Geez matt, couldn't you find a thicker piece of steel for the top plate?
That looks like a piece of hull off the titanic
Will the weights clear the corner?
Seeing that is giving me the urge to start my Obs as well.
Got a few other jobs to do around the place first though.
Cheers
Is there a date when you plan to start your Obs?
Quote:
Originally Posted by RB
The pier looks great with the EQ6 on it Matty !
Thanks Andrew,
It sure does.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tandum
Geez matt, couldn't you find a thicker piece of steel for the top plate?
That looks like a piece of hull off the titanic
Will the weights clear the corner?
Thanks Robin,
The pier plate probably weighs just as much as an EQ6.
I put the EQ6 on top of the pier with the counterweights and it does clear the corner. I was worried at first but luckily there is just enough clearance.
Quote:
Originally Posted by turbo_pascale
Matty,
I assume the BBQ will live nowhere near the obs once it's up & running. The oily smoke is not something you want anywhere near your optics.
Turbo
Probably not. When the Observatory roof is closed the smoke will not be able to do any damage to the scope's optics or anything else. So it might stay there unless we encounter any problems when using it next to the Obs.
Matt, good work all around. The EQ6 looks good on your pier, and I think that leaving the MDF attached makes sense, for the reasons that you offered plus it will provide a bit of insulation, which may reduce the amount of heat pick-up by the pier. I plan to insulate (to an extent) my circular pier.
I think it will a while yet Matt probably around May next year.
Cheers
I'm sure before you know it, you'll have an Observatory, built and ready to go.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ChrisM
Matt, good work all around. The EQ6 looks good on your pier, and I think that leaving the MDF attached makes sense, for the reasons that you offered plus it will provide a bit of insulation, which may reduce the amount of heat pick-up by the pier. I plan to insulate (to an extent) my circular pier.
Cheers, Chris
Thanks Chris.
I never thought about that. How important is it to insulate a pier? As the pier should be well protected from heat sources from outside.
Matty, I consider that it's worthwhile keeping the thermal mass of the observatory and its equipment as low as is reasonably practical. By doing this, the observatory itself and the equipment within will reach thermal equilibrium with the atmosphere sooner as the evening cools down, and therefore not create as much localised turbulence in the atmosphere.
Having said this, some items, such as the pier, need to be "solid" (some would debate this, but that's another topic), but all is not lost, since it is a simple matter to wrap some insulation around a pier. This will also stop it gaining some heat during the day.
My pier is also solid concrete and will have a steel pipe extension on top. The pipe is somewhat thicker walled than I wanted (don't kick a gift horse in the mouth) so I will wrap some foam rubber or similar around it, then maybe a layer of thin carpet around that.
I thought it was time to see what the scope would look like setup on the pier. I went and picked up a bolt to secure the EQ6 to the plate allowing me to attach the scope to the mount without it tipping over.
The counterweights weren't placed in the balanced position as the threaded rod is in the way. Once they are cut the counterweights will easily clear the plate.
After a long period of no work being done on the observatory, we have completed the floor platform ready for the next phase of construction.
The majority of the floor framing material that we used were 90mm x 90mm wood pieces and for the flooring we used yellow tougue flooring.
We decided to build off the brick wall to save materials and time once we get the wall up. The wood frame that is on top of brick wall is the actual height of the wall and will also act as one of the roof supports.
It is now starting to look like a half completed Observatory.
Why matt!! you can get the mount aligned out on the mount and leave it there covered with a couple of towels and a tarp... from then on, your astronomy only requires you to carry scopes/computer outside, set it up and start imaging.
My mount lives outside setup and aligned. If I carry out my scopes at around 5pm and start plugging in cables/computer etc etc, Im ready to image as soon as its dark enough. Saves a lot of hassle when you dont have to drift align before every session.
).
Floor Platform Finished - Saturday 6/12/08
