at 500x. When I had Servocat retro-fitted it got better and better.

Have a great 'birth' tomorrow,

AJ

[ausastronomer]

Well Peter didn't even deliver me a scope, but he did manage to stay at my house for 5 days from Xmas to New year, drink just about every drop of Chardonnay I own and tip some of my best Port down his throat. All this without even getting my cigars out, a lot of of my assistance and even more argument from my wife. Something to do with, "you've had enough boys" :)

May I add Geoff, that some of my intuitively brilliant ideas regarding telescope design and construction, are now incorporated into yours' and Rod's telescopes. At least two I believe :) It's amazing the brilliant ideas one has at the back end of a bottle of port :)

I will add that when we met up again at Coonabarabran in March, he reciprocated on the shout and produced a fine bottle of port from the back end of his trailer :)

Peter builds a superb telescope. You will get many many years of enjoyment from it, as will Rod. Enjoy them fellas.

CS-John B

[Rodstar]

Geoff, I see from the SDM website photos that you have the locking mechanism to enable you to safely move the scope while set-up. That is a great feature, which Peter retro-fitted to my scope. It has saved me 30+ minutes every session in set-up and pack up time. It is great because you can have it permanently set up, except when taking it to a dark sky location.

[Starkler]

Thanks all for the congrats and kind wishes :)



Hi Paul, its been a long time since we have 'spoken' to each other.
There's a few reasons why I didn't go for the servocat option. Firstly there's a few grand in it, and I would need to see a scope fitted with it to see for myself how good it is and whether its worth it for me. Secondly, I wanted to keep things simple and easy to set up and pack away. I figured the servocat would add a level of complexity to that and detract from the portability aspect. Thirdly, if I decide later that I really want it, I figure I could get it retrofitted easily enough given that I'm getting the powered ground board.



Yes Rod, when Peter described the mirror box locks I thought that was a great idea which I had to have.

Theres another very innovative idea Peter (or is it John B :P) has come up with. Every truss dob I have seen that has transport 'wheelbarrow' type handles have them as a one piece deal which need to be bolted onto the rocker box for moving the scope, and removed for viewing lest anyone step on or trip over the protruding handles.

Peter has come up with a two part transport handle. One part (with the wheels attached) can stay fitted to the rocker box, and the lifting handles simply slide into the first part when you want to move the scope. Brilliant!

Peter now has all the pics on his website. For those that are interested. http://www.sdmtelescopes.com.au/SDM017.html

[gary]

Hi Geoff,

Congratulations and thank you for purchasing an Argo Navis with the scope.

Best Regards

Gary Kopff
Managing Director
Wildcard Innovations Pty. Ltd.
20 Kilmory Place
Mount Kuring-Gai NSW 2080
Australia
Phone +61-2-9457-9049
Fax +61-2-9457-9593
sales@wildcard-innovations.com.au
http://www.wildcard-innovations.com.au

[Starkler]

Sorry Gary, but I already had the argonavis which I bought 18 months ago ;)
Its a great product and I don't hesitate in recommending it anyone who owns a dob.

The scope is here now and its a beauty :D

[rumples riot]

Time and all that stuff.

I know the cost is questionable when you have not seen one of these in action, but I can tell you this, they are certainly worth the effort. When the time affords, I urge you to get it installed.

Not only is is very accurate the complexity is very small. The cat stalk detached in seconds and it is just like any other hand paddle. I found it dead easy to use.

Just want to recommend this system.:thumbsup:

[Rodstar]

Great pictures of the delivery on the SDM website, Geoff. Looks like you got your wish in terms of the scope being the perfect height for you. How was first light?

[spacezebra]

Hi Geoff

What a great scope! :eyepop: Peter and I are in discussions at the moment about building a f4 or f3.5 20" - and at zenith should not stand more than 5 8 which is great for my height.

Looking forward to seeing your scope in the flesh.

Cheers Petra

[Starkler]

Thanks for the heads up Rod. The delivery pics are now on the SDM website (http://www.sdmtelescopes.com.au/SDM017.html)

First light? Well I got in about 5 minutes of viewing jupiter through a brief gap in the clouds before a thick blanket of rain bearing cloud came. I should be grateful that the weather gods allowed me that much on my first day.

In the average seeing conditions I noticed very nice contrast in the view of the bands, better than what I'm accustomed to seeing in my other scopes :)
Whether its because of the aperture, or the improvement you get with superb optics I'll find out with more use.

The feathertouch focuser is superb! Absolutely the Rolls Royce of focusers.

To wrap up this story, let me say a few words about Peter Read. When we were first discussing the specs of this scope, I did not order the optical finder or the thousand oaks dew control system. I was also told that for the pricing I wouldn't get the pole and UTA transport cases. I later asked for his new two piece transport handles. Peter decided to provide all that for me at no cost rather than send out a scope that he considered "unfinished" :eyepop:

Peter stands out as one who has real pride in his work and truly cares about making his customers happy. With the Deep Sky optics primary and Peters craftsmanship I reckon that I now own probably the nicest Kriege style truss dob of its size anywhere in the world :D

Whos a lucky boy then ;)

[spacezebra]

Hi Geoff

I think you are very lucky - well done

Cheers Petra

[Sentinel]

Geoff,

You should be able to power your Argo Navis off the the Thousand Oaks Dew Controller. I have the same controller and a AN, and have a special power cable coming out of the dedicated 12V on the Thousand Oaks controller to power the AN.

I am awaiting a Feathertouch focuser as well. Practically identical set-up at the top of the scope!!

All the best with the new scope.

[Satchmo]

Congratulations Geoff. you've got a pretty unique scope there, and it looks like a real work of art. Not too many people own a custom 'scope designed for their eye height. You'll find it a real blessing having feet planted on Terra Firma at all times. Enjoy your new scope :)