· Get a Cloudy Nights T-Shirt · Submit a Review / Article Click here if you are having trouble logging into the forums Privacy Policy | Please read our Terms of Service | Signup and Troubleshooting FAQ | Problems? PM a Red or a Green Gu… uh, User You are not logged in. [Login] Entrance · Main Index · Search · New user · Who's Online FAQ · Calendar Equipment Discussions >> Mounts Previous   Index   Next   Threaded   Pages: 1 | 2 | (show all) zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio I made a Tripod Spreader for my Surveyor's Tripod.       #5658537 - 02/02/13 05:17 PM Attachment (49 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   I've wanted a tripod spreader for my surveyor's tripod for some time now. So I figured why not attempt to make my own. I found a similar discussion on CN and a link to CNer orlyandico (Orlando)'s homemade tripod spreader. Here's a link to his setup: Here So I built something similar to what he has. I used 1 1/2in door hinges and 1 1/2 in by 1/8 in thick steel for the actual spreader. I cut the pieces of steel at 10in length. After some cutting, drilling, cussing, figuring stuff out, and with help from my dad I have a new tripod spreader. It works great and looks decent as well. Th next thing I'll do is add a wooden eyepiece tray to the spreader and bolts instead of screws where the hinges connect into the tripod. Edited by zjc26138 (02/02/13 07:09 PM) Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5658538 - 02/02/13 05:17 PM Attachment (41 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Closer: Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5658539 - 02/02/13 05:17 PM Attachment (36 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Even Closer: Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5658543 - 02/02/13 05:17 PM Attachment (32 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Even more closer: Post Extras:       crazyqban Carpal Tunnel Reged: 12/16/08 Loc: Miami, Florida Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5658746 - 02/02/13 07:15 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   WOW, looks excellent!!! Good job. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: crazyqban]       #5658761 - 02/02/13 07:22 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Thanks Sergio! Post Extras:       orlyandico Carpal Tunnel Reged: 08/10/09 Loc: Singapore Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5659061 - 02/02/13 10:49 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   wow looks better than mine i have a bit of a problem with mine though, in that it won't fold properly; the bolts interfere. from your photos your bolts are much beefier and i suspect you have the same issue... one difference i've noticed is that your steel spreader pieces are narrower than mine. hence they will resist side-to-side movement less effectively... which means, when you add the tripod spreader, your rigidity will increase by a huge amount. make sure there is clearance in the tray for the bolts in the middle easiest solution is to have a circular hole in the middle of the spreader tray.. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: orlyandico]       #5659112 - 02/02/13 11:24 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Thanks! For 25.00 its pretty good. Yep my legs won't fold up all they way either. Not to big of an issue until I need to put the tripod in my car.When that happens I'll loosen the bolts all the way, so the tripod can collapse. Yeah I plan to mount the eyepiece tray with a bolt through the middle as well as bolts at the edges of the tray through the steel bars. I'll probably do this during the next week or so. Post Extras:       Astronewb sage Reged: 09/19/11 Loc: Connecticut Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5659548 - 02/03/13 09:07 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Great job with readily available components. Thanks for sharing the idea and details. Same to Orly..... Best Paul Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: Astronewb]       #5659737 - 02/03/13 11:05 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Thanks Paul! Post Extras:       Bart Carpal Tunnel Reged: 05/28/06 Loc: Somewhere near Charlottesville... Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5659775 - 02/03/13 11:24 AM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   If the bolts next to the legs were pointing up, it would close tighter.... Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: Bart]       #5659853 - 02/03/13 12:00 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   The steel bars fold up. What stops them from folding completely is the bolt heads hitting the tripod. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5660104 - 02/03/13 02:31 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   I just cut out the eyepeice holder. It's 10im diameter. Should be able to hold two 2" eyepieces and two-three 1.25" eyepieces. Which is plenty as this is my grab and go mount and I usually bring 2-3 eyepeice with me. Tomorrow I'll buy some bolts, make the cuts for the eyepieces, and stain the wood. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5661859 - 02/04/13 02:06 PM Attachment (21 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Almost done with the eyepiece holder. It's not perfect, but sure helps stiffen the spreader. I need to fill in a couple holes with wood filler, sand the entire thing, and then a couple coats of stain and will be ready to go. Edited by zjc26138 (02/04/13 02:06 PM) Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5662086 - 02/04/13 04:32 PM Attachment (11 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Eyepiece holder after many coats of stain. I still need to stain the bottom side. That will happen later tonight or tomorrow. Post Extras:       orlyandico Carpal Tunnel Reged: 08/10/09 Loc: Singapore Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5662356 - 02/04/13 07:35 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   How'd you handle the bolts sticking out of the middle of the metal spreader? there is a relieved area under the EP holder? Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: orlyandico]       #5662362 - 02/04/13 07:40 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   There is no relieved area, though that is a good suggestion. They rest on the wood with no problem as far as I can tell. If I notice any strain once the bolts holding the tray are locked down, then I'll adjust the tray. I'll make a relieved area like you suggested. Post Extras:       orlyandico Carpal Tunnel Reged: 08/10/09 Loc: Singapore Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5662450 - 02/04/13 08:32 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   without a relieved area, the tray is "sitting" on top of those bolts and so not flush against the metal strips. so it is less rigid than it could be... I ended up with a similar solution on mine (plastic EP tray) so the rigidity is not ideal. I should look at making a plywood tray like yours as well, once I start using my tripod more. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: orlyandico]       #5662463 - 02/04/13 08:42 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Yes you right. I might use my dremel and cut out an area for the bolts tomorrow. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5664364 - 02/05/13 09:40 PM Attachment (10 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Eyepiece holder after final coat of polyurethane. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5667137 - 02/07/13 01:54 PM Attachment (12 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Completed spreader/eyepeice holder. Next project will be making a eyepiece holder for my iEQ45. Post Extras:       Agatha professor emeritus Reged: 06/04/12 Loc: Minneapolis, MN Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5667249 - 02/07/13 02:59 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Zach, That looks great. What a good project. Thanks to both you and Olando. Best, Linda B. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: Agatha]       #5667260 - 02/07/13 03:04 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Linda, Thanks! Post Extras:       lakeorion professor emeritus Reged: 08/03/10 Loc: Lake Orion MI Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5669706 - 02/08/13 08:14 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   I didn't make a spreader, rather, I made an unspreader. I ran three eyebolts through the legs near the bottom, then ran chain through them. During setup, you just pull the legs out until the chain tightens. Things might not always be perfectly triangular, but each leg is adjustable, and even on concrete, one leg can't fly out. When it folds up, there is a couple of feet of chain loops hanging down... Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: lakeorion]       #5670603 - 02/09/13 12:01 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   That's a good idea. I thought about using chain, but wanted something to hold my eyepieces as well. Post Extras:       orlyandico Carpal Tunnel Reged: 08/10/09 Loc: Singapore Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5670662 - 02/09/13 12:37 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   the trouble with using chain (i had chain before i made my spreader) is that it doesn't keep the legs at 120 degrees apart from each other. if the leg supports at the tripod hub are not wide enough, the legs have a tendency to wpbble. Post Extras:       Scott in NC Mad Hatter Reged: 03/05/05 Loc: NC Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: orlyandico]       #5671526 - 02/09/13 10:42 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Very nice work, Zach! Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: Scott in NC]       #5671598 - 02/09/13 11:38 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Thanks Scott! I really enjoyed making the spreader/eyepeice holder. I have a good amount of free time now, so I might make a hole bunch of eyepeice holders. Who knows maybe someone will want one. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: Scott in NC]       #5671599 - 02/09/13 11:38 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Thanks Scott! I really enjoyed making the spreader/eyepeice holder. I have a good amount of free time now, so I might make a hole bunch of eyepeice holders. Who knows maybe someone will want one. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5672772 - 02/10/13 05:56 PM Attachment (2 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Here is the eyepiece holder for my iEQ45. Now it needs sanded and painted. Post Extras:       Raginar Carpal Tunnel Reged: 10/19/10 Loc: Rapid CIty, SD Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5673060 - 02/10/13 08:58 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   I need to make something like that for my pier... really nice zjc! Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: Raginar]       #5673309 - 02/10/13 11:42 PM Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Thanks Chris! Yeah it's a really simple build. Though cutting round pieces of wood is not the easiest thing with a jigsaw. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5674979 - 02/11/13 11:23 PM Attachment (2 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   After a few coats of stain today. Tomorrow it will get polyurethaned. Post Extras:       zjc26138 Loved By All Reged: 02/24/05 Loc: Mingo Junction, Ohio Re: Homemade Tripod Spreader for Surveyor's Tripod. [Re: zjc26138]       #5677877 - 02/13/13 03:36 PM Attachment (2 downloads) Edit   Reply   Quote Quick Reply   Completed eyepiece tray: Post Extras:       Pages: 1 | 2 | (show all) Previous   Index   Next   Threaded   Extra information 21 registered and 51 anonymous users are browsing this forum. 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