tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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I love the walnut grain.
It's pretty hot out today, and though I put the 2 coats of poly on in the shade of the garage, it kind of went on heavy, and I got some runs!
Dries very fast, though, so I 'spect I'll be going back over it with fine sandpaper, then a couple more coats.
I wanted to get it covered to protect the wood while I continue working on it. 'Specially, when I go to spray the inside with flat black to catch things like the sawdust from adjustments and the glue drips from laying the last couple sides on. I don't want overspray on the wood. it'll be a lot easier to sand off the polyurethane than off the wood!
Still need to finish the cell, dewshield and back plate. Then it's fitting everything, making rings for it and a dovetail plate so I can put it on one of my tak mounts (either the NJP or the EM-500, I figure).
-Tim
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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rwiederrich
Goldfinger
Reged: 11/17/05
Posts: 8300
Loc: Bremerton Washington
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Quote:
I love the walnut grain.
It's pretty hot out today, and though I put the 2 coats of poly on in the shade of the garage, it kind of went on heavy, and I got some runs!
Dries very fast, though, so I 'spect I'll be going back over it with fine sandpaper, then a couple more coats.
I wanted to get it covered to protect the wood while I continue working on it. 'Specially, when I go to spray the inside with flat black to catch things like the sawdust from adjustments and the glue drips from laying the last couple sides on. I don't want overspray on the wood. it'll be a lot easier to sand off the polyurethane than off the wood!
Still need to finish the cell, dewshield and back plate. Then it's fitting everything, making rings for it and a dovetail plate so I can put it on one of my tak mounts (either the NJP or the EM-500, I figure).
-Tim
Good night Nurse! Tim...you work at warp speed. I love expedient progress. 
Will your dew cap be the same shape or will it be round? Possibly brass......Hmmm....or copper 
Beautiful...just beautiful....
Rob
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www.goldmtobservingcenter.com
A great place for amateur astronomers, and ATM's to come and enjoy their hobby.
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/HomemadeRefractorTelescopes/ My homemade refractor group.
www.vimeo.com/6014031
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Rob:
Here's the dewcap:
Same shape, but about 10" across instead of 8".
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Compared to putting the tube together, this was a cinch!
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Here's the "cell cell" because it's the cell that holds the cell that holds the lens!
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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I painted the cellcell parts black before i put everything away so I could get cleaned up for a bbq at my daughter's house.
The thicker ring is for the lens and cell to fit in, and the thinner ring screws on as a retainer to keep the lens from falling out.
I still need to make the back plate for this, which will probably be round, and wide enough to epoxy nuts into for the cell adjustment screws. It'll have a hole similar to the thin ring above, to keep the lens from falling out the other side.
The sky end of the tube will have a matching "plate" for the adjustment screws to come at the cell support from the back. I'll make the adjustments, and then the dewshield will be screwed on, also from the back (through holes in the plate on the OTA). These screws will go into blocks glued onto the inside of the dewshield, which I still need to make.
I'll probably poly the dewshield before I paint the inside, as it was way too easy to get little drops of black paint on the outside of the OTA while I was working on it. I got them all off, but it'll be easier if they can't soak into the wood.
Then it's the rings and saddle dovetail. I might actually be able to do that tomorrow, although I need to clean up the house after "bachin' it" for the past 2 weeks while my wife and son have been out of town.
I won't be "finished" with it, though. Just maybe able to toss it together to see how it performs!
Just don't hold me to it!
-Tim.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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rwiederrich
Goldfinger
Reged: 11/17/05
Posts: 8300
Loc: Bremerton Washington
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Quote:
I painted the cellcell parts black before i put everything away so I could get cleaned up for a bbq at my daughter's house.
The thicker ring is for the lens and cell to fit in, and the thinner ring screws on as a retainer to keep the lens from falling out.
I still need to make the back plate for this, which will probably be round, and wide enough to epoxy nuts into for the cell adjustment screws. It'll have a hole similar to the thin ring above, to keep the lens from falling out the other side.
The sky end of the tube will have a matching "plate" for the adjustment screws to come at the cell support from the back. I'll make the adjustments, and then the dewshield will be screwed on, also from the back (through holes in the plate on the OTA). These screws will go into blocks glued onto the inside of the dewshield, which I still need to make.
I'll probably poly the dewshield before I paint the inside, as it was way too easy to get little drops of black paint on the outside of the OTA while I was working on it. I got them all off, but it'll be easier if they can't soak into the wood.
Then it's the rings and saddle dovetail. I might actually be able to do that tomorrow, although I need to clean up the house after "bachin' it" for the past 2 weeks while my wife and son have been out of town.
I won't be "finished" with it, though. Just maybe able to toss it together to see how it performs!
Just don't hold me to it!
-Tim.
I need to clean up the house after "bachin' it" for the past 2 weeks while my wife and son have been out of town.
OH I see now...you've been on a mission...you actually had a time frame to (git er done) in.... 
I completely understand that. Once mommas home your time has thus become divided...and late nights burning the midnight oil...are gonna be over..
Now I understand the expeditiousness of your build..... 
No..actually..I'm very impressed with your wood working skill and very timely assembly.
It's gonna be beautiful.
Rob
--------------------
www.goldmtobservingcenter.com
A great place for amateur astronomers, and ATM's to come and enjoy their hobby.
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/HomemadeRefractorTelescopes/ My homemade refractor group.
www.vimeo.com/6014031
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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It hit me as I woke up this morning...
...where am I gonna put this thing? 
-Tim.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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rwiederrich
Goldfinger
Reged: 11/17/05
Posts: 8300
Loc: Bremerton Washington
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Quote:
It hit me as I woke up this morning...
...where am I gonna put this thing?
-Tim.
Dude.....You had better work that one out quick....
Rob
--------------------
www.goldmtobservingcenter.com
A great place for amateur astronomers, and ATM's to come and enjoy their hobby.
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/HomemadeRefractorTelescopes/ My homemade refractor group.
www.vimeo.com/6014031
|
tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Okay, I still haven't figured out where to put this thing!
But I'm making more progress...
Here's the "flange" glued onto the sky end of the tube. This is sized to fit inside the end of the dewshield, so that the edges of the Finnish plywood aren't visible.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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The flange is made of two 1/4" pieces glued and clamped together, so it's 1/2" thick and a gazillion plies, for strength.
Here's the cell progress. I've got the backplate of the cell glued onto the rest now, waiting for the glue to dry.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Finally, the dewshield interior. I glued this piece in as a stop and mounting surface for the backplate of the cell 9the unpainted part above.
The backplate and cell fit inside the dewshield behind this part.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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johnnyha
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 11/12/06
Posts: 1081
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Quote:
It hit me as I woke up this morning...
...where am I gonna put this thing?
-Tim.
I think you can make a convincing argument that this is a sculptural work of art that can be hung up on a wall in the house. Then put a few sturdy racks on the wall to cradle it. Hey it looks fantastic by the way I had been thinking of doing this, it's nice to see another one underway and NINE sides!
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Johnny
Spicewood, TX
Sherman Oaks, CA
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Hi Johnny:
Yeah, I don't know why it looks better to me to have a corner opposite a flat, but it does.
Years ago I tried making 12-sided tubes out of 1/4" plywood. But I found that the more sides, the harder it is to control "twist". And of course, the greater number of cuts and masking tape, glue and the lot.
Okay, now to go out and make a backplate and attach a focuser!
-Tim.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Okay, more stuff...
I just mounted the dewshield and cell onto the tube. No optics yet, and I still need to paint the inside of the diewshield black.
It should have mounted flush with the "plate" on the end of the tube, but it isn't. Possibly my screws are holding it out (come to think of it, that must be it!).
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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From the back.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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Star Gazer94
member
Reged: 12/20/08
Posts: 12
Loc: Altoona, Wisconsin
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That looks absolutely beautiful!
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http://astronomyking.wordpress.com/ (a work in progress)
Meade ETX-125AT w/ tripod (my new baby)
Homemade 6" Dobsonian
60 mm Bushnell Refractor (not used anymore)
Orion 17mm Stratus
TMB 7mm Planetary Eyepiece
Homemade 11mm RKE
Meade 4000 26mm Super Plössl
Edmunds Scientific RKE 28mm
Homemade 19mm plossl
Olympus E-510
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Thanks!
Okay, I'm toast! Feet hurt, back hurts, stomach's growling!
I did put the lens in and have achieved first light!
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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sighting along tube to downtown LA.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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tim53
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 12/17/04
Posts: 1421
Loc: Highland Park, CA
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Here's a closeup of the JMI focuser on a temporary back plate.
I'm using a 1 1/4" star diagonal here, and the focuser's out about 1 ", so I wasn't too far off when I measured things the other day. But I'm not sure I won't have a problem reaching focus with a 2" diagonal in. The building I was looking at is about 6 or 7 miles away, so there may be a bit of in-travel needed for true infinity.
If need be, i'll saw a bit off the tube and make a tapered block for the focuser as Rob suggested.
Now, gotta go wash off all that sawdust!
-Tim.
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"We`re just waiting looking skyward as the days come down.
Someone promised there`d be answers, if we stayed around."
-Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, "The Romance of the Telescope"
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