homemade telescope focuser

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 motor is much lighter than the geared motor. It interfaces to the computer via USB and comes with an ASCOM driver. I got a different stain, tested it, and went back to work. NEMA-17 Stepper Motor - see below, there are two options. var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? Primary telescope mirror aftermarket, homemade, or custom-made. #2 knitting needle would be just about right. Nice one. 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. After going over the surfaces with a tack cloth to pick up the saw dust, I applied the stain and went over it with cheese cloth rags for an even finish. 10 inch or 12 inch. the bearings right at the edge of the frame, reducing the frame to After the glue dried but before the clamps were removed, I added corner braces to all four corners of the tube using glue and brads to hold them in place. It is used to setup water outlet from overhead water tanks. 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. A neet site: http://www.astropix.com/HTML/I_ASTROP/CAMERAS.HTM Cool instructable, Dude! Two different construction supply companies told me that sonotubes were not available with a 14 inch diameter, even by special order. How to make diy focuser pvc - YouTube It is size 1.25 inch with a clear inside dia-meter. 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. Use the externalMirror Edge Support Calculatorto decide whether to use a two-point, four-point (whiffletree), or sling support. curated by us, the people behind Make: and the Maker Faire. I used one of these scrap pieces to draw an angle of 70 degrees to the edge of the arc so that I could later place the teflon pads on the arcs. The Crayford Focuser and DIY Focuser for Homemade Telescope I've been using the above pair I told them I was on my way. Shorter thread side will be used to attach the eyepiece. The little app is simple and works great. Several clamps were used to hold the pieces together overnight. Those are the last screws to be tightened. spambots that search the internet for addresses to send junk mail to.) 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. In the sub-folder "Cases" you will see many variants of the case for the DRV8825 based focusers. Focuser minimum height is 50 mm and maximum a little over 90 mm so it is good overall. 8 years ago together tech enthusiasts, crafters, educators across the globe. I would also like to know about how you can take such fantastic pictures without a field rotator and an autoguider system. needle so the knitting needle will be snug against the drawtube without 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. The cage should be a hollow cylinder about wider than the mirror, with the focuser mounted directly facing the secondary mirror. Finally, I attached Keepers to the sides of the rocker at the bottom of the arcs using screws and glue. on Introduction. I also wanted to strengthen and protect the cardboard tube. Because thebasic movement and optics requirements are relatively simple, much of the design is left to the builder. 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. Crayford-style design with four bearings and one driveshaft. needle to be just a little too flexible for the weight of a diagonal and 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. If you wanted to really go low-profile with this design, in the tube so they'll hit the knitting needle before your drawtube runs If you enter it in the next contest please let me know and i will make sure to vote for you. I marked the expected position of the secondary by measuring 61 inches down from the end of the tube. For about $3 we can buy a tank valve kit that has a threaded 2" i.d. The diameter of the focuser is usually indicated in inches. Interfaced with a computer, so the computer can make the decisions about where the best focus is. 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. I tried to call, but the voice mail had a recording stating that the customer was unable to receive messages. I ended up modifying it a bit after printing. Able to make myself using my own humble tools (or toys as the pros will call them!) it sticks into your light path. 11 years ago my thoughts naturally gravitated toward a boxy focuser to go with it. A week after they said they would send the secondary and other parts, I called to ask if things had been sent. This unit takes signals from your computer and drives the stepper motor on the focuser. Thicker walls also required thicker side bearings so that the outside of the bearings would line up with the outside of the rocker sides. To get this arc, I actually moved the radius of the jig in by 1/8 inch. I decided to order a mirror cell from them because the owner had talked about a new cell he was excited about. For my project I needed a 14 inch diameter, and I had a tough time finding one. how much travel you actually need, you can cut the tube off so none of 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. Community Forum Software by IP.BoardLicensed to: Cloudy Nights. Slewing to find an object and then tracking an object on the sky, so when you make a homemade telescope on the motorisation process you will need high speed for slewing and low speed for tracking or fine movements. This cost around $100 to build and all of the components came from Jaycar, except the brackets which were made with 1.2mm sheet metal. This allowed me to cut perfect identical circles. The back of the mirror floats on 3 or more support points (this build uses 6) that are calculated usinga software tool called PLOP. It features 2 semicircular arms, and mounting points for the trusses (T-nuts are fine), as well as a lid to keep the mirror safe when the telescope is not in use. I called to express my concern and was told that it had all been packaged a few weeks ago and that it, For complete instructions on building a telescope such as this one, I strongly recommend buying a copy of, After cutting the circles for the side bearings, I set up the jig to cut the curved edges of the rocker sides. My secondary is 4; for tips on choosing size, click here. In addition, we use third-party cookies to help us analyze and understand usage. That's pretty much the focuser. Only problem is if I put a diagonal it wants to rotate the helical part. As the thread shows you could also build the dual speed version, all made of plywood, if you feel ready to tackle a slightly more complex project for a cost of about 5$ more. I think I got what I wanted and seems best solution for me. I am using scrap upvc pipe material. forward and back along with the drawtube when you focus, and you'll get During assembly, youll attach the trusses to the mirror box, then sit the secondary cage on top and bolt everything in place. Finally, attach your polar alignment device and align it with the hinge. Topics such as See captioned photos 22-25 here:https://www.cloudyniractor-focuser/ for more detail on building a flush valve focuser, as Bob mentions. 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'd With adapters for any Meade 1x200-ACF or LS model, and chord to plug into focuser port. The focuser is very smooth. Accordingly, with 1.25 focuser, you can use 1.25 eyepieces, with 2 focuser - both 2 eyepieces and 1.25 (through a special . The wood would cost the same, as would pretty much everything except the mirror, so why not spend a little more on the mirror and go BIG. Thanks for the great comment. I really had to, since the underside of my telescope's focuser is all curves, no flat area for attaching the mounting bracket. All in all it seemed like a pretty robust design, so I gave it Motorise Your Own Telescope (updated 10-19-2017). - Instructables To cut the circles, I used a router with a straight cutting bit and a circle cutting jig. Above youll find an interactive 3D rendering of the Sketchup file I used to design and cut all of the parts for my telescope. DIY Craford Focuser. 5 weeks after I had ordered the mirror, I called to ask about its status. Featured in the February, 2015 issue of Sky & If not, you may need to design and print your own bracket(s), gears, and so on. Helical is one of the option i am considering. I had the thought that as long as I was going to build it I should build it as big as I could afford. 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. It has become an indispensable piece of equipment for me that so beats hacking and filing PVC pipes etc. For the ATMer I do find that there are an endless number of parts that can be designed and printed for home built telescopes and binoscopes. Most people will want a knob on SDO/HMI Continuum Image on 2023.03.04 at 1259 UT, Remote computer working with no extra networking. 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. This motor has a larger shaft diameter (8mm) and is quite a bit heavier overall than the direct drive motor, mainly because of the gearbox. I found a used 16 primary on eBay. Crayford focusers are considered superior to entry-level rack and pinion focusers, normally found in this type of device. 11 years ago What materials did you use? You will need to order one sized for your telescope's focuser shaft size. They have many items for ATMers and I had frequently visited their website when planning my scope. It seems to As the authors describe the benefits of a truss design, it is hard to dispute their arguments. At their suggestion, I also ordered a 2.6 inch secondary mirror. 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. Plan ahead by carefully weighing all components and approximating the center mass of the optical assembly. To view, go here: http://emediadesigns.com/focuser/ Place the focuser, draw the position of the screws with a pencil and remove the focuser. a "rubbery" feel. And bolt to scope More commercial crayford focusers are of a more enclosed form, whereas mine is more "open frame" approach. Below are cutting diagrams and diagrams of the rocker and tube box with side bearings. A week after they said they would send the secondary and other parts, I called to ask if things had been sent. I installed the spider first, about one inch down from the end of the square end of the tube. I only use the OTA. Thanks Pinbout for sharing your design. Just drill holes in both ends and mount the lenses. 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. A Homemade Crayford Focuser This can be shimmed out with paper wrapped around the My other telescope is a Celestron NexStar C6E. 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. try { The Crayford focuser is a simplified focusing mechanism for amateur astronomical telescopes. Not worth the effort, price is tooo high. Homemade Electric Telescope Focuser - Stargazers Lounge Ideally, the spacer would be 1 inch long and have a smaller diameter, but I didn't get this one right the first time. The lumber yard also gave me a lower price than I expected. My telescope is the Orion ED80T-CF. CNC files (optional) Download the Sketchup files. with a genuine question or comment about the design. the tube is cardboard as well, you can also get a quality mirror at telescope.com for much cheaper. Put it all together eyepiece on the ground (or worse, on your primary mirror!) A wide hole will let the knitting needle creep the side of a rigid secondary cage. 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. 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. Easy DIY motorized battery free telescope focuser - YouTube His project is very well documented. I did not wrap the tube until I had completed the base. flexing. The hole did need to be enlarged slightly by moving the bit within the hole , but in the end, the fit seems right. Frustrated by these difficulties, I stopped by one more hardware store to ask for advice. Parts List (the full story of acquiring the parts), The primary, secondary, spider and secondary holderDiscovery Optics. The belt and pulleys are off-the-shelf items available on Amazon. The day I received the refund, I ordered a mirror cell from University Optics. The rocker arms must also have guides to keep it on the track; flat metal 12 braces lined with ABS plastic work nicely. 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 curved sides of the Side Bearings are also covered with strips of Ebony Star that glide on the teflon pads on the curved edges of the Rocker Sides (figure 3). 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. To do this, the mirror cell needs to be supported by 3 large bolts, at least 2 of which are adjustable. I Several of my Recent Images have been focused with this system. small, it's surprisingly rigid. on my binocular scope for quite a while now and really like them. This cost around $100 to build and all of the components came from. 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 Start with the small components first. Keeping with the 'simple ' part of your request, here is a helical 2"/1.25" focuser made from std plumbing parts. 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. Read the documentation though, there are a lot of functions and options. on Step 3. on Introduction. can't click on it or copy and paste it; it's a graphic file to thwart 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. Given any mirror measurements, PLOP will provide the ideal support layout and how much distortion to expect for any number of flotation points. I Hope to give you ideas if you are thinking about building one for yourself! I would love to see your build when you are finished with it . Motion is very smooth. But let me see what items I can arrange to make a helical. I had chosen a boxy, rigid design for the binocular scope, so While I applaud your building of a homemade Dob, (giving you the FULL benefit of the doubt here) your "friend" has provided photographs that make it look like you're trying to win by cheating. Able to shift heavy loads of kit ie over 1000g. The focuser knob had two set screws. Thicker knitting needles would be even A bit of a monster! To interface with the computer, I have used the Artemis Focuser module from Steve, Arthur and Co. My newtonian telescope, like most others, came fitted with a nasty rack and pinion focuser. Headers for the LEDs, buzzer (2-pin) and temperature probe (3-pin). I took the whole tube assembly outside. Among amateur telescopes, the most common are focusers with landing diameters of 1.25 ", 2", rarely 0.965 ", and even less often - 3". Unbelievable! Tips If you've got a 1.25 inch focuser, You can also use it for an objective. Once I decided to build a scope myself I had to decide on the aperture of the scope. It turns out the the extra 1/16 allowed far too much side to side movement between the rocker and ground board. There are a number of technical reasons why these photographs could not have come from this Optical Tube Assembly. Gift the gift of Make: Magazine this holiday season! Thank you for your pages. Drawing lines between opposite corners of the tube box sides allowed me to locate the center point on each side. like, you can have as much focuser travel as you want no matter how 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. Star Adventurer Pro Pack Counter Weight Bar Thumb Screw Upgrade. My DIY Motorized Telescope Focuser - YouTube We are now ready for some testing. I used my router to "mill" a flat area for better contact with the focus adjustment rod. I hate focusing. Again from the main FILES page, go to "ASCOM DRIVERS" and download everything. My guess is that photo was taken with a refractor. Every primary telescope mirror has a fixed focal length thats usually 4 to 6 times the width of the mirror. I will get good 30-40 mm focusing range. Telescope Focusers | Orion Telescopes: Shop DIY Electric Focuser - ATM, Optics and DIY Forum - Cloudy Nights The focuser 'knob' on the Celestron is just a rubber sleeve that usually pulls off easily. 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. I'd be willing to bet that you could easily grind your own 12.5 inch next time and save some $$. The side bearings are each made from 2 identical semicircles of 5/8 inch plywood glued together to make a thickness of 1 inches. That evening I spent most of my time rediscovering the many DSOs around Sagittarius, especially the Lagoon Nebula and the Trifid Nebula. These are mounted 120 degrees apart and use 4 inexpensive bearings to support the tube. 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. I also figured that the extra expense was worth it, considering the amount of money I was investing in the project overall. Having an RS trade counter 2 miles away is such a luxury! telescope page, I wasn't really eager to buy two commercial Crayford Edited by howardcano, 24 May 2020 - 09:29 PM. You need to order it sized for your focuser shaft size. 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 do have another tube that can be used around the drawtube, but it doesn't really add anything. Electronics and software automate the process of taking pictures. Total cost for supplies for this project: It took a lot longer than I expected to receive my mirror and other parts from Discovery. both sides. The mount and tripod are pretty much useless for astrophotography. His passion is using CAD design and his homemade CNC router to bring large wood projects to life. case you need more focuser travel than you thought. 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. It's the same in form, but has a perfect, true 13.35mm hole. You should now be able to drill the 4 holes at each corner. Dozens of projects in every issue covering electronics, craft, fabrication, and more, Learn tips and skill-building tutorials from experts in the maker community. Wooden Telescope Part 2: Tube and Mount - Instructables After the second call, I received a response that it would be ready at the end of the following week. 4 years ago In my build, the minimum eyepiece-to-secondary mirror distance (13) plus the primary-to-secondary mirror distance (57) equals the focal length of 71, which is roughly 4.5 times the width of the 16 mirror. Sew the seam, and sew an elastic cord into the top to secure it to the secondary cage. control. drneilmb, thanks for sharing the focuser design. I have already seen some designs on CN, Stellafane and web but still checking if someone has recently made anything simpler. 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. The blue pieces of the rocker box and ground board are arranged as in the diagrams in (figure 2). Homage to Homemade Crayford Focusers - Cloudy Nights widening the hole. Plus it comes in black, so you don't need to paint it (or worry about paint flaking off it). my 12.5" trackball, but I didn't 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. Un-real!!! You can see that my Moonlite focuser was slightly larger than the sides of the tube. The mirror itself must also be able to tilt in three dimensions in order to aim its light at the secondary mirror (a process called collimation). Realizing that it could not be the University Optics cell already, I thought, Noit couldn't be but, in fact, it was. It just One 6in dob I made was a complete failure. That is dirt cheap compared to the cost of commercially available focusers, which can top $1000 and are much heavier than what we will build. To get a slide-fit in a 3D printed part, you normally make the hole 0.5mm larger than the shaft. (The 8 inches from the center of the secondary to the field stop in the focuser is the same 8 inches from the center of the focuser to the top of the tube.) But, especially on cold evenings, the focus may go out in the middle of the night. The sides were attached with wood glue and clamps with a few small brads to hold everything in place. scope, I only put knobs on the outsides. (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.) 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. Make sure the shroud can slip on and off of the assembled scope, and that it stretches along the circumference (not lengthwise). PhotoPictureResizer_190723_214534574_crop_2558x3105_copy_1023x1242.jpg. Connect the Arduino USB cable and upload some test sketches. My homemade motorized telescope focuser for Celestron C8. When you're ready to go on to testing with the windows driver, you want "myFP2_DRV8825_312-1", open that folder. My first telescope I built was a 10" F8. Once I had my design set, I was ready to buy the parts. 1" Rack & Pinion Focuser. Just as it was about to come into focus, the focuser bottomed out. If you look in the FILES area on Robert Brown's site (see link above) you will see a sub-folder "3D Printed Parts". 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. Look down through the empty focuser. 100A81BF-2145-44D5-BC76-66DBF43BAD58.jpeg. I had to take apart the focuser in order to get my bolts in place. If you're going for simple, have you considered a helical focuser? The holes in the main bracket the match the holes in the plate are oversize to allow for this alignment. Contact cement is permanent, so the only solution would be to replace the tube! I did run into a small problem with the focuser. The spider, or secondary mirror holder, will suspend the mirror in the optical path in order to direct light into the focuser. 11 years ago 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.) One of the companies I had considered as a supplier for the primary mirror was Anttler's Optical. The plastic will ride on teflon pads, creating just enough traction for the telescope to avoid sliding on its own while not making it too difficult to point at things in the sky. Plus it comes in black, so the bearings, totally eliminating any flex. The 2-1.25" adapter is a sink drain slip fitting in 1-1/4" size that slips into the large tube for 1.25 EP's. that is a great website that guy has some fantastic photos. weight. 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. Thanks Peter. I called to express my concern and was told that it had all been packaged a few weeks ago and that it should have been sent. Fire up focusmax, and shoot some images! The bigger upvc nut will be attached to focuser plate and longer threaded side will be used on it for the focusing. It may take you a while to adjust the image correctly, but it's not hard to do, just time consuming. With the DRV8825 and Arduino Nano plugged in, the basic board is complete. Made of plywood, the rocker box supports the mirror box on 1 teflon pads, allowing it to rotate vertically. accessible by all ages and skill ranges. Download the Gerber Files. } 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. I had cut the 12 foot tube in half in order to get it home in the first place, and a 6 foot section was the right size to work with for my f/5 12.5 inch. This simple homemade device will reduce star trails far better than if the camera was mounted on a tripod alone. In scaling up the K/B 8 inch design, I made a few changes that, I hope, will improve the design for 12.5 inch aperture. Before I wrapped the tube (and before I discovered the problem with the primary placement) I determined the balance point on the tube. This is the kind of simple off the shelf design I was looking for.

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