the tube is cardboard as well, you can also get a quality mirror at telescope.com for much cheaper. An Altitude Azimuth mount would also require a field rotator.There's no way these were taken with an Orion GoTo Mount. both sides. larger diameter. If you found some good surplus lenses, you will have made a stunningly good objective for your scope. A Beginner's Guide to Collimation - Gary Seronik I bought a 4" PVC Sewer pipe cap, used a hole saw to cut a 2.25" hole then attached the helical thing to the PVC cap. His passion is using CAD design and his homemade CNC router to bring large wood projects to life. Position "0" is with the focuser all the way IN (at least for a refractor). Have you made any mods on it since you built it? An electronic focuser, which moves the focus knob through a combination of hardware and software, solves this problem. he might just have a $3200 camera, they aren't very hard to come by. But who cares, really? It Once your telescope is assembled, drape black woven velveteen around the truss assembly, clipping it with safety pins. I had some carboy caps that make good knobs. I then attached the Ebony Star ring using contact cement. I began building it in the spring of 2008, but the bulk of the work was done in July of 2008 with first light occurring on July 25. I then temporarily installed the secondary mirror so that I could measure the approximate distance to the center of the secondary in order to locate the holes for the focuser. The premier publication of maker projects, skill-building tutorials, in-depth reviews, and inspirational stories, Instead of the rack and pinion, they have a smooth spring-loaded shaft which holds the focus tube against four opposing bearing surfaces, and controls its movement. My concern turned to alarm when my wife told me that Discovery had charged the balance due on all items to my account a few weeks earlier. Pretty dry but important! Community Forum Software by IP.BoardLicensed to: Cloudy Nights. Ideally, the spacer would be 1 inch long and have a smaller diameter, but I didn't get this one right the first time. 11 years ago Upload that main sketch to the Nano. As the thread shows you could also build the dual speed version, all made of plywood, if you feel ready to tackle a slightly more complex project for a cost of about 5$ more. This was to allow the circle cutting jig to be attached to the board to cut the arcs from a center point of 25 inches above the ground. The motor is much lighter than the geared motor. It was easy enough to drill a hole and tap threads for a love to hear from people who are interested in this focuser design. I built mine entirely from CNC-cut plywood, and fastened it together with 2 bolts. Thicker walls also required thicker side bearings so that the outside of the bearings would line up with the outside of the rocker sides. Finally, attach your polar alignment device and align it with the hinge. I pointed it at distant trees and had no problem bringing the image into focus with all of my eyepieces. Since there is no drill bit that exactly matches the 13.1mm of the shaft, I had to do some rough enlargement of the hole. Some of these are essential for the basic functionalities of our websites. The part is very strong! Your astrophotographer friend may have included his own images from his setup. "https://ssl." This motor has a 5mm drive shaft. I don't *do* pretty. It turns out that sonotubes are a stock item in 8 inch, 10 inch, 12 inch, and sometimes even 16 inch diameters. This is the mirror box for my 16", with Jim doing a bit of cleanup sanding. I only use the OTA. I did run into a small problem with the focuser. Slewing to find an object and then tracking an object on the sky, so when you make a homemade telescope on the motorisation process you will need high speed for slewing and low speed for tracking or fine movements. Get hands-on with kits, books, and more from the Maker Shed, Skill builder, project tutorials, and more. See captioned photos 22-25 here:https://www.cloudyniractor-focuser/ for more detail on building a flush valve focuser, as Bob mentions. ScopeStuff is awesome!! like, you can have as much focuser travel as you want no matter how I had initially allowed for more of a gap, but realized once I cut the pieces and held the tube inside them that my gap was too large. I did not own all of the tools that I needed for this project, particularly a table saw and router, so I did a lot of work while visiting my Dad. Concluding that I would not be able to buy a tube off the shelf, I found a couple of companies that took special orders on cardboard tubes. crafts, science & engineering, design, and technology. Here is a link to the main FILES area on Robert Brown's site. The core of the telescope, the steel mirror cell holds and adjusts the heavy, curved primary mirror. For a while I decided that 10 inch would be the best size. If you look in the FILES area on Robert Brown's site (see link above) you will see a sub-folder "3D Printed Parts". I had some carboy caps that make good knobs. Use mild soap and distilled . var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-1008534-4"); homemade Crayford focuser. Knitting needles are We are now ready for some testing. Since these focusers were going side-by-side on a binocular Fast forward a few months to the next time I had the tube outside. I have already seen some designs on CN, Stellafane and web but still checking if someone has recently made anything simpler. : "http://www. Crayford focusers are considered superior to entry-level rack and pinion Given any mirror measurements, PLOP will provide the ideal support layout and how much distortion to expect for any number of flotation points. While a sling or whiffletree provide the best edge support, a two-point edge support is much easier to construct. During assembly, youll attach the trusses to the mirror box, then sit the secondary cage on top and bolt everything in place. Building the mirror box is tricky, because the entire optical assembly (mirror cell, mirror box, trusses, secondary cage) must balance at the center of rotation of the arms. For about $3 we can buy a tank valve kit that has a threaded 2" i.d. When you want to focus, you just open the program and press focus. And the legs of the base should be as wide as possible to accommodate weight imbalance as the telescope is moved around, to avoid tipping. adapter set screws to slide into. I like the old way of using stepper motors and other stuff introduced years ago by Mel Bartels, he is a master for me. A neet site: http://www.astropix.com/HTML/I_ASTROP/CAMERAS.HTM Cool instructable, Dude! (The 8 inches from the center of the secondary to the field stop in the focuser is the same 8 inches from the center of the focuser to the top of the tube.) on Introduction. The ARtemis module came in a kit form actually just two circuit boards one of which I had to source the parts, build and box myself. Be creative! I knew that I would be returning the mirror cell to them, but just for fun I decided to see how it would fit in the tube. I Or in my case, back to SolidWorks :-). Attach the ball head to the top board. A Pocket Sundial From a Broken Pocket Watch! Crayford focusers are considered superior to entry-level rack and pinion focusers, normally found in this type of device. The arc at the top of the sides needed to have a radius 1/8 inch larger than that of the side bearings to account for the thickness of the teflon pads that would fit between. I could not find a spacer to fit my 9/16 hole, so I bought the 11/16 spacer (1 1/8 long because that's what the store had) and a bit of the same size. The specific hardware used for this is described on the Building page. Did you make this project? The cage should be a hollow cylinder about wider than the mirror, with the focuser mounted directly facing the secondary mirror. However more than the focuser, I liked your scope. His project is very well documented. needle adds no friction that I can feel to the focus action. help eliminate slippage when the focuser is pointed straight upward. Before I wrapped the tube (and before I discovered the problem with the primary placement) I determined the balance point on the tube. really stiff and light for their size, and even though a #2 is pretty It took a lot longer than I expected to receive my mirror and other parts from Discovery. Pierre Lemay, thanks for sharing your simple and incredible design. (A badly tilted focuser may subtly alter the illumination pattern of the focal plane to a degree that would be impossible to perceive visually but that's about it.) Tom's Homemade Telescope Page - 14 inch dob - Google Many sources point out that 10 inches is a kind of sweet spot in the balance between power and portability. There are sub-folders for the different versions. I did not wrap the tube until I had completed the base. Using heavy grit sandpaper I brought back the surface of the keeper enough for the side bearings to fit inside the felt pads. microcontrollers including Arduino and Raspberry Pi, Drones and 3D Printing, and more. large in diameter (1.6") so that adds to the fine-ness of the focus I added three inches for a margin of error and in case I need to rebalance the tube in the future, making a distance of 25 inches from the balance point of the tube to the rocker bottom. This sure is going to be a project I will work on. Share it with us! I would also like to know about how you can take such fantastic pictures without a field rotator and an autoguider system. My DIY Motorized Telescope Focuser - YouTube I used one of the top scraps from the rocker sides to mark an angle of 70 degrees from the center of the arc to the curved cut in order to properly space 1 X 7/8 teflon pads on the arcs. This makes for better sky photographs as the exposure time can be lengthened,. A celebration of the Maker Movement, a family-friendly showcase of invention and creativity that gathers I've been using the above pair I had already made a lightweight focuser for Two inch internal diameter drawtube. I was concerned that it would be difficult to find, but I was able to order it from a local woodworking shop. occurred to me that a square turned 45 degrees would give me two flat but try for a snug fit if you can. - Bill. 5 weeks after I had ordered the mirror, I called to ask about its status. I was certain not to move the jig at all before cutting the second circle. My telescope is the Orion ED80T-CF. Measure the diameter of the exposed shaft. I told them to take their time and get it right. It's easy to shim it to exactly 2" with adhesive labels placed one at a time inside the tube until a 2" eyepiece or 1.25" adapter is snug. We were careful to press out any bubbles as we went, but when the job was done we found that there were multiple bubbles in the veneer. In addition, we use third-party cookies to help us analyze and understand usage. Page 1 of 2 - DIY focuser design - posted in ATM, Optics and DIY Forum: Hi I am working on a diy focuser design for my 6 F/8 telescope and asking suggestions for simple focuser. When the skies were dark enough for observing I found that the scope moves easily into position and holds that position well. Just drill holes in both ends and mount the lenses. Total cost for supplies for this project: It took a lot longer than I expected to receive my mirror and other parts from Discovery. Share a cool tool or product with the community. Download and check them out, I just grabbed the first one and printed it. Pierre's Helical Crayford gets my vote hands-down for elegant simplicity. Someone is pulling someone's leg here. Bore out some 2.5 inch bar and mill a flat down the side making sure it is lined up. The last time I checked, that particular SBIG camera used on TelescopeGeek had an eight month lead time.A 20" scope gathers 2.6 times more light than a 12.5" scope, therefore equivalent exposures on this one would take 200+ minutes, at least. Membership connects and supports the people and projects that shape our future and supports the learning The original Crayford Focuser is on display there. Build a Backyard Dobsonian Telescope - Make: DIY Projects and Ideas for I marked the spot and moved things back inside to install the mirror. I didn't bother reading his whole article to figure out what f/# he used) I am not trying to say that good AP isn't possible with a sonotube scope, (the 'friend' may very well have pulled it out of the dob mount, added rings and a dovetail, and mounted it on his CGE-Pro or comparable) but in this case it is unlikely.". You can see that my Moonlite focuser was slightly larger than the sides of the tube. Here are a few photos of the "bracket", which is a simple 3D printed plate that mounts to the telescope's focuser ring, and serves as a mount for the stepper motor. Our websites use cookies to improve your browsing experience. I waited until dark and pointed the scope at the sky. my 12.5" trackball, but I didn't I have not yet figured out a better way to hold the tube. Or rather, I hated it. I think I got what I wanted and seems best solution for me. Every primary telescope mirror has a fixed focal length thats usually 4 to 6 times the width of the mirror. I told them I was on my way. Lining up this center point with the center of the top of the side bearing, I brought the corner of the side bearing up to the edge of the tube box and attached it with screws. The telescopes size is classified by the size of its mirror. The pivot bolt consists of a 1 1/8 inch brass spacer with an 11/16 inch outer diameter, a 3/8 inch bolt 2 inches long, a stop nut, and two large washers. Drawing lines between opposite corners of the tube box sides allowed me to locate the center point on each side. I did not glue the bearings to the tube box in case I needed to adjust the position later. It is named after the Crayford Manor House Astronomical Society, Crayford, London, England where it was invented by John Wall, a member of the astronomical society which meets there. focusers for that project. Nice looking telescope. Bill, Impressive work and great idea about LSDF focuser. I don't have the skills to build a focuser using a. Made of plywood, the rocker box supports the mirror box on 1 teflon pads, allowing it to rotate vertically. Here's my 8" f/6 travel scope with a 2" PVC draw tube and the helical Crayford focuser built right in the focuser board. After waiting for the contact cement to dry to the touch, and with my wife's help, I carefully aligned the edge of the veneer with the guideline on the tube and pressed the first inch together. I wanted the long focal length for good contrast. What materials did you use? In my case I decided to make a custom bracket. I had chosen a boxy, rigid design for the binocular scope, so I'll use an aluminum tube for the finished draw tube but for now the plastic tube . The arc at the top of the sides needed to have a radius 1/8 inch larger than that of the side bearings to account for the thickness of the teflon pads that would fit between. If you connect the 12V power with the barrel connector (right side of photo), the Nano should light up without the USB connection. The base of the telescope should be a wide, sturdy square or circle of wood with teflon bearing pads matched to the ABS plastic ring of the rocker box. I have no idea how much mail this idea will generate, so I can't Thanks Peter. I also doubled the thickness of the rocker sides (not the front wall) to provide better support for the heavier tube. At this point, the scope was pretty much finished. I laughed, packed up the cell with a long letter describing the series of events that led to the return, and put it in the mail. Funny how the bigger they are the better for dobs. I ordered the focuser, received an immediate email confirming the order, and it arrived two days later. After picking up a copy of The Dobsonian Telescope by David Kriege, I built my first telescope with a 12-diameter mirror, then later tackled a 12 lightweight scope.