I am getting back into astronomy (since my youth) and wishing to build a pier and observatory and tossing up what sort of pier to use; fabricate my own 12" (300mm) concrete pier (but where can I get the formatube
) vs. a 165mm metal pier (available from one of the telescope companies here in Oz). It is to support my CPC1100 and wedge and as I wish to get into astrophotography it needs to be stable so any ideas and experiences with either pier out there? Any help is appreciated. Thx.