Exceptional Deep Space 368mm (14.5 inch) Custom Engineered Hand Crafted Dobsonian telescope
It's time to move on some of the gear that I have that will simply never get used
You will not see gear like this advertised on IIS often, this is an exceptional once off opportunity for you to purchase something staggeringly exceptional
Details:
Custom engineered 14.5 inch Ultra Series (Limited Availability) 14.5 inch John Hudek Galaxy Optics 368mm f4.5 primary mirror. Custom hand crafted aluminium cell (I hand crafted this unit using components left over from a prototype Aston Martin 12 cylinder torque tube unit - the commercial gear didn't satisfy me, just not strong enough or stable enough, so I did this myself, it is so much better than the commercial stuff it isn't funny). Secondary mirror Protostar Quartz >1/30 wave PV enhanced coated. Spider and secondary holder by Astro Systems USA
Tube is Sonotube plus fully fibreglass coated for additional strength and longevity. Mount is marine ply (the marine ply timber alone cost over $ 600). Focuser is an ultra premium Astro Systems (USA) Phase 4 - 2 inch Crayford ultra smooth with 1.25 inch adaptor, these are no longer made and are exceptional
The 2ndry mirror is ultra premium
Quartz from Protostar USA and size is 2.6 inches, and is enhanced coated using the EBD Electron Beam Deposition process, which is the best ultra extreme accuracy performance secondary in the world. Again no linger available as Protostar do not do them anymore.
It enables full illumination of large eyepieces such as a 2 inch options of - 50mm Takahashi, 40mm Pentax XW, 65mm Clave, 60mm Masuyama & 41mm Panoptic and such - all of which I have used in this telescope and are all fully illuminated.
The secondary was deliberately designed to be as small as possible whilst not interfering with using large eyepieces, and thereby achieves an excellent central obstruction ratio well below the magic 20% mark at 16% which is excellent. Planetary performance with this telescope provides images that startle - I have achieved the best images of Jupiter I have ever experienced with this telescope - it was magnificent.
Deep Space provides images that you have likely never experienced, the power WITH QUALITY is the key here, and this unit has both.
The OTA weighs 39 Kg, and the mount box weighs 38 Kg. The Dob box is marine ply double thickness 38mm sides and bottom, it is super strong, and provides a stable foundation for the unit.
The mount sides are hinged with stainless steel hinges, and fold down when the front plate is removed, it is attached using dairy industry stainless steel bolts and wing nuts.
The girdle for the telescope is stainless steel and hand crafted by a dairy industry stainless steel fabricator, and has Kynor super high strength (exotica level plastic) wheels on the sides attached to it with extra large and strong dairy industry stainless bolts, the wheel sit on nylon blocks on the Dob box. It includes felt lining the whole circumference on the inside where the girdle sits against the tube, it's positioning is stable and there is no movement, connection of the girdle is with dairy industry stainless fasteners. Motion is very smooth, precise and stable, as this is super strong manufacturing and design.
The eyepiece height is straight dead on standing up at the Zenith for a person 5 foot 11 inches tall.
I have been hand crafting telescopes for decades, this is the best unit I have ever made, and it has been my #1 absolute best private telescope, I simply don't need it due to having purchased a 20 inch Officina Stellare, as I simply don't need this unit.
Capability - this unit has the performance that most of the advanced astronomy community dream of. The telescope's performance is beyond what most of the IIS team will ever experience.
If I was to hand craft one of these units today it would cost me over $ 6k in materials alone, and take way way over a hundred hours to hand craft, more like 150 hours ++
It's performance is stunning
It's condition is excellent, I have cared for this unit as I care for all my scopes, it suits a new buyer.
Why am I selling it, simple. I have a 20 inch Officina Stellare, I do not need this system any more, and it sits in my lounge unused.
Price is a morte than cost effective
$ 3,000, if I made another unit it would cost over $12k.
Pickup from Bentleigh, Melbourne.
Payment in cash on pickup.
Thanks for looking.