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MichaelW
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 06/03/06
Loc: Cartoon City, Nirvana
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Rebuilding a Meade 1266
#2884952 - 01/24/09 12:12 PM
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I have a Meade 1266 that my father bought in the mid 70's. It has been used, stored, used and stored etc etc etc through the time it has been in our family. I used it for film astrophotograhy way back when as the mirror was pretty good. My girl and I also used it to watch Levy-Shoemaker slam into Jupiter.
But since then it has been in storage and then pulled out to be installed on my deck next to the observatory to provide a nice viewing system for visitors and casual viewing. Sadly, while on the factory pier on my patio a wind pulled the not so lightweight telescope over and pretty much destroyed the tube. The spider and focuser also took a blow along with the rotating rings, which still work but are cracked. Fortunately the mirror was in the factory styrofoam for this trip and remains fully intact.
I have at this point a nice project to rebuild the telescope for casual observing.
I would like to still use the Meade GEM mount that although not up to snuff for imaging is fantastic for observing. But I need to buy,make,borrow, etc a tube or tube assembly. But the GEM mount seems to force a solid tube design where I am intrigued by the open truss style.
So what tube options do I have that you can see and what sources would be out there for a tube for a 12" mirror??? I have even considered a plywood square tube.
So what are my options for this long term project to ressurrect the 1266?
TIA!
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tim53
Postmaster
Reged: 12/17/04
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Re: Rebuilding a Meade 1266
[Re: MichaelW]
#2884993 - 01/24/09 12:31 PM
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Hi Michael:
I was working at Meade when the first Research Grade Newts were being produced in 1979. I think I said somewhere that I thought the tubes were fiberglass, but I was corrected - they were fiberlite paper/resin tubes like the smaller 6 ad 8" scopes I worked on.
Check with Parks, as their fiberglass tube may have the same dimensions such that you could reuse your other components when you rebuild the scope.
You can probably get the rotating rings arc welded, but make sure that the welder knows that the alignments across the crack need to be maintained. Parks also has rotating rings for their tubes, but they're not cheap
The mount can be upgraded to either a stepper motor or servo motor drive system for a few hundred bucks, such as the Bartels or Sidereal Technology kits. Easier if you're handy with tools and can fabricate brackets and such. This would give you goto and PEC, which might make it a viable imaging mount after all!
The Meade RGs were among the last of the oldschool GEM mounted Newts, and can still be a joy to use, particularly if you can roll them around on casters for easy and safe storage. While what you do with your scope is certainly up to you, I would think it would retain its value better if it were rebuilt like original (but perhaps with some modernization upgrades).
best,
-Tim.
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MichaelW
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 06/03/06
Loc: Cartoon City, Nirvana
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Re: Rebuilding a Meade 1266
[Re: tim53]
#2885011 - 01/24/09 12:45 PM
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Thanks Tim! 1979 huh, wow how memory fades the dates over time.  But that makes a lot more sense after deeper thought into when we got the little beasty.
I can do the welding part and fabrication of brackets and such would be a nice project. $200 to upgrade the drive system would probably be a good investment in the long run, providing I could improve on the declination control. The little plastic slip system is a little weak and has since become far to brittle to rely on as a viable driving mechanizm.
Although maintaining a good resale value as a factory scope, this is not as much of a priority for me at this point because if I decide to pass this scope on to someone, it will probably be as a charity donation to a school or club.
Thank you so much for the information and I will check into the information you provided.
On another note on a subject of the GEM mount that always left me desiring a little more.... Do you know of a better azimuth adjusting system for the mount? The scope is very heavy and using the 4 machine heads to hold the scope doesn't afford the precise control for performing a polar alignment. I have considered a turnbuckle or threaded rod from the motor position to the mount base.
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tim53
Postmaster
Reged: 12/17/04
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Re: Rebuilding a Meade 1266
[Re: MichaelW]
#2885031 - 01/24/09 12:56 PM
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Quote:
On another note on a subject of the GEM mount that always left me desiring a little more.... Do you know of a better azimuth adjusting system for the mount? The scope is very heavy and using the 4 machine heads to hold the scope doesn't afford the precise control for performing a polar alignment. I have considered a turnbuckle or threaded rod from the motor position to the mount base.
I've used a turnbuckle on an old Optical Craftsmen 1" shaft mount that works pretty well.
You might also look at the way modern GEMs set up the azimuth adjustment. I would think that is should be possible to fabricate a bracket that attaches to the outside of the pier, with adjusting screws that bear against a "tongue" that is mounted to the pier cap, and allows a few degrees of azimuth adjustment.
-Tim.
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