Interesting & cheap ultralight Dobsonian structures

[Omaroo]

I just received an email from Hubble Optics in the States that describes a new range of ultralight Dobsonian hardware for a mirror of your own choice and supply.

Cheap I reckon - the 13kg 14" is US$1,095 (which today is AU$1,027) plus $191 to ship via air to Australia. Even the 20" is around US$1,395 (which today is AU$1,308). The 12" is US$995. Pretty good any way you look at it. :thumbsup:

Link: http://www.hubbleoptics.com/UL14F.html

I'm not affiliated in any way - just passing on the news.

[Waxing_Gibbous]

Get blown away in the first wind here! :D
Someone get to work on a steel beam contraption!

[erick]

Fits in a big padded envelope? :D

[multiweb]

There's noting for the wind to pick up on. I reckon if the whole thing is stiff enough once assembled and bolted it could work. Great idea for storage.

[astroron]

I am interested in the 16" :)but they have not put any shipping costs to Australia,and when I went to try and contact them the only thing I could get is their Ebay page with no contact details :shrug:

[ballaratdragons]

UL16F - Australia Surface US$101 Air US$231

[Omaroo]

Yes, Ken pointed out Ron - it's a little further down the page. A very comprehensive list. :)

After I received their email, I emailed them back to say hi. They responded a few minutes later.

[astroron]

Thanks both:thanx:It wasn't there before when I checked that's why I complained :shrug:
I checked as number of times before I tried to contact them :screwy:
I tried to click on their email link and got nothing only their Ebay page so something was blocking it.
Cheers:thumbsup:

[astroron]

The Ebay link has now gone but I still cannot access there email link:shrug::screwy:
Cheers

[Satchmo]

I assume its meant to be transported assembled as its all put together with screws.

[Omaroo]

Don't suspect so!

[Tiotion]

Thanks Chris.
Looks very interesting. Right in line with what i wanted to build myself. Price isn't too bad either. Interesting... quick google didnt come up with reviews. Has anyone read anything about these?
I wonder how their "2 Stage" set up performs. Looks like more of a serrurier truss. I wonder how small that would pack up to.

Gah! The easiest way to lose customers...poorly designed websites!

Didn't you mention you wanted to get back into visual obs Chris? LOL you can be the guinea pig for us...

Cheers for that though
Jack

[Omaroo]

Maybe one day Jack... but visual just doesn't do it for me these days. Give the the binos I was going to build and it'd probably be a different story. C'est la vie.

[astronut]

Hmmmm....the 12" looks "very interesting"
A "NEW" style of Lightbridge!!:lol::lol:

[Satchmo]

Needless to say if you want a Nagler 31mm , an 8 X 50 finder a Telrad and heater units plus a shroud the balance may be a problem and it would probably be very difficult to fit a Servocat. This scope is going to suit someone who likes their scope very spartan and I'm sure those people are out there.

[Tiotion]

I thought balance might be an issue. But given that they offer finderscopes as an option, I'm sure they would have taken it's mass into consideratio. The bearings look quite big so that would help too...
Also given that it's byo mirror, you would be adding extra mass to the base than if you were to use their own lightweight mirror.
I hope they've figured out a way to mount an Argo Navis and Servocat. I think they would lose many potential customers with out it.

[Shiraz]

Looks very interesting Chris.
Warning to others though - I got hit with a bundle of trojans while browsing the linked website, so maybe it is not just poorly designed. Plus their email link would not let me notify them of the problem. Clearly there is no reflection on Chris, and it could have been a coincidence, but be careful - this has the hallmarks of a social engineering drive-by attack. Regards Ray

[Satchmo]

I 'm sure with some inventiveness you'd get an Argo on it but not a Servocat. Given that its essentially a flex rocker box the base ring looks very flimsy and would be hard to drive. By the time a scope is fit to fit a Servocat its probably going to look more like an SDM :)

The 16" to 20" mirrors are not really lightweight by comparison with standard solid mirrors - the 20mm thick back and front plates alone weight as much as a 1.6" solid mirror , and then you've got loads of 15mm thick buttons in between.

[Omaroo]

Ray - I've just been sent an email by the owner, Tong, who sounds surprised about your experience. I trust that you wouldn't have used the terms that you have without reason - that would be assasination. He's just sent me back this is response to your post (again - I'm just the messenger and have no affiliation with Hubble Optics). I agree that his email address link needs to be more than a gif graphic that isn't mapped to to a mailto: URL.

[Shiraz]

Hi Chris. Thanks for the feedback. I did not consider that Hubble Optics was deliberately distributing any dangerous software, but I was definitely subjected to an agressive attack while I was browsing there and spent some hours cleaning up the mess. I considered that I had a duty of care to do something about it. I tried to contact the website owner, but there was no mail link (which was worrying) - posting a warning seemed to be the only remaining option, although I was reticent to do so. Since Hubble Optics has provided an assurance that their site is clean, I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and try again. Regards Ray

[Shiraz]

Follow up to previous post, have now spent some useful time on the Hubble Optics site without incident. Maybe someone who really understands the mechanics of the internet could explain what might have happened on my previous visit. Regards Ray

[astroron]

I cannot even contact them at all:shrug:
Iclick on contact us and all I get is info@hubble-optics.com.
I cannot get any further than that:shrug:
when I go into their website all as it does is do exactly the same thing when I press contact us :mad2:
Obviously they don't really want business:shrug:
If anyone can send me an email address or way to contact these people I would be gratefull, but then again why I am bothering with such an abomination of a website I don't know:screwy:
Cheers

[bojan]

Interesting - Yes...
Cheap.. No. Maximum $100 in material used.

[Omaroo]

I'm not talking about ATM - so why do you compare it to a build-your-own? Not a fair comparison, and quite frankly a completely irrelevant statement. In relation to other minimal truss designs that are commercially available it IS cheap. Not sure why you feel the need to keep shooting these posts down because you can and will build your own for less? Sheesh! :rolleyes: $100 in material? Maybe. I doubt that there would be any overly exotic materials in them. For what they're charging it is certainly not worth the time I'd take to design, and then build one (through several development iterations I venture to say). Absolutely no contest. My Tak Mewlon is probably only worth a couple of hundred in raw materials too - just tell me where to buy one at that price. I'm keen!

Better still, I'll give $100 to build me one. Can I pick it up next week some time?

[Omaroo]

I've just had another email from Tong, who has listened to you guys, considered the statements regarding the mailto URL, and has thus added one. He previously used the gif to display the address so that displayed the address to a human without it being able to be interrogated by robots.

There you go Ron - try it now :)

[Octane]

The other thing Ron might need is a mail client which interprets the mailto tag.

I'm not sure what happens if you click on one without a client installed?

H

[astroron]

Thanks Chris and H,It works now:)
Cheers:thumbsup:

[Omaroo]

I disagree Steve, I'm sorry. :) I took his comments to imply that these ready-developed and built systems were "expensive" and therefore not worth more than the "maximum $100" of material they're comprised of. Whilst I'm fully capable of building anything like this - it's not hard, do I have the time? Certainly not - ergo I'm more than happy to pay the retail value to have one - like most others on this forum. As far as I am concerned, ATM is for those that relish the challenge of building something because they find it enjoyable. That should not imply that it's lazy not to do so, and that buying ready-made is a rip-off. I didn't present this company and their products to be criticised for being in the market selling decent gear for what it's worth commercially.

An SDM scope is probably only worth a couple of hundred in materials too. Does this fact make them only worth that? Of course not - just like these.

[Satchmo]

I think you would find Peter Read would beg to differ there :). A few hundred dollars would not even buy a half sheet of exotic ply using extra thin hardwood laminates that are used. SDM's are typically very well appointed with Feathertouch focusser , dew heaters and custom made pole and cage cases, covers and all sorts of things that add up the cost.

My reference to SDM was making the point that to fit all the extra gear like Servocat to one of these skeleton structures, you would have to mod it heavily and it would start to _look_ like an SDM design .

For the price these frames look great - so long as you you don't want to fit a Servocat and you spend some time baffling the secondary cage and tube from stray light. I am looking forward to seeing someone import one and relate their experiences.

[Omaroo]

LOL Mark. You know that I was being facetious in making a point. Of course SDM materials are worth a bomb. I maintain that the sum of its component parts is NOT what determines the finished scope is worth.