CharlesW
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Reged: 11/02/12
Loc: Chula Vista & Indio, CA
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Dome for your building
#5562683 - 12/09/12 03:48 PM Attachment (59 downloads)
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I ran across this a Costco today. It is a children's climbing set, 7.5' in diameter and 46 inches high. Some clever person might remove some of the supports, sheath it, and mount is on top of an 8' or 10 ft/sq building. The label claims it will support 1000 lbs. You could put wheels on the base and rotate it. It's even called, "The Space Dome." $139.
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mich_al
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 05/10/09
Loc: Rural central lower Michigan ...
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: CharlesW]
#5563313 - 12/09/12 11:11 PM
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Yep, sure looks interesting. Thoughts on a cover? How about a couple of layers of that shrink plastic used for coverting boats in the winter.
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rlandsboro
member
Reged: 02/23/12
Loc: Scottsdale, AZ. USA
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: mich_al]
#5563351 - 12/09/12 11:46 PM
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Interesting. I see how it could be supported and rotated. How would you make an opening to view through - one that could be opened and closed?
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opticsguy
sage
Reged: 02/02/09
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: rlandsboro]
#5563368 - 12/09/12 11:57 PM
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You could easily copy this and build any size out of wood. In fact somwwhere in my memory, i have seen metal plates designed to build domes.
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kiwisailor
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 01/07/04
Loc: Lyttelton, New Zealand
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: opticsguy]
#5567494 - 12/12/12 12:33 PM
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Quote:
. Thoughts on a cover? How about a couple of layers of that shrink plastic used for coverting boats in the winter.
Then sheath that in Fibreglass, remove the playset/plastic wrap, cut a slot and glue in some wood battens as stiffiners. A geo dome, and a toy for the kids- everyone wins 
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nytecam
Postmaster
Reged: 08/20/05
Loc: London UK
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: CharlesW]
#5568655 - 12/13/12 04:07 AM Attachment (28 downloads)
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Good find to adapt for astrodome  I've a removeable clip-on ali shutter to my DIY 5.5ft dome [see my link].
Once the SpaceDome is weather clad, a lift-off ali or roll-off fabric shutter section should be possible as my two options below - the obstruction of the slim frame struts will be minor on observations especially with a larger aperture scope 
The dome could [with suitable cladding] be light enough to 'walk-around' on skids to aim in a different direction and elliminate the need for track and rollers 
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Starman27
Post Laureate
Reged: 01/29/06
Loc: Illinois, Iowa
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: nytecam]
#5568777 - 12/13/12 07:56 AM
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Wow! Tinker Toy dome. I'll have to visit Costco and see it. Nytecam has a good idea. I don't think I could use the dome, but it's worth a look.
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mikey cee
Postmaster
Reged: 01/18/07
Loc: bellevue ne.
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: Starman27]
#5568976 - 12/13/12 10:41 AM
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Seems to me to be a rather rigid piece of Tinker Toy to me. When you set it on a flat surface it looks like you could out a long vertical slit several feet wide and it would stay rigidly intact while you fabricated the slit edges etc. Mike
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Bob Moore
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 04/07/06
Loc: New York
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: mikey cee]
#5570247 - 12/14/12 01:55 AM
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Thank you! thank you! thank you! Charles!!! I have been racking my brain trying to workout a way to cover out setup when we have to remove our 8' Astro haven dome in the spring for repair. All I'll have to do is fiberglass right over the space done add a flang on the bottom lift off the Astro haven and drop on the FB- space dome on. ... Now to find a Costo around here.
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stmguy
super member
Reged: 10/11/12
Loc: Western NH
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: Bob Moore]
#5570819 - 12/14/12 12:57 PM
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If it will just be a temporary cover consider shrinkwrap like they use on boats for the winter
Norm
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Starhawk
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/16/08
Loc: Tucson, Arizona
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: stmguy]
#5570933 - 12/14/12 02:28 PM
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Heck, just get a couple and build decoy domes from them to make your observatory look less interesting.
-Rich
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Starhawk
Post Laureate
Reged: 09/16/08
Loc: Tucson, Arizona
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Re: Dome for your building
[Re: Starhawk]
#5570947 - 12/14/12 02:34 PM
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Hold everything! I just noticed there is a flat line at the mid-plane- if you get two, you can separate them to slide apart at that line, or put your shutter there ( the dome will be wider, though).
-Rich
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