All terrain base plate for 8' dob

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mmrmm
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All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#1

Post by mmrmm »


Hi forum colleagues!

I am waiting to get my 8' dob and I am already foreseeing where to place it to make my first observations.

"Problem" is that I am talking about a farm, in which I could eventually find a concrete floor outside the house but perhaps too close to some lighting which is to be avoided.

I have numerous good spots elsewhere, but I would not want to place my brand new telescope directly on the floor / dirt.

Any ideas on how I could place something between the floor and the telescope base plate? Simple idea would be some wood board, but perhaps then the balance is not great. I am kind of ok in DIY projects, so eventually a 3-leg wood board would do? Or perhaps someone here has a good idea.

Thanks!
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#2

Post by Lady Fraktor »


Some tarping or a small piece of carpet will work fine.
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#3

Post by OzEclipse »


Here in Australia, landscaping centres sell precast concrete slabs, like large flagstones. Typical sizes are 450x450mm and 450x900mm and about 50mm thick. Not sure what size you need but you can probably buy one of these, use a shovel to dig a level recess in the ground that just fits the flagstone but is deeper, put in some sand, make it damp, scree it level and then bed the slab onto it. Just make sure that only the telescope sits on the slab. If it's big enough for you to step on it, it might move or tilt the scope.

A better solution is to dig a hole in the ground, box it with a square levelled formwork/framing just the right size for your dob, or better yet, for the bigger dob you will buy in a few years time ;-) cut some some reinforcing mesh to fit then fill it with quickset cement premix.

https://www.bunnings.com.au/australian- ... e_p0762428



Basically a very scaled down version of this project :


Instead of cutting all that rebar, just use a layer of 50mm reinforcing mesh.

and use quickset concrete like this
https://www.bunnings.com.au/australian- ... e_p0762428

mix it by hand like this


good luck

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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#4

Post by UlteriorModem »


I made a leveling sub base with three adjustable 'legs'. It really was to help the scopes go to function but it also helps get it up off the ground.

At the office right now so no linkage to my PB account but if your interested I can post some pics on it later this afternoon.

This thread on that other forum has a few pics of it. Please do not post to that thread! Thanks

http://www.astronomyforum.net/telescope ... ories.html
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#5

Post by mmrmm »


That is exactly what I had in my mind.
Yes, pics would be lovely. :)
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#6

Post by SkyHiker »


If you're going to make a base you may as well make sure you can level it then you can make setting circles to find your target. I have a portable version that also raises the Dob to the height I need:
http://www.astronomyforum.net/dobsonian ... 1058019315
http://www.astronomyforum.net/dobsonian ... 1057957313
On soil you need to bring some small tiles to put the leveling bolts on, or find some rocks.
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#7

Post by mmrmm »


Would something like this be terrible? I mean as it is 3-legged I believe it would be stable enough...
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#8

Post by mmrmm »


Perhaps the legs are too long?
I do not know how high a stand needs to be for a DOB 8’ to be confortable to use...
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#9

Post by notFritzArgelander »


mmrmm wrote: Thu Dec 05, 2019 7:26 pm Perhaps the legs are too long?
I do not know how high a stand needs to be for a DOB 8’ to be confortable to use...
All such legs are too long. Get an observing chair.
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#10

Post by OzEclipse »


mmrmm wrote: Thu Dec 05, 2019 7:26 pm Perhaps the legs are too long?
I do not know how high a stand needs to be for a DOB 8’ to be confortable to use...
That really depends on the f ratio and design of the dob and how tall you are.

An 8" f5 dob that has a mirror box near the base plate is going to be about 3' 4" tall when pointing straight up give or take 8" for design uncertainties.

So if you are 6' tall, your eye is probably hovering around 5'8" so if the stool was 2'4" then it would be at eye height.

it really depends on you and the scope design.

Wait until the scope arrives then measure the distance from your eye when standing up to the eyepiece when pointing vertically.

The 3 legs need to stand a good bit wider than the dob base or it could topple over. If the stool will live outside, you might consider attaching weights to each leg at the base to stabilise it.

cheers

Joe
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Amateur astronomer since 1978...................Web site : http://joe-cali.com/
Scopes: ATM 18" Dob, Vixen VC200L, ATM 6"f7, Stellarvue 102ED, Saxon ED80, WO M70 ED, Orion 102 Maksutov, ST80.
Mounts: Takahashi EM-200, iOptron iEQ45, Push dobsonian with Nexus DSC, three homemade EQ's.
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Re: All terrain base plate for 8' dob

#11

Post by mariosi »


Hello to all,
Leveling adjustable feet .jpg
Extension adjustable cabinet legs .jpg
Sky-Watcher 10px solid tube .jpg
Marios
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