At some point in the building process, my goal became to finish the scope by RocheStar Fest, an annual event of the Rochester Astronomy Club. can't click on it or copy and paste it; it's a graphic file to thwart I am well versed in technology, have all the tools necessary to build my own! Among amateur telescopes, the most common are focusers with landing diameters of 1.25 ", 2", rarely 0.965 ", and even less often - 3". The balance point determines the height of the rocker sides, so I had to get this far before I cut the wood for the base. Perfect for astrophotography or during high power planetary observation. That's pretty much the focuser. 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. Realizing that it could not be the University Optics cell already, I thought, Noit couldn't be but, in fact, it was. pageTracker._trackPageview(); This arrangement turns 100% true, no wobble. This project is based on Robert Brown's "Arduino ASCOM Focuser Pro2 DIY". I'd His passion is using CAD design and his homemade CNC router to bring large wood projects to life. It seems to 1" Rack & Pinion Focuser. I applied contact cement to the first inch of the veneer and the mating inch of the tube. You currently have javascript disabled. We moved the operation to a nearby park and got a focused image of the most distant trees (300-400 yards away) quite easily. Pierre's Helical Crayford gets my vote hands-down for elegant simplicity. really stiff and light for their size, and even though a #2 is pretty I had to take apart the focuser in order to get my bolts in place. I had talked with their owner about mirrors and mirror cells once, and I was very impressed by his knowledge of telescope building. Thin 1/16 Kydex plastic should be cut to length to line the inside of the cage as a baffle to block outside light. DO NOT drill out the holes in the board! I carefully cut exactly through the center of each side bearing circle to make my semicircles. Funny how the bigger they are the better for dobs. Please feel free to email me at the address on the right. Our websites use cookies to improve your browsing experience. on Step 5. A week later the cell arrived (on schedule) from University Optics. with a genuine question or comment about the design. an inch or so apart, so the focuser body could be pretty low profile. I tried to call, but the voice mail had a recording stating that the customer was unable to receive messages. Depending on your telescope, one of the Brackets that Robert has may work for you. Using a compass I drew circles on the top and bottom of the ground board to mark the inside and outside of the teflon ring on the bottom of the rocker bottom. This software creates a model of your telescope by measuring out of focus star sizes at various points. Be creative! Rock Paper Scissors Using Tinkercad Circuits and Arduino, Punchy the MECH & the Autonomous Fight Club, PCB (printed circuit board) - download the, DRV8825 - stepper motor driver chip/board - again, clones available on. I tried this one first and found it wouldn't work for my application. You need some purple bits We tried this in our back yard, but found that it was too difficult to aim both the tube and the moving mirror at distant trees in our suburban yard. See above, this motor does not produce a lot of torque, but you don't need much for this application since there is no 'load' on the focusing shaft. Thanks Peter. I started with a spacer that with a inch outer diameter. You really need a step ladder even for my 10" when pointed overhead. 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. Telescope Magazine. More Homemade Refractor Telescope DIY Erecting Prism Binoviewer Focuser here: Did you make this project? I don't have the skills to build a focuser using a. Thanks Pinbout for sharing your design. Another thing, the resolution on the Dumbell nebula seems a bit too high for that telescope. 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 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. on Step 1, interesting build, its just like my old Odyssey brand scope from the mid 1990's. Here we see the following components installed: Notice we are NOT populating the parts of the board intended for Wifi or BLED. 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.". I drilled the holes in the center of the ground board and rocker bottom using a 9/16 bit, thinking that I needed the extra 1/16 so that the spacer could move. Here's a detailed response from a thread at CloudyNights:http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/showthreaded.php?Cat=0&Number=4721255 "The image scale is wrong on the M31 image, fits too much of the galaxy in for even a 35mm chip. I am working on a diy focuser design for my 6" F/8 telescope and asking suggestions for simple focuser. $299.99 More About Telescope Focusers It takes the unknown out of focusing, and is easy to re-focus between filters, or refocus several times during a long exposure run as the world cools down. I had installed the mirror about an inch too far away from the focuser. The day I received the refund, I ordered a mirror cell from University Optics. His project is very well documented. Here is a simple 3D printed helical focuser that cost just a few cents (assuming you have a 3D printer). document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); I'm' glad I did, because I didn't like the first color that I had chosen. It's rigid, lightweight, and The next day, I centered the rocker on the rocker bottom (which had been cut using the same method as the side bearing circles), drawing perpendicular lines through the center of the rocker bottom to use as a guide, and tracing the position on the rocker bottom. It was May 12th. To make the hole for the focuser, I used the focuser tube to mark a circle in the shroud. Star Adventurer Pro Pack Counter Weight Bar Thumb Screw Upgrade. 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. At their suggestion, I also ordered a 2.6 inch secondary mirror. This sure is going to be a project I will work on. A 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. 24 T-nuts, with matching 2 bolts and knobs, 8 Aluminum tubing, thin wall, 1 square, 4 lengths I got mine from Cycle 24, Black woven velveteen, 68 Cut it so it stretches along the 6 axis. An electronic focuser, which moves the focus knob through a combination of hardware and software, solves this problem. I wanted a tight / press fit, so I only added half that, 0.25mm. Here is a link to the main FILES area on Robert Brown's site. After looking at many focuser options with a big range of prices, I decided to order a GSO 2 speed Crayford focuser from ScopeStuff. If you wanted to really go low-profile with this design, The length of the Rocker Front also had to be changed so that the outside edge of the Side Bearings matched the outside edge of the Rocker Sides precisely. I will post the pic of final focuser once ready. The mount and tripod are pretty much useless for astrophotography. I had considered a Moonlite or Featherlite focuser, but I knew from my experience with my 6 inch scope that I wanted a 2 speed focuser, and the price tag of their 2 speed focusers scared me away. Let me see if I can get similar plumbing parts here. Well, it sort of looks like a focuser.. See pictures below. Before attaching the sides and front to the bottom with wood screws, I wanted to make sure those screws would not interfere with the Ebony Star ring that would be attached to the rocker bottom. So, as they say, "back to the drawing board". The cost is a bit more than some of the other combinations, but by only $10 or $20. You should watch (and bookmark) this video. the bearings, totally eliminating any flex. This means you lose much of the night's images. Fairly easy to build and could be adapted to suit any SCT focuser. . All that remained was to design and print a bracket, and buy the needed parts. you don't need to paint it (or worry about paint flaking off it). 10 inch or 12 inch. So I decided to make my own, using my normal "blunder in naively and see what happens" approach to making things. If you follow the procedures described above, your telescope's optics will be perfectly aligned. A bit of a monster! A Pocket Sundial From a Broken Pocket Watch! You will have to line up the diagonal and primary so that you see a centered image of the sonotube opening and the spyder in the eyepiece hole. I told them I was on my way. I gave them a call and they said they had one on the shelf14 inches in diameter and 12 feet long! Thanks Bob. It may take you a while to adjust the image correctly, but it's not hard to do, just time consuming. together tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators across the globe. curated by us, the people behind Make: and the Maker Faire. I found out pretty quickly that building my own telescope would only be a bargain if I made my own mirror and mechanical parts. I did not glue the bearings to the tube box in case I needed to adjust the position later. A Pocket Sundial From a Broken Pocket Watch! I am a retired USAF electronics engineer, and might even do much of the construction of the base with welded structural tubing, as, I do have a complete metal working shop besides my wood shop, here. and an eyepiece. I control. When you add the minimum distance from the eyepiece to the secondary mirror together with the distance from the secondary mirror to the primary, the total length should be the primary mirrors focal length. Two inch internal diameter drawtube. You need to order it sized for your focuser shaft size. on my binocular scope for quite a while now and really like them. Share it with us! on Step 5, 9 years ago CNC files (optional) Download the Sketchup files. When I ordered the cell, I paid through paypal, which immediately deducts money from my checking account. Some of the very best planetary and deep sky pics I have seen have come from a Fuji S3 professioanl camera [based on a Nikon body] and a Canon 20Da, which was designed with [I think] a user replaceable inside the mirror box filter for astral photography. To do this, the mirror cell needs to be supported by 3 large bolts, at least 2 of which are adjustable. Able to shift heavy loads of kit ie over 1000g. a try. Move the jigs until you can comfortably place a variety of eyepieces in the focuser and get a sharp image, then carefully measure the separation distances. crafts, science & engineering, design, and technology. The base and the rocker box in my telescope are secured with a skate bearing assembly but could be more simply attached with a bolt through the center. The kit just contains the electronics - it is up to the user to find a stepper motor and attach it to their own telescope focuser. This means I can use FocusMax to do the focusing. The extra force will also My plan for wrapping the tube seemed good, but I am not too pleased with the final result. To get this arc, I actually moved the radius of the jig, At some point in the building process, my goal became to finish the scope by RocheStar Fest, an annual event of the. Fast forward a few months to the next time I had the tube outside. corners of the squares provide nice nooks for the eyepiece and eyepiece experimented with various wires and rods and eventually decided that a Whether you need a basic rack-and-pinion telescope focuser for your homemade telescope project or a premium Crayford-type model with dual-speed focusing as a performance upgrade, you have come to the right place. but try for a snug fit if you can. Measure twice, drill surfaces to put the bearings in and a vee at the bottom that would hold Nice one. I wanted the long focal length for good contrast. As I understand, you are using it for a refractor. Today I purchased what is called atank nipple in India. Perfect for visual observations with very heavy mirrors. In order for the Rocker Box to pivot on the Ground Board, a center pin is placed in a hole at the exact center of the Ground Board and Rocker Bottom. I'm also going to focus on only one version of Robert's focuser (there are many). Just as it was about to come into focus, the focuser bottomed out. This allowed me to cut perfect identical circles. Since these focusers were going side-by-side on a binocular But -- you have to be careful that the mechanism is true and the motor does not have a load on it at any time, otherwise it will 'stall' and stop moving. Although they don't usually sell these parts, because I had ordered the mirrors from them they offered to sell me the spider and secondary holder that they use in their scopes. DIY Truss Dob input: How to design truss? This combination has proved to be effective for all positions except when the tube is pointed directly up. The flat wants to be running parallel to the long axis of the tube. There was the expense, for one, but also the Dobsonians come in all shapes and sizes, from small 4-8 builds all the way up to massive 24-36 creations. Participated in the Celestron Space Challenge. Please explain, in detail, how you attached your tube to the very unique drive system of an XT12G mount. 1/4" x 20 bolt, and the nylon bolt end against the smooth knitting Did you make this project? - Bill. While I will freely admit that most astro-photography is WAY beyond me, you certainly do NOT need a $3200 camera to do so. What materials did you use? As I set of the scope, several club members came over to check things out and it was nice to hear the positive comments on the appearance of the scope. large in diameter (1.6") so that adds to the fine-ness of the focus Edited by sunrag, 28 May 2020 - 10:44 PM. The scope including the optics, truss tubes, and eye pieces all stored in a single box making it easy to store and transport by car, but it was a little too big to fit in the overhead compartment or under the seat on most aircraft. The motor is much lighter than the geared motor. Sonotube (14 inch diameter, 12 feet long): $70, Focuser (GSO 2 speed low profile Crayford): $139, Total cost for supplies for this project: $1700. Sh2-169 and Sh2-168, IC5146 Cocoon Nebula, Caldwell 19, Sh 2-125. I decided to order an aluminum mirror cell from University Optics instead so that the mirror could be supported at 9 different points. Built one of these http://emediadesigns.com/focuser/ working really well only cost less than 40.00. But I wanted a larger mirror, and, at that size, grinding my own was not an option. on Introduction. I marked the spot and moved things back inside to install the mirror. To test the concept I used a short piece of two inch PVC for the draw tube. 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. : "http://www. If not, you may need to design and print your own bracket(s), gears, and so on. Focuser minimum height is 50 mm and maximum a little over 90 mm so it is good overall. In the sub-folder "Cases" you will see many variants of the case for the DRV8825 based focusers. If you want a Crayford focuser with a knob instead of turning the draw tube, then Jerry Oltion's designhttp://www.jerryoltixycrayfords.htm using box frames and knitting needle drive shafts is also a fairly easy build. Finally, I glued a strip of Ebony Star laminante to the curves edge of each side bearing using contact cement, using a flush edge bit on a router to bring the edge of the laminate even with the edge of the wood after the cement had set. So, for my telescope I used a 6mm to 5mm coupler available on Amazon. on Step 1, Richards in our local astronomy club. (actually, it ended up a smidge more than 2 inches). Remember: It is the quality and SIZE of the capture chip, NOT the megapixels that determines quality. Trim off any unused fabric along the base. A project collaboration and documentation platform. I was concerned that it would be difficult to find, but I was able to order it from a local woodworking shop. For about $3 we can buy a tank valve kit that has a threaded 2" i.d. (Technically, it should have been 62.5 for a 12.5 inch f/5, but when the mirror came it had a note on the back that the focal length was 61 inches.) One of the companies I had considered as a supplier for the primary mirror was Anttler's Optical. I file a dispute with Paypal to begin the process of getting my money back. Knitting needles are Here is what I was working on but looks like I need a better design. and hope it doesn't fall off I don't *do* pretty. Shorter thread side will be used to attach the eyepiece. With an outer diameter of 14 3/16, I cut the Tube Box sides 15 5/8 and 14 5/8slightly less than my extra inch extra on each side. But let me see what items I can arrange to make a helical. Slide the eyepiece into the focuser and try it out. Have you made any mods on it since you built it? We all know the problems with focusing. This one is based on the DRV8825 driver chip and a NEMA-17 stepper motor. Yet I was also becoming infected with aperture fever. I read the entire thread and surely its going to help me building my focuser. I Hope to give you ideas if you are thinking about building one for yourself! OK, no, I do not have a homemade Crayford focuser but am planning to build a 3 incher for next years 17" reflector telescope project and to hold my new 30mm ES 100 degree EP. This allows for a small clearance between the outside of the tube and the inside of the tube box (14 3/8). An Altitude Azimuth mount would also require a field rotator.There's no way these were taken with an Orion GoTo Mount. In my build, the cage was cut on a CNC router from plywood, with threaded T-nuts added to support a truss assembly. 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. 11 years ago the tube is cardboard as well, you can also get a quality mirror at telescope.com for much cheaper. I had chosen a boxy, rigid design for the binocular scope, so 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. 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. Several of my Recent Images have been focused with this system. This is the kind of simple off the shelf design I was looking for. The last chapter of the book describes a plan for an 8 inch sonotube dob with a few design elements from their truss design, and, as I read that chapter, the simplicity of its construction was very appealing. Crayford-style design with four bearings and one driveshaft. love to hear from people who are interested in this focuser design. The blue pieces of the rocker box and ground board are arranged as in the diagrams in (figure 2). As I mentioned on my binocular A neet site: http://www.astropix.com/HTML/I_ASTROP/CAMERAS.HTM Cool instructable, Dude! They use a simple plywood mirror cell, stating that for an 8 inch mirror this cell will be adequate. A smart collection of books, magazines, electronics kits, robots, microcontrollers, tools, supplies, and more
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. The heaviest piece is 40 lbs, and the total scope weighs about 60 lbs (not counting the baffle). 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. Link to the motor speed controller kit:http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=KC5225(a 5K external potentiometer will be required): http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=RP3508The drive motor:http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=YG2734The gears:http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=YG2736The motor forward/reverse switch:http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=ST0506The push button:http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=SP0711 This is the upper tube that contains the flat secondary mirror, Telrad finder, and focuser. The overall project is super cheap, we're building this thing for something like $50 in materials. It's easy to shim it to 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. Then it was time to stain and finish. While round tubing is sturdy, square tubing is easier to work with. A decent machinest will do a far better job, but, there is always a lot more pleasure to be gained per astrophoto when you make bits yourself. That way you won't be dropping your drawtube and I first tried my 32mm plossl eyepiece. I used a hole saw to cut a wooden plug to fit inside the I do have another tube that can be used around the drawtube, but it doesn't really add anything. The wide square footprint would make it pretty stable when mounted to A week after they said they would send the secondary and other parts, I called to ask if things had been sent. They eyepiece height ended up being about 5'10" high at zenith. It wouldn't be a two-speed design, but if I used a thin enough For my project I needed a 14 inch diameter, and I had a tough time finding one. I also decided to make a separate mounting plate for the stepper motor, since I figured aligning the shafts precisely would be all but impossible. The bigger upvc nut will be attached to focuser plate and longer threaded side will be used on it for the focusing. And bolt to scope You can view and download the full file here. To hold the tube in place within the tube box, I used a combination of pieces of felt inside the box and wooden shims between the tube and the box. Crayford focusers are considered superior to entry-level rack and pinion Reply To view, go here: http://emediadesigns.com/focuser/ And a flat thing to put it all on After waiting for the stain to dry for a day, I applied polyurethane in two coats, going over the surface with 0000 steel wool between coats. I had already made a lightweight focuser for i am not trying to win this contest with photos. 7 years ago Their step by step instructions were invaluable to me as I built this scope. Above youll find an interactive 3D rendering of the Sketchup file I used to design and cut all of the parts for my telescope. I would also like to know about how you can take such fantastic pictures without a field rotator and an autoguider system. Two inch internal diameter drawtube. The next day, I called back to ask their opinion about the kind of spider and secondary holder to order. Low, or Zero slop when changing direction. Parts List (the full story of acquiring the parts), The primary, secondary, spider and secondary holderDiscovery Optics. I call shenanigans on every picture in this post except for the the moon. Given any mirror measurements, PLOP will provide the ideal support layout and how much distortion to expect for any number of flotation points. I'll use an aluminum tube for the finished draw tube but for now the plastic tube . Some quick tips to note if you are making a homemade telescope are: 1. Interfaced with a computer, so the computer can make the decisions about where the best focus is. Community Forum Software by IP.BoardLicensed to: Cloudy Nights. I drew a guide line straight down the side of the tube and cut the veneer to length with one extra inch on each side68 inches long. To place the primary mirror, I installed the secondary and installed the primary in the mirror cell. I sourced my own Stepper motor and 1:150 reduction gearbox from RS, who are just up the road. A couple setscrews and you're up & running with an off the shelf solution. telescope page, I wasn't really eager to buy two commercial Crayford It take automatic control of the CCD camera and focuser, and dances around magically on the screen, arriving at perfect focus within about 30s to 3 minutes depending on where you started from. I did not wrap the tube until I had completed the base. NEMA-17 Stepper Motor - see below, there are two options. The telescopes size is classified by the size of its mirror. 4 years ago 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. small, it's surprisingly rigid. I also wanted to strengthen and protect the cardboard tube. I described it two years ago in this thread:https://www.cloudyniuser/?p=8879835 . The Focuser and other items: (Scope Stuff). i got a email that someone built a telescope close to mine that has seen the stuff in the photos here is a link to his site http://www.synapticsystems.com/sky/scopes/Dob.htmlif i seem a bit rude please forgive me i just spent 12hrs in a plane i have jetlag and im sitting in a airport.i would like to thank lvlasertech for keeping this instructable lively and informative. If you're going for simple, have you considered a helical focuser? Two different construction supply companies told me that sonotubes were not available with a 14 inch diameter, even by special order. These have slop as you change direction, you can't do fine adjustments, they weigh a ton, and can flex alarmingly over time. You simply glue or screw the 'nut' part to your scope OTA, and thread the tube part in/out to focus.
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