41 replies to this topic

[jragsdale]

I vote to sell the Cave to a true collector. Get a C14 Hyperstar for dedicated EAA, an NV unit w/H-alpha filter for a different scope for visual nebula viewing and many other scopes are great for solar system objects.

[Stevegeo]

I would kill for a cave that big,  when i was much younger my dream was a cave 12 .. and 16 ..

And you want to take it APART?? 

 

YOURE CRAZY,  fix it, restore it , enjoy it , but dont DESTROY IT.  

once the genie is out of the bottle , he never goes back in . 

Once you take a majestic scope apart for mods like that, it never goes back to its former glory ..

 

Ps. If your gonna wreck it, let me take it off your hands for a handsome  fee. ..

And i am literally  2 miles away . ,  the same with your other observatory  you dont/cant use because of neglect/age/inexperience.....thats in disrepair .  Fix it , or give it to sombody that can use it . 

 

I would not change the Cave , however i would UPDATE ITS SURROUNDINGS , make it more use able.  User friendly .

 If doing so means a goto mount, elevated floor...do it . 

[apfever]

This is obviously not the forum to ask about disassembling, highly modifying, or converting a classic vintage jewel into something it wasn't ever meant to do. I suggest ajkrishock move this inquiry to a forum of astrophotography or other electronic modernization in CloudyNights and get a second broad opinion of the concept of adapting the scope.  After getting the same basic story from another forum, perhaps the scope will be for sale to a local classic nut case into doing these dinosaurs.

[ccwemyss]

There is a TRADE option in the classifieds that might bring an exchange of a scope that's well-suited for outreach EAA without having to sell and buy. I'm not opposed to modifying a classic if doing so will get it back into use, and I'm a big fan of outreach. But I think this thing is going to be an ungainly outreach albatross in almost any form, and fall back into neglect as a result, when people grow tired of dealing with it. Someone who's a Cave aficionado will at least bring some pride of ownership to its long term upkeep in the original configuration. 

 

Chip W. 

[Stewc14]

I would certainly be interested in it

[mark77]

I also am interested in the Cave 16 inch. I have 2 Cave 8 inch, a 2 Cave 10 inch (Pinky is one of them) and a Cave 12 inch. One of the clubs I belong to has a 16 inch Cave and it is used for visual successfully.

 

Mark

Edited by mark77, 25 December 2024 - 10:54 PM.

[jrmacl]

There are no focal reducers that work on Newtonians as far as I know. And I have been in this hobby since 1957.

'57? So Sputnik 1 maybe sparked your interest?

[John Rogers]

I also am interested in the Cave 16 inch. I have 2 Cave 8 inch, a 2 Cave 10 inch (Pinky is one of them) and a Cave 12 inch. One of the clubs I belong to has a 16 inch Cave and it is used for visual successfully.

 

Mark

Do you have a photo of them side-by-side?  That would be interesting to see.

[mark77]

Do you have a photo of them side-by-side?  That would be interesting to see.

John

 

no i don't but that is an excellent idea. It will take me a bit but I will work on it.

 

I also have an 18 inch cave, one of only two in existence. http://www.skychario...ve18/index.html

[John Rogers]

John

 

no i don't but that is an excellent idea. It will take me a bit but I will work on it.

 

I also have an 18 inch cave, one of only two in existence. http://www.skychario...ve18/index.html

Wow!  I remember seeing that one in the Cave catalog.  I am glad to see that it still exists and is being taken care of.  I don't see it in the Cave registry.  Does the mirror have any engravings that indicate who figured it?  I would assume that it was Tom Cave himself, but in 1960 Alika K. Herring was there.  It must be awesome to look through that scope with great seeing conditions!

 

It would be great if you start a thread dedicated to this telescope and your restoration efforts!

[deSitter]

John

 

no i don't but that is an excellent idea. It will take me a bit but I will work on it.

 

I also have an 18 inch cave, one of only two in existence. http://www.skychario...ve18/index.html

Wow! Drool! Cave guy with a lab outfit! Show us!

 

-drl

[mark77]

Wow!  I remember seeing that one in the Cave catalog.  I am glad to see that it still exists and is being taken care of.  I don't see it in the Cave registry.  Does the mirror have any engravings that indicate who figured it?  I would assume that it was Tom Cave himself, but in 1960 Alika K. Herring was there.  It must be awesome to look through that scope with great seeing conditions!

 

It would be great if you start a thread dedicated to this telescope and your restoration efforts!

I haven't opened up the mirror crate yet to look at the mirror. Once I do that, I will enter it into the cave registry.

 

The ceiling in my barn is 12 feet tall and  I still cannot fully assemble the telescope. I have tested the motors and they work fine. I have to re-wire them. I cannot get the mirror cell onto the bottom of the tube assembly, it is off by a fraction of an inch and I don't want to force anything.

[pairofdocs]

I was a member of the board of directors of SAS when it was decided to buy the Cave 16”. Part of the decision was driven by the fact that Joe Italiano (sp) owned a home built 12” and we wanted something bigger. In the recent past I sent SAS and pile of photographs and documents about building of the observatory with pictures of my father helping lay down the foundation of the 16” observatory building.

I am surprised a camera won’t reach focus, the sky micro giant focuser has nearly 3.5” of travel. I also never found the scope to be a “wind sock”. It was a very stable mount, you couldn’t hang on the scope for balance, but while focusing it was solid. Adding a Nexus II would help pointing and something like AstrOwl would solve the nearly non-existent problems with EAA. To me it  sounds like it needs maintained rather than destruction

[pairofdocs]

I just measured how much in focus my ZWO asi224 required on my  127mm mak (easiest to get at right now). It was easy to get the asi224 to focus. Putting a ASIair and something like an asi224 broadcasting via WIFI to desktop with a big monitor is a simple and easy to implement solution

[ajkrishock]

I was a member of the board of directors of SAS when it was decided to buy the Cave 16”. Part of the decision was driven by the fact that Joe Italiano (sp) owned a home built 12” and we wanted something bigger. In the recent past I sent SAS and pile of photographs and documents about building of the observatory with pictures of my father helping lay down the foundation of the 16” observatory building.

I am surprised a camera won’t reach focus, the sky micro giant focuser has nearly 3.5” of travel. I also never found the scope to be a “wind sock”. It was a very stable mount, you couldn’t hang on the scope for balance, but while focusing it was solid. Adding a Nexus II would help pointing and something like AstrOwl would solve the nearly non-existent problems with EAA. To me it  sounds like it needs maintained rather than destruction

Always a pleasure to meet a former SAS board member! I have been the President of the group since 2016. I'm not sure who you sent your pictures to, but if they're in electronic form, I'd love to see them. I've only heard stories about Joe. We have some old observer's logs that have entries written by him. We still keep those logs at the observatory. 

 

As for the Cave, we've keen kicking around the idea of either updating or replacing it for years now. I proposed replacing the mount and going to an open tube design for the Cave a while ago, but there didn't seem to be much enthusiasm for that idea. We installed a nexus controller a few years ago, but it's been flaky at best. The equatorial mount tracks, but it's not go-to, so the best we can do is dead aim it at bright objects and the "standard" Messier's. Lately, turnout at our public events has declined to almost nothing, and the folks that do come out almost never return. My read of that is that the old Cave just isn't turning out the interested public like it used to. The board members (with one exception) seem to be eager for a big change.

 

Recently, our group was offered a C14 optical tube, and we now plan to use that with an iOptron CEM120 in place of the Cave. We think it'll make a fine replacement for visual observing along with allowing for EAA and AP. It will also serve the needs of our partners much better. We take our vote on the new scope on January 9th.

[pairofdocs]

If the Nexus doesn’t work well and you don’t like the mounted traditional setting circles, you should look into the cedar e-finder. It is cheap (under $100) and works well. I recently tested it and it works well. Look at CN posts by smroid

[photoracer18]

'57? So Sputnik 1 maybe sparked your interest?

My Dad bought me a 3" Edmund Space Conqueror Newt for Christmas that year while we were stationed with him in Alaska. He was interested too as he introduced me to science-fiction as he had a large collection of Astounding SF magazine.

Edited by photoracer18, 06 January 2025 - 06:09 PM.