Well! I am about to learn more than I wanted to know about Meade's 8" ACF

[BruceHinton]

Brief overview:
Friend had the 8" ACF scope stored for about a decade, it was on an LS mount, and the AutoStar circuitry is trashed. Factory only replacement of mainboard, more expensive than I would put into an LS. In an effort to keep temps down in the tube during day use, he long ago painted it an awful textured light gray.

No tube replacement available from Meade, due to the side mount bracket.

Goals:
1. Take the scope apart, plastic bead blast the tube and paint it, bright glossy white!
2. Carefully and completely clean everything, maybe some high tech lube if needed.
3. Begin the process of finding and implementing a super-stable mount, I think I can machine that side bracket to install a rail of some type.
4. Find an Eq or wedge type mount that has motors that can be added as an upgrade.
5. Make the system capable of talking to my laptop computer, for automated control. Dedicated software or modified GoTo software, who knows?

I am going to be 70 early next year, so this should take the rest of my life, and keep me from ever getting bored!!!

[Lady Fraktor]

Good luck and have fun, I enjoy modifying/ rebuilding some of my telescopes.
The manual EQ-5 mount I mentioned before can be adapted but you may want to look at a used Skywatcher HEQ-5 or Celestron AVX mount.
Both have goto and can be run by computer but you do not have to use the goto, just set up and use the tracking motors.

[Don Alvarez]

1. Take the scope apart, plastic bead blast the tube and paint it, bright glossy white!

And then add these:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Flying-Tigers- ... 3Vu2etHtLA

That's what I'm doing with my next OTA, better believe it. Sky Sharks. Sharknebula.

[Bigzmey]

Sounds like a fun project. When you take it apart make sure to mark positions of the mirror and corrector plate relative to the tube.

[BruceHinton]

Great Idea, but I think I'll use my old USASA, (Army Security Agency), decals.



Not sure if this will come up on my post!

[Lady Fraktor]

Click on full editor below, then attachments tab in the lower left corner, add files. Once that appears it will show your image loading. Once loaded click place inline and the image appears.

[BruceHinton]

Thanks, M'Lady,

Just something kinda important only to me, no big deal, but I shall try now to get the process right!

(Both are my old unit sigs, will look great on newly painted glossy white tube.)

Bruce

[Markmjm]

Enjoy your new project! I'm sure it will be worth it once competed.

[BruceHinton]

Not great news:

It will be a while, --critical viewing some day before I can know, but the main mirror has some light scratches, so far I've only let compressed air blow away some of what has accumulated on it while stored away. I'll do the distilled water with alcohol rinse trick after I get the mirror out of the back end of the tube. I hope the indexing has been maintained in the past, but have to wonder about that.

Also, the front glass holding the secondary is quite a bit less than pristine, from field cleaning I suppose.

The price will have to go waaay down, or the "basket case" return could conceivably be upcoming.

Actually I still want to go ahead, though, because it will be a learning experience extraordinaire...

Screw heads mangled, one stripped. Where are my Ibuprofens???

[GCoyote]

Keep us posted. I have a few much less ambitious restoration projects ongoing as well. Reading about other people's more ambitious efforts helps keep me from putting the whole lot out for a yard sale.

[helicon]

Yes, keep us posted on how it goes. Sometimes the tough DIY projects can be very rewarding, but not without challenges.

[BruceHinton]

I have the tube in a metal fabrication shop for bead blasting, then it will go to a paint shop. I think an auto paint job will be durable, and in white, with clearcoat.

The internals are not apart yet, also I need to cut and grind off the approx. 50 x 75 mm protrusion on the base for a tiny lens that I assume was for positioning assistance??? The lugs for the old side plate will do nicely for a rail...

Has anyone here an idea of how difficult it is to get main mirrror out of tube's base unit? --As in "can I get it back together again?" I'm going to go ahead anyway but experienced advice is always welcome!

[Lady Fraktor]

The rear section is usually press fit into place and held with epoxy so expect a time consuming struggle.

There is some advice in the last post of page 1 here: https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/5041 ... ade-8-sct/

[BruceHinton]

I can hardly believe it: with long delays at metal shop for sandblasting, and automobile paint shop for making it white, I picked it up yesterday, nearly $200 but it is very nice and hard finish, clear-coated even.

Now to find some ultrablack for the interior, there was once a UK product called Vantablack, but I can't find it yet.

An alternative fav that a couple of you might mention?

TIA, muchly,

[BruceHinton]

Found. The nanotube Vantablack under the name of Black 3.0, got some 2.0 as undercoating. Will be interesting! This scope will be going back together soon.