Home Made Dust Cap Advice

I have manged to make a dust cap from cardboard, tape, matt black paint and sealer. Its 20" in diameter and 3" wide. It fits perfectly over the aperture end of the tube and it looks good too. I have already noticed the difference in the 'field'...my primary mirror has not misted over yet since i made it, it done this on most nights before this when the tube end was exposed. I am very pleased with this and how it is performing! I also refurbished my 16", check my report and images at www.eaas.co.uk where you will find them on the main page.

Now...where can i get a cheap JMI NGF 2" focuser?..and is a roll off roof garden shed observatory hard to make?..does anyone have any ideas how i can cheaply protect my scope outside and have it ready for observing within a few minutes (i must be able to see to the horizon). Thanks in advance. Your suggestions and advice have been very helpful!!!

thats great Martin,
I had a feeling you'd use cardboard.
I considered a roll-on roll-off shed, but where I am is quite windy as I'm on a hill and the wind is a killer on a cold night, so I'm getting a fiber glass dome off dave bell. its due in the next 3 weeks or so.

basically, my scope is in mothballs until I get it, as I'm not carrying it out anymore until the dome's built.!

Martin - have a look at this:

www.philharrington.net/swo/

I'm going to loosely follow Phil's design. A dome will be reserved for Galway and when the finances permit!

As for a JMI focuser, obviously try JMI if you want new, or Astromart if you want second hand. The Finger Lekes DF2 is considered marginally better but may not fit your scope. If you want the best (and have the money) Van Slyke are pretty mucxh top drawer.

Cheers

Dave McD

Cheers Dave for that!...great observatory!!!

We have had auroras here for the last two nights in a row and they where very bright and impressive, keep an eye out!

Thanks for info on focusers!

Can you tell me if the 8X50 right angle erect image finders are any good, or am i better of with the inverted image?

Hi Martin - here are various links to the info I posted earlier:

As far is erecting image findersrs are concerned, I got awfully confused with left-right and up-down when I got my first scope. I learned, with practice to get this right. If I now chose an erecting image finder I'd have to relearn all of that!

I'd advise that unless you desperately need on erect image finder, then you're better off just learning which way is up/down left/right for your setup and sticking to it. It'll save money!

Cheers

Dave McD

JMI
www.jimsmobile.com/

Finger Lakes
www.fli-cam.com/

Van Slyke
www.observatory.org/

Astromart (second hand gear)
www.astromart.com/

Thanks again Dave, i will check those links out. I just thought the simplicity of the erect image would be nice as long as the extra glass didnt fade the overall image. I have a standard 8X50 finder on the 16" and a telrad but would like a right -angled one mounted below the focuser so i can just look down from the eyepiece and look straight into it..would be nice and more user friendly for me! i suppose it doesnt matter what the image orientation is.

Heres another thing i have been pondering, sorry for firing all these questions at you but you have been a great resource for information.....would it be easy to make some kind of Dolly/wheels attached to the rocker box so that i could wheel it around the garden? but at the same time not cause any vibrations in the field when static? The 16" is on a grass surface...not concrete. Any ideas or sugestions?

Thanks again!!!!!