5 replies to this topic

[sy184]

I am thinking of a roll off observatory.

I would like to buy one already made (in a kit) rather than design/build it my self

Does anyone know who makes them. I have found a couple of places online. Wandering if there are other vendors selling them.

I live near Kansas City, Ks.

[ShaulaB]

There is a really active astro club near KC. It might help to talk to members who have ROR personal observatories. My club's ROR was done by a (now defunct) home builder IIRC and they needed a lot of guidance.

[havasman]

Back Yard Observatories may be just what you're looking for. They do very good work. If they don't quickly return your contact it's likely because they're on a job. They stay busy.

[John Carlini]

Pier Tech Inc. sells roll-off-roof structures that you can assemble as a kit. You can buy a whole building or just a roof section. I used one of their TS-3 kits for my observatory roof and built a custom base.

 

http://piertechinc.com

[macdonjh]

sy184,

 

Welcome to Cloudy Nights.

 

Your original post stated you are looking to build a "roll-off" observatory.  Does that mean you want to be able to roll the entire building away from your pier/ mount/ scope?  I don't know of anyone who makes a kit for something like that.  However, the roll-off observatories I've seen are typically small, so it wouldn't be hard to build one from scratch, or from a pre-fabricated garden shed.  You'd just have to figure out what kind of tracks you want your building to roll on, and how to tie it down so it stays put when you're not using it.  Sometimes I wish I had built something like that.  You can do a search in these forums, or on the internet, for "outhouse observatory".

 

If you want a "roll-off roof" observatory, where the roof rolls and the rest of the building stays put, the others have provided you with several ideas.  Several people I know have hired Backyard Observatories and I can say they do good work and are quite fast.  I've heard they are also willing to work with you to customize one of their stock plans so you get exactly what you want.  The people I know had contractors pour their slabs, then BYO arrived at the site with all the materials and tools required.  Two or three days later BYO left, and my friends had functioning observatories, didn't even have to buy batteries.

[LDb]

You can find absolutely no better people to build an observatory than Diane and Scott of BYO. The have built around 300 observatories (including mine). @macdonjh above is correct. BYO will work with you to midify their stock plans and build pretty much anything you want. They are top notch and consummate professionals. They are also long-time amateur astronomers themselves and they know what they;re doing because they know what is needed for the person who will be using it. The y can build on a slab, on a deck, etc.

They can be hard to get hod of because they are indeed on the road most of the time building their excellent observatories. I give BYO the absolute highest possible recommendation.

 

Here's mine (and it was particularly different because it included a dome):

https://www.cloudyni...-in-the-making/

 

Hope this helps.