After seeing scopes set up on plastic tarps and the tarps pulling up and causing problems I had the idea of throwing down a rubberbacked hutchie sheet and rolling a synthetic carpet out on top of it to set my scope up on. I thought I would also find 3 large pavers, or the like, to put under the tripod legs. Does this sound like a valid way to go?
Sounds like a great idea to me. I just finished putting 3 pavers (normal sized ones) in the grass for my tripod legs. I've made a mark on the pavers so that the tripod is level and (roughly) aligned without having to check it each time.
Mike, do you find that the telescope is slower to settle now that it is standing on pavers, and if so an easy fix could be some squares of closed cell foam under each tripod leg (the laminated beach shoe variety). Regards Greg.
P.S. Thank you again for the organisation of such a beaut resource.
For pavers I'd suggest at least 200x200mm (pref 300x300 or bigger) with a 20mm bed of crusher dust/deco underneath, (don't use sand. Ants will dig it out from under single pavers) slightly damp and then WELL tamped down and levelled. Don't skimp on the crusherdust but don't go overboard either. 50mm is way too much, but 10mm really isn't enough.
I just finds meself a bit o' ground that's not got more than say 20 degrees or so slope, no mud so soft that me boots sink down deeper than the ankles, and no rocks bigger than 4 inches or so on it, and I plonks me dob down fair in the middle.
![[1ponders]'s Avatar](../vbiis/customavatars/avatar45_9.gif){kind=avatar}
