24 replies to this topic

[HouseBuilder328]

Have a Celestron Evo 9.25 - I'm looking for a JMI Wheeley bar with the 5 inch wheels, but looks like they've all been backordered - actually every JMI model is back-ordered.  B&H Photo and others said it's not discontinued yet, but no word from the manufacturer on when it might be in stock.  Nothing on Astromart in the classifieds and there's like several people posting who are looking for JMI wheeley bars also. 

 

I could wait or check into the Scopebuggy, which is probably over a $100 less in price?  I can try a do-it-yourself project and search on here for that but would rather not spend time doing that and it breaks on me LOL! 

 

Does the standard buggy work for me?

http://www.scopebugg...itledPandO.html

 

 

[Sacred Heart]

What type of terrain are you going over??  Grass, gravel, or paved.  Fairly level, no slants side to side??   How much weight??  100 pounds, + or - 10 or 20 pounds??

 

Do you have a circular saw, 6 1/2 or 7 1/4??    Build a T out of 2 X 4's.  2 standing on edge front to back, 2 standing on edge left to right.  2 stationary wheels, 1 castor wheel, a piece of plywood in the center to hold all your stuff, 1 - 4" long eye bolt, 5/16 or 3/8 long enough to go through the 2 x 4 on the bottom and a ratcheting tie strap to anchor the tripod to the buggy.  When you make the T, I would notch the 2 x 4's where they go together for added strength.  Like a half lap joint.

 

Which ever way you go, homemade or bought, when you move it - have the castor wheel in the back, two stationary wheels up front. For stability - you are top heavy.

 

Do a search for homemade buggy in equipment, some nice designs there.

 

Joe

[jlinsobe]

Harbor Freight sells wheels and casters.  Amazon too.

Many sizes.    

I have a JMI medium wheeley for my 10” lx meade and it works ok.   I bought it used right here.

They do come up every now and then.

I was thinking of getting bigger wheels but have read that stability may be an issue. 
Casters are just noisy. 

 

[SchoolMaster]

I made something out of casters, wheels, stainless steel bolts, and perforated channel.  A GEM28 with counterweights, a C8, and a piggybacked AT70ED, with two cameras, reducers, and dewstrips must be close to the weight of the Evo 9.25.  I also have the lighter Evo 8.  Cost me about $250 and I needed a socket driver of the right size and a cut-off wheel.  I use heavy-duty zip ties as safety straps and a handle.  It took me a couple of hours to build.  I have a sloping driveway with small pavers.  I would not want to carry anything much heavier without using more robust channel.

 

 

EDIT.  Also makes PA faster because I can move the dolley to correct Left-Right down to about 30 secs very easily.

Edited by SchoolMaster, 01 November 2022 - 06:45 PM.

[CapnRon]

I built my own scope cart.  I needed larger wheels as I role out of the garage and  down the driveway and may go over some grass.  My driveway is steep, the cart rolls smoothly and easily.  I used 8" inflated wheels, using a bolt as an axle.  the front wheel pivots, so I can steer it.  I ordered the wheels all on Amazon, the frame is just plywood and 2"x2" frame.

 

 

 

I have since spent a bit of time, cleaning up the components and connections.  

[Stevegeo]

I build custom tote/ buggys, small to large , dob tripod and yes even pier . Wheels from 4 to 16 in.
I have a few pics of my builds here on CN. My largest holds my orange tube big betty, C14, another for
My C11 ultima, and C8 on orion mount . They will hold up to 600 lbs .
Options availabe, battery mount, laptop mount, or ?? . With brakes, and capable of breaking down for transpor,
2 piece .leveling screws as well .dm me for details.

[HouseBuilder328]

What type of terrain are you going over??  Grass, gravel, or paved.  Fairly level, no slants side to side??   How much weight??  100 pounds, + or - 10 or 20 pounds??

 

Do you have a circular saw, 6 1/2 or 7 1/4??    Build a T out of 2 X 4's.  2 standing on edge front to back, 2 standing on edge left to right.  2 stationary wheels, 1 castor wheel, a piece of plywood in the center to hold all your stuff, 1 - 4" long eye bolt, 5/16 or 3/8 long enough to go through the 2 x 4 on the bottom and a ratcheting tie strap to anchor the tripod to the buggy.  When you make the T, I would notch the 2 x 4's where they go together for added strength.  Like a half lap joint.

 

Which ever way you go, homemade or bought, when you move it - have the castor wheel in the back, two stationary wheels up front. For stability - you are top heavy.

 

Do a search for homemade buggy in equipment, some nice designs there.

 

Joe

 

Mostly paved, level surfaces.  Some borders, small cracks in the driveway junctions etc.   Maybe sometimes, I take it on the grass, so figured the ScopeBuggy's wheels are better than those castor wheels.  Looks like a lot of people here made their own, which is cool.  Vs paying over $500 for these wheels.   

 

although I do admit, this is probably one of the most important astronomy tools for me as it takes away the laziness of moving heavy equipment as I'm no longer 25 years old.

[Sacred Heart]

Mostly paved, level surfaces.  Some borders, small cracks in the driveway junctions etc.   Maybe sometimes, I take it on the grass, so figured the ScopeBuggy's wheels are better than those castor wheels.  Looks like a lot of people here made their own, which is cool.  Vs paying over $500 for these wheels.   

 

although I do admit, this is probably one of the most important astronomy tools for me as it takes away the laziness of moving heavy equipment as I'm no longer 25 years old.

When I said castor wheel I meant the kinds of wheels Harbor Freight, by me - TSC have. Pneumatic or hard rubber. Pneumatic would be best for all types of terrain.  Lots of different designs out there, search in CN, talented people here, creative.  Find a design and tailor it to your needs.  Price it out.  My neighbor has two ways to move his scopes. He has a 12" Meade Lx200 on wheelie bars. Two T's made from channel iron, 3" channel riding inside 4" channel. The 4" channel has the wheels, 3" channel has acme threaded rod to lift the scope off of the wheelie bars so it can sit lower to the ground.

 

His other scope is a refractor sitting on a Losmandy G11T and the FHD tripod,  he put a spreader table low on the legs and has a hydraulic lift table, Harbor Freight Jeggs brand, he rolls under the mount and lifts the mount with the table and rolls it out to the backyard.  He did put larger wheels on the cart for easier rolling.

 

Me, I have a Paramount ME on a Parallax Instruments portable pier. I use a cart made from 3" channel iron, I have threaded rod on the pier, so I raise the pier, roll the cart under, lower the pier on the cart.

 

Truly back savers.     Joe

 

https://www.tractors...350-lb-capacity

 

https://www.tractors...350-lb-capacity

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[SchoolMaster]

If I get a mount a class up, or greater, from the GEM28 I have, wheels is a must, and I'll likely buy them prebuilt.  I'm 70. and the 40+ pounds of weight (counter weights don't count against the mount payload, but they certainly count against my back ) is more than I want to carry, and with 2 hour observing sessions, I want my scope ready to go.

Edited by SchoolMaster, 02 November 2022 - 12:21 PM.

[Stevegeo]

My mounts are light ( under 30 lbs) , strong up to 600 lbs with 12 in tires , and break down to two pieces .

You walk BESIDE YOUR SCOPE, on hand on the scope to controll direction and speed , and prevent tipping .
YOU ARE NOT FASTER THEN GRAVITY! Much safer then wagon handle buggies . And i provide a loop welded to frame
For tie down strap. Additional add ons.. laptop platform, eyepiece box holder, battery plate . And any other
add on you may want i can do..just ask..
Steve.

[BrendanF]

The ScopeBuggy should work for you if you don't want to go the DIY route.  It looks very similar to some of these home-built ones.

 

It might be worth an email or phone call to check current availability if you are thinking of buying (though there have been past reports of customer communications issues though not actual product issues).

[Stevegeo]

Sorry guys but i was warned about promoting my solution for transport. Admin sent me a kindly
Reminder i would be considered a VENDOR.. and such not being able to participate in the classifieds.

So if you have questions about safe transport of your scope. Ask me offline .

[DeepSky Di]

As publicized by Chuck's Astrophotography - these work on a hard level surface - https://www.lowes.co...olly/1000596157

[dob101]

Hi,

 

If you are still looking, I can tell you it works, as shown..

Album: album

1 images

0 comments

Have a Celestron Evo 9.25 - I'm looking for a JMI Wheeley bar with the 5 inch wheels, but looks like they've all been backordered - actually every JMI model is back-ordered.  B&H Photo and others said it's not discontinued yet, but no word from the manufacturer on when it might be in stock.  Nothing on Astromart in the classifieds and there's like several people posting who are looking for JMI wheeley bars also. 

 

I could wait or check into the Scopebuggy, which is probably over a $100 less in price?  I can try a do-it-yourself project and search on here for that but would rather not spend time doing that and it breaks on me LOL! 

 

Does the standard buggy work for me?

http://www.scopebugg...itledPandO.html

[mich_al]

Scope Roller  http://scoperoller.com/

[Stevegeo]

You didnt look hard enough .. see my profile gallery ..

[Raginar]

Sorry guys but i was warned about promoting my solution for transport. Admin sent me a kindly
Reminder i would be considered a VENDOR.. and such not being able to participate in the classifieds.

So if you have questions about safe transport of your scope. Ask me offline .

Steve has a good alternative. Message him.

[Raginar]

Steve has a good alternative. Message him.

[Hikescdnrckys]

+1 for Stevegeo scope buggies. He built one for my Celestron Evo 9.25 as well as one for my friend's CPC11. Both buggies were well built, they easily roll over grass, are easy to level, and I feel secure in knowing that my scope is protected. He uses a ratchet strap to run from the wheel assembly over the eyepiece tray. I leave mine fully assembled in the garage and then just roll it out when needed, adjust the levelling screws and I am good to go. He also customized mine to add an iPad stand so I can use SkySafari. Highly recommended. He even drove it out to Niagara Falls NY (I live in Canada, Southern Ontario), and I met him for lunch where he showed me how to assemble it and use it, he just charged for gas instead of an expensive shipping fee. See below for images.

 

 

 

 

[GolfSierra]

As publicized by Chuck's Astrophotography - these work on a hard level surface - https://www.lowes.co...olly/1000596157

I will second that, I use the large size for a G11 setup and the smaller size version for a GM8 setup. Very simple solution for rolling in or out of the garage.

[Stevegeo]

Narrow wheels, narrow stance equals disaster.. seen it many times... hit a crack, over it goes, busted...

 You can do better, larger wider wheels. WIDER STANCE ( less tipping )   lower center of gravity, 

Yes im still here, and still building,  ( see vendor forum) 

 

Working on improvements .  Trays , brakes, etc.

[speedster]

My 2-cents:  contact Steve and do it right and do it once.

[Stevegeo]

Thanks bud for the thumbs up .. hhope to meet a few of you at NEAF tomorrow..  i will bd wearing a FLAME DOORAG HAT..

Handing out flyers ..

[jerry brink]

Sorry guys but i was warned about promoting my solution for transport. Admin sent me a kindly
Reminder i would be considered a VENDOR.. and such not being able to participate in the classifieds.

So if you have questions about safe transport of your scope. Ask me offline 

hi...lets talk. im interested in a dolly. xxx`xxx`xxxx...jerry

6/5/24

[MJB87]

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