Telescope Reviews: Atlux permanent steel pier design -comments please

You can make the pier from a section of steel pipe that has a wall thickness from about 6.5 to 10mm, and the top and bottom plates should be 13mm thick or more to resist distorting either from the heat generated by welding or the bolts being tightened. Otherwise, a square or polygonal pier would have to be made from a section of square tubing or a series of flat plates cut to shape, then fitted and welded together. I've done welding in the past, and even 6.5mm steel bends quite easily from one sledge hammer blow while cold. You will want to give the welding or machine shop a pattern with the bolt holes in it so you can bolt the mounting to the pier without hassles. Mild steel is a good material, and far less expensive than aluminum, or stainless steel which is both very expensive and quite hard to weld properly. Just make sure the welds are dressed or cleaned up, the pier primed and painted. Since it's hollow, it could also be used as a raceway for any electrical circuits or data cables you may wish to run to the telescope. Or you can fill it with sand to act as a vibration dampener. Just make sure if you decide to have both data cables and electrical circuits routed to the pier, place then in separate conduits for safety reasons. Isolating the pier is a good idea. A look at the design of many observatories also shows this design feature. A wooden floor is fine, but make sure animals can't get under there if you do. Where I live, skunks, raccoons and many other wild animals will make a home in a crawlspace, and might be unexpected guests when you're observing. When you get the pier, then pour the pad you will put the pier on and not the reverse. You need to know where the bolts on the pier will go, and thus have a pattern ready so you can place anchor bolts in the wet concrete before it sets. That way, when it cures, you can place the pier on the pad, level it and bolt it into place without problems.

Taras

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15-inch F/4.5 Dob under construction
10-inch F/4.5 Discovery Dob
6-inch F/8 Homebuilt Dob
4 1/4-inch F/4 Homebuilt reflector
A whole bunch of eyepieces, filters and other accessories....
Two curious cats