The shroud made from two 22 inch tall containers came out short, so I had to add an eleven inch strip of nylon. (actually, it ended up a smidge more than 2 inches). I applied contact cement to the first inch of the veneer and the mating inch of the tube. I have one on my 12" f/5 truss dob and the focuser knob is on the top surface of the UTA. 11 years ago On the cutting diagram, you can see that the side bearings were cut 26 inches long. I'm only hoping to supplement it a bit with some info and pictures aimed at those with limited skills (such as myself) :-) I'm not an electrical engineer, I'm more of a software guy with some limited knowledge of electronics and basic soldering and assembly skills. I wasn't there so i can be 100% but i do not think my friend was lying to me and i believe the pictures are from my telescope my kids use it for stargazing a lot i have seen some deepspace but i use it mainly for sketching the moon and i like to view solar flares. Focuser (GSO 2 speed low profile Crayford): $139 Ebony star strips: 2 @ $10 Ebony star ring: $59 Teflon strip: $11 Telrad base: $10 Baltic Birch " sheet (60X60): $42 Baltic Birch 5/8" sheet (60X60): $48 Circle cutting jig: $30 Birch Veneer (4X8 piece): $65 Hardware, stain, other supplies: $80 Total cost for supplies for this project: $1700 You will look through these as you rotate the wheel. on Introduction. Reply I wanted the long focal length for good contrast. I only use the OTA. The focuser 'knob' on the Celestron is just a rubber sleeve that usually pulls off easily. I call shenanigans on every picture in this post except for the the moon. 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 waited until dark and pointed the scope at the sky. To glue the side bearings and rocker sides to full thickness, I covered a side with wood glue, then carefully lined up the pieces and put two small nails into the pieces to hold them in place. Crayford focusers are considered superior to entry-level rack and pinion focusers, normally found in this type of device. can't click on it or copy and paste it; it's a graphic file to thwart Membership connects and supports the people and projects that shape our future and supports the learning So I was looking for a cheap, light-but-sturdy design for a 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. The bearings only need to be Tom's Homemade Telescope Page - Udder Nonsense - Google initiatives for the next generation of makers. I attached three feet equally spaced on top of the ring, and on the opposite side attached teflon pads 1 X 1 directly above the feet using very small brads and countersinking the brads below the surface of the teflon. (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.) You should watch (and bookmark) this video. I did run into a small problem with the focuser. I started with a spacer that with a inch outer diameter. 100A81BF-2145-44D5-BC76-66DBF43BAD58.jpeg. homemade Crayford focuser. Then it was time to stain and finish. A couple setscrews and you're up & running with an off the shelf solution. On the bottom of the Bottom board is a ring of Ebony Star laminate that glides over the three teflon pads located directly above the feet on the ground board. on Step 5, After much debit and doubt i have taken the photos down cause i cannot be 100% sure that they were taking from my scope as i was not there to verify them and i do not want my contest entry to be based on photos and not the build process. The only thing on the list that was a bit difficult to find was baltic birch plywood, which had to be special ordered from the lumber yard. Coupler for NEMA-17 Stepper Motor (also two choices, see below), LM7808 Voltage Regulator with TO-220 package -, Mini On/Off 3-pin 2-position slide switch -, Headers and wire (miscellaneous sizes and gauges), these are important so you can replace the component if it is damaged, LM7808 voltage regulator w/TO-220 heat sink package, 2-pin headers for 12V power and on/off switch. I really stiff and light for their size, and even though a #2 is pretty You can easily, and economically (10$) build a Crayford Helical Focuser like the one pictured above in one evening with simple tools. I had the thought that as long as I was going to build it I should build it as big as I could afford. You currently have javascript disabled. You really need a step ladder even for my 10" when pointed overhead. I called to express my concern and was told that it had all been packaged a few weeks ago and that it, For complete instructions on building a telescope such as this one, I strongly recommend buying a copy of, After cutting the circles for the side bearings, I set up the jig to cut the curved edges of the rocker sides. Overall, I'm very happy with the outcome of this project - focusing is now a joy. Post 10 of the same LSDF focuser thread also links to Art Bianconi's archived 2008 original flush valve focuser posts. My newtonian telescope, like most others, came fitted with a nasty rack and pinion focuser. Pioneered by John Dobson in the 1960s, the instrument combines a Newtonian reflector telescope with a unique two-axis movable base. I will post the pic of final focuser once ready. DIY Remote Telescope Focuser - YouTube During assembly, youll attach the trusses to the mirror box, then sit the secondary cage on top and bolt everything in place. I made this Crayford style focuser using plywood scraps and surplus bearings. My DIY Motorized Telescope Focuser - YouTube Unfortunately I don't have a 3d printer. See captioned photos 22-25 here:https://www.cloudyniractor-focuser/ for more detail on building a flush valve focuser, as Bob mentions. Another vote for Pierre's helical Crayford design. It's the same in form, but has a perfect, true 13.35mm hole. I read the entire thread and surely its going to help me building my focuser. 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. When you figure out Here we see the following components installed: Notice we are NOT populating the parts of the board intended for Wifi or BLED. I centered the focuser 8 inches from the top of the tube, using a 2.5 inch hole drilling saw with smaller holes for the bolts that would hold the focuser. (I didn't have the primary mirror yet). Once I decided to build a scope myself I had to decide on the aperture of the scope. 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. Read the documentation though, there are a lot of functions and options. that is a great website that guy has some fantastic photos. Staples or finishing nails work fine, but be sure they dont bump up above the surface of the plastic. I attached keepers 1 inches wide by 5 inches long, extending above the bottom of the arcs by about 1 inches. Not worth the effort, price is tooo high. Headers for the LEDs, buzzer (2-pin) and temperature probe (3-pin). And for those who like to work with 3D printers, both the single speed and dual-speed versions could easily be printed. Picture of DS-4. I redrilled the holes for the mirror cell and got ready to wrap it. Make an account on JLCPCB.com, upload the Gerber zip file, that's it! 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. It uses a primary mirror to capture and reflect light, a secondary mirror to direct light into an eyepiece, and a focuser to make fine adjustments for viewing. } catch(err) {}, SH-232 Sharpless sh-232, sh-231, sh-233, sh-235, NGC2174 Monkey Head Nebula, Sharpless 252, Sh2-252, HDW3 Hartl-Dengel-Weinberger 3 PN G149.4-09.2, SH-198 Sharpless 198, Soul Nebula, IC1848, NGC281 IC11, Sharpless Sh2-184, Pacman Nebula, SH2-173 SH2-173 Phantom of the Opera LBN 593, SH2-168 Sharpless HII regions. Also, I will work with my computer geek buddies, so that we eventually automate it using Linux on a Rock64, to run kstars for tracking, on INDI. Measure the diameter of the exposed shaft. I placed my telrad, optical finder, and an eyepiece on the focuser end of the tube and, using a broomstick as a balance point, found that the tube balanced 22 inches from the bottom. Orion Dynamo Mini for powering a Nexstar 6SE? Attach the eye piece to another cardboard piece and pass it through the hole from the inside of the tube. Share it with us! It turns out the the extra 1/16 allowed far too much side to side movement between the rocker and ground board. Secondary mirror with spider holder Search on eBay for a matched set. flexing. Once built, line the undersides of the arms with textured ABS plastic as a bearing surface. When you're ready to go on to testing with the windows driver, you want "myFP2_DRV8825_312-1", open that folder. An electronic focuser, which moves the focus knob through a combination of hardware and software, solves this problem. This is because my router bit was inch and the arc would be cut by the outside edge of the bit (where the circle had been cut by the inside edge.) After the second call, I received a response that it would be ready at the end of the following week. The glue should keep the nylon from fraying. If not, you may need to design and print your own bracket(s), gears, and so on. How to build a 12.5 inch closed tube Dobsonian telescope. Actually getting the parts into my hands turned out to be more of a challenge than I would have expected, but in the end, I have a wonderful telescope that I enjoy very much. 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. 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. After you've done that, put a couple of tiny pan-head screws This Instructable describe the planning, design, and parts of the scope, as well as the process of building The scope. The silly colours are mainly due to me experimenting with various clothes dyes in the anodising. I told them to take their time and get it right. Im sorry to hear you couldn't make the contest. Along with some silver bits I'm also going to focus on only one version of Robert's focuser (there are many). PVC pipe makes great drawtubes. This will determine the size of the coupler you will use to connect the stepper motor. I sourced my own Stepper motor and 1:150 reduction gearbox from RS, who are just up the road. This might have been tempting if I wanted to build a 6 inch scopeat that size, they say that first-timers do pretty well at grinding and figuring their own optics. document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); $299.99 More About Telescope Focusers I pointed it at distant trees and had no problem bringing the image into focus with all of my eyepieces. Build a Backyard Dobsonian Telescope - Make: DIY Projects and Ideas for 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. 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. the nylon screws going up from the bottom, but I found the knitting To do this, the mirror cell needs to be supported by 3 large bolts, at least 2 of which are adjustable. This motor has a 5mm drive shaft. The Crayford Focuser and DIY Focuser for Homemade Telescope Or rather, I hated it. Focusers of telescopes. Types, difference, specifications - Star Hunter It is not very powerful, it will not supply enough torque if you put any load on it or have a heavy optical train (like I do) and the focuser has to "pull" it upward when the telescope is vertical. I had some carboy caps that make good knobs. and an eyepiece. Once your telescope is assembled, drape black woven velveteen around the truss assembly, clipping it with safety pins. I had already made a lightweight focuser for The mount and tripod are pretty much useless for astrophotography. My wife helped me by moving the mirror into and out of the tube around the marked spot while I stood at the eyepiece trying to bring some distant trees into focus. The spider, or secondary mirror holder, will suspend the mirror in the optical path in order to direct light into the focuser. To place the primary mirror, I installed the secondary and installed the primary in the mirror cell. Topics such as As I understand, you are using it for a refractor. 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. The Focuser and other items: (Scope Stuff). It stalled when tension on the belt increased. For complete instructions on building a telescope such as this one, I strongly recommend buying a copy of The Dobsonian Telescope by David Kriege and Richard Berry. with a genuine question or comment about the design. So, for my telescope I used a 6mm to 5mm coupler available on Amazon. These are mounted 120 degrees apart and use 4 inexpensive bearings to support the tube. So I decided to make my own, using my normal "blunder in naively and see what happens" approach to making things. Two inch internal diameter drawtube. Knitting needles are Other supplies that I bought for this project include wood, various bits of hardware, stain and finishing supplies, and a circle cutting jig for a router. But who cares, really? I decided that my best option was to scale up their 8 inch design for a 12.5 inch scope and sacrifice the portability and easier storage of a truss scope for something that I felt confident in building myself. It just You need some purple bits So, I duplicated the aluminum gear pulley in SolidWorks, and printed it out. experimented with various wires and rods and eventually decided that a Share it with us! I drilled holes for the screws that avoided the location of the ring, and attached the rocker bottom. Fairly easy to build and could be adapted to suit any SCT focuser. I then ran a bead of glue on the mark, and after it dried I cut out the nylon up to the glue. SDO/HMI Continuum Image on 2023.03.04 at 1259 UT, Remote computer working with no extra networking. 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. var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-1008534-4"); I installed the spider first, about one inch down from the end of the square end of the tube. Bore out some 2.5 inch bar and mill a flat down the side making sure it is lined up. I built a second set of electronics, and I had the NEMA 17 Direct Drive motor left over since it didn't work for my Orion ED80T-CF refractor. on Step 3. Interfaced with a computer, so the computer can make the decisions about where the best focus is. It A bit of a monster! Most of these have one or two set screws. the side of a rigid secondary cage. 7 years ago Focuser minimum height is 50 mm and maximum a little over 90 mm so it is good overall. 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. widening the hole. Accordingly, with 1.25 focuser, you can use 1.25 eyepieces, with 2 focuser - both 2 eyepieces and 1.25 (through a special . Able to shift heavy loads of kit ie over 1000g. Make sure the shroud can slip on and off of the assembled scope, and that it stretches along the circumference (not lengthwise). Crayford-style design with four bearings and one driveshaft. help eliminate slippage when the focuser is pointed straight upward. Their step by step instructions were invaluable to me as I built this scope. Built one of these http://emediadesigns.com/focuser/ working really well only cost less than 40.00. I called in the order and explained that I would be using a mirror two inches thick. This scope was originally made as a travel scope using an eight inch mirror that I ground and polished at the St Pete Astronomy Clubs Mirror Lab. Tips If you've got a 1.25 inch focuser, You can also use it for an objective. Sh2-169 and Sh2-168, IC5146 Cocoon Nebula, Caldwell 19, Sh 2-125. I did not glue the bearings to the tube box in case I needed to adjust the position later. But by this time I had thought about building my own scope for several weeks, and getting one off the shelf seemed pretty boring by comparison! I'm' glad I did, because I didn't like the first color that I had chosen. Several functions may not work. 3D Printed Futuristic Space Age Wall Clock, http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthreads/showthreaded.php?Cat=0&Number=4721255. Next step, before my first acquisition of any parts, is to get with any amateur astronomers in Central Florida, so, wish me luck! Two inch internal diameter drawtube. Home centers and hardware stores did not carry large sizes. Frustrated by these difficulties, I stopped by one more hardware store to ask for advice. Homemade 12.5 Inch Dobsonian Telescope - Instructables It's rigid, lightweight, and Before finishing the tube with a wrap of veneer, I wanted to make sure that the primary was in the correct position. I set things up in daylight and collimated the scope. DIY Electric Focuser - ATM, Optics and DIY Forum - Cloudy Nights A wide hole will let the knitting needle creep Since my focuser shaft is 6mm, I ordered the coupler shown here in the 6mm to 8mm version from Amazon. Maker-written books designed to inform and delight! A Homemade Crayford Focuser Similar photos at http://www.telescopegeek.com/gallery.htm require 100+ minute exposure times on his 20" telescope and $3200 camera. I was still doing some construction on the morning of the event, but I succeeded in making first light on that clear, dark night in late July. on Introduction. And a flat thing to put it all on needle to be just a little too flexible for the weight of a diagonal and 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. This is my copy of the telescope that Sir Isaac Newton presented to the Royal Society of London in 1671, and is considered to be the first successful reflecting telescope. I would love to see your build when you are finished with it . together tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators across the globe. a "rubbery" feel. 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. guarantee a response, but I'll do my best to answer everyone who writes Attach the ball head to the top board. Fairly easy to build and could be adapted to suit any SCT focuser. Wooden Telescope Part 2: Tube and Mount - Instructables The Dob is really a great design. The focuser is the part of the telescope that holds the eyepiece or camera, and by moving in or out, closer or farther from the . We then spread contact cement over the remaining veneer and tube surface, waited for the glue to dry, and carefully rolled the tube over the veneer. Just drill holes in both ends and mount the lenses. drneilmb, thanks for sharing the focuser design. Please feel free to email me at the address on the right. Rather than use a sheet of plastic Kydex to finish the tube, as recommended in K/B, I ordered a sheet of birch veneer. The side bearings are each made from 2 identical semicircles of 5/8 inch plywood glued together to make a thickness of 1 inches. spambots that search the internet for addresses to send junk mail to.) The original Crayford Focuser is on display there. Plus it comes in black, so you don't need to paint it (or worry about paint flaking off it). This means I can use FocusMax to do the focusing. Here is what I was working on but looks like I need a better design. If you're going for simple, have you considered a helical focuser? This proved fatal for the stepper motor! The blue pieces of the rocker box and ground board are arranged as in the diagrams in (figure 2). All Orion 1.25" and 2" telescope focusers are engineered to provide smooth drawtube action to ensure you hit the exact focus point . The 48 inch width of the veneer was close enough to the diameter of the tube that I used it as is. They're fairly If you don't want to go that route, contact me at gary.hethcoat@gmail.com since I have a lot of spare parts and I can sell you a "kit" with a PCB and only the parts you need. Someone is pulling someone's leg here. This project is based on Robert Brown's "Arduino ASCOM Focuser Pro2 DIY". When the skies were dark enough for observing I found that the scope moves easily into position and holds that position well. As the telescope tilts toward the horizon, the mirror must be supported on its edge. More commercial crayford focusers are of a more enclosed form, whereas mine is more "open frame" approach. eyepiece on the ground (or worse, on your primary mirror!) NEMA-17 Stepper Motor - see below, there are two options. 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. 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. I'd be willing to bet that you could easily grind your own 12.5 inch next time and save some $$. wobbly knob still works, and adds character. I have already seen some designs on CN, Stellafane and web but still checking if someone has recently made anything simpler. 5 weeks after I had ordered the mirror, I called to ask about its status. I have built a homemade electric focuser for my Celestron 8SE using a radio control hobby servo and some spare parts. Some of these are essential for the basic functionalities of our websites. How To Build A Dobsonian Telescope [Guide 2022] - DopeGuides 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. . on Introduction, Very nice build nikon20. Another thing, the resolution on the Dumbell nebula seems a bit too high for that telescope. When you want to focus, you just open the program and press focus. focusers for that project. Or in my case, back to SolidWorks :-). The focuser shaft on the telescope is 13.1mm in diameter. A Beginner's Guide to Collimation - Gary Seronik #@$%^#@!!!!! I had some carboy caps that make good knobs. Telescope Focusers | Orion Telescopes: Shop Thanks again for the 'ible. It has a 6mm shaft. The Artemis module works extremely well, and is to be strongly recommended. You will need to remove the regular focus knob on your telescope's focuser. At this point, the scope was pretty much finished. 5 weeks after I had ordered the mirror, I called to ask about its status. Rack & Pinion: For many years the standard focuser was of the rack-and-pinion type - a small pinion gear moved the flat toothed rack that was attached to or built into the moving focusing tube that holds the eyepiece.However, this geared system was far from ideal, with some wobble due to the friction fit between the fixed and moving tubes and backlash due to the gears. The rocker sides are each made of two identical pieces of inch plywood glued together, creating two sides one inch thick. I got no response to phone calls or emails after another week, and decided to wait until the primary would be finished in another two weeks. You need a drawtube of course. Also no obvious diffraction spikes in the m31 photo.
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