509 replies to this topic

[deSitter]

Hi guys!  I'm still around, just not active with telescopes anymore.  I sold and gave away most of my Cave telescopes and spare parts and most of my other telescopes.  I did keep a few!

 

Sold the Brashier but i am keeping the Alvan Clark.  I also still have the 16" Observatory Cave and all it's parts!  Anyone interested?

 

I never started that project as the stroke kinda changed my life.  The 16" is still in Ohio as my wife and I bought a house in Sunnyvale, California and we moved here last April.  I'm 35 miles from Lick Obsevatory and can see it from our new Eichler house.  

 

The grand babies (We now have two!  Thomas and Lucy!) are fine and growing fast.  My son bought us the house here in Sunnyvale (guess I raised him right!) and he is my landlord.  I have a second hobby of collecting guitars (I'm up to ten!) and I have a new hobby that involves coffee and have just ordered a Samreno Cube espresso machine and coffee grinder!   I love my hobbys and they keep me going!

 

I exercize regularly (every day!) on a Kaiser spin bike and have lost weight from 192 to 167. You have to keep up with all the heathy people here in California!  I feel great!  

 

I'm 72 now.  I've sold off most of my commercial real estate and have almost officially retired.  

 

We do have very clear skys here in the summer and I've gotten out a scope or two.  I'm thinking about getting one of those "smart" telescopes just for fun.  My wife says I've always have had too many hobbies.  It's what keeps me alive.

 

Bye for now!

 

Turk

Lucky you! I have a neighbor who is afraid of the dark now! Glad you're OK!

 

I'm gradually being drawn into EAA and imaging. Back problems etc. make taking out heavy equipment a chore. I hope the imaging project from my city location inspires me to try harder. But it's so fun to play with my ETXes and 3" refractors!

 

-drl

[jgraham]

Ahah! I was wondering what you have been up to. It's good to hear that you are doing well. FYI... you did an amazing job restoring the Unitron 510 and it is still regularly catching starlight. It has become a common site at our local outreach events. The last one we attended the host was really glad to see us (and the 510) as they featured a picture of it from last year in their event announcement. Wonderful scope!

Enjoy, and keep us posted!

[R Botero]

Great update Turk and enjoy your retirement!

 

Roberto

[Terra Nova]

It’s always great to hear from you Tom. Thanks for letting us know how your doing and to know you’re doing well. I still have fond memories of meeting you and your wife, seeing your Clark and Brashear and that wonderful dinner at that great Italian restaurant you took us too up in Canton. All my best to you and your better half! I too have left Ohio and moved closer to family and my grandson, being a mile away instead of a hundred makes a big difference. And I too have far fewer telescope, but I still actively observe. I agree, hobbies make life fun and keep us going, and so does positive change. Please pop in again!

[jragsdale]

Glad to hear you kept the Clark, those are always worth holding onto last. Share any photos of it setup if you have any, I'm not sure I saw it since you built tripod legs for it.

 

And nice choice on the Sanremo Cube, those are VERY nice. Probably makes better espresso than most commercial shops can pull if you're using top quality beans. I like to roast my own beans but my brewing gear is pretty pedestrian.

[IvanLake]

I hate that I missed this restoration recovery rescue of a beautiful Cassegrain. 

I restored the 20-in cassegrain at the ,then it was called the Dayton Museum of Natural History... now it is the Boonshoft Museum of discovery (because somebody named boonchoff wrote a check)

I am less than 40 minutes from Wilmington Ohio (and he's lucky that I didn't know about that telescope first)  ..

 

but I certainly would have been there to help !!

and yes the best way to go is to hire riggers and stand back.. we had the crane take the huge Parts out of the Dome and set it on my trailer I took it to sand blasters had the metal part sandblasted the machine parts went on my bench in my shop cleaned and refurbished 2-24" Byers gears with clutches.. this was in.. would have been about 1993 I believe..

Sent to highly insured pieces of glass.. primary and secondary to New York someplace to be coated..

I don't remember exactly where because it was in 93

 

and then painted and parts made ready parts put on the trailer and back to the museum where I met the crane and Muth Brothers Riggers..

 

About 6k ..I did it as a donation to the Museum.

Because I worked there I was doing laser shows in the planetarium and making about 100K a year working Friday and Saturday nights so I wanted to keep the museum happy..

But the week after the telescope was done restored first light they changed directors the second director that came in had no idea that I had ever done anything for the museum.. oh well I enjoyed the Scope

Here's a pic of the finished scope

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[Mike W]

Get well Tom. I just went on blood thinners and two weeks on a heart monitor for A-Fib. Hopefully I don't have to go through what you have.

Mike

[deSitter]

Get well Tom. I just went on blood thinners and two weeks on a heart monitor for A-Fib. Hopefully I don't have to go through what you have.

Mike

 

Best wishes.

 

-drl

[IvanLake]

I just bought this 16" Cassegrain from Braeside Observatory. Aka Braeside Sky Survey... last used around 2000.. parts missing, some assembly required.. no secondary yet. He says he can find it..

Coming from Utah..

 

It is how I landed on this 16-in Cassegrain thread..

Birds of a focuser.

Crazy this was in my backyard..

I know all about Wilmington Ohio..

Almost Drowned in Cowan Lake several times !

 

I'd LOVED to had helped here.. 

Sorry I was AWOL

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Edited by IvanLake, 30 March 2025 - 02:53 PM.

[Mike W]

Get well Tom. I just went on blood thinners and two weeks on a heart monitor for A-Fib. Hopefully I don't have to go through what you have.

Mike

I posted this before reading through the thread, thought you had a stroke. Glad you didn't but the bird flu was bad enough! I had a similar issue with one of the 6" Goto refractors I fixed for two high schools in CT. The Foran dome's shutters were bend after a failure of the end switch on the motor actuated cable. This let the birds in and thankfully they covered the scope and pier. The janitors had the fun of cleaning up behind the birds!