I thought you might like to know a
little about the web author. I am 45 years old; a
cabinetmaker/carpenter by trade (a photo can be found on the Make Your Own
Telescope! page). Though I have been interested in astronomy
all my life, it wasn't until 1988 that I purchased my first
4" telescope. Looking to join a club, I soon found John
Dobson. (I had heard of the Dobsonian, but I didn't
realize John was a local hero). John taught me how to make a 10
1/2" sidewalk telescope, as well as a 6"
Dobsonian solar telescope.
Though I practice sidewalk astronomy
here in San Francisco, I usually travel to a dark sky site near
new moon time. I often go up to Mt. Tamalpais, where public
astronomy is practiced with the encouragment of the State park
there.
I am an avid telescope maker. I have
helped a number of folks with the carpentry skills required for
some of the inevitable complications which seem to arise. My own
scopes include (above): a Surrierer-truss Dobsonian (17.5"
Coulter mirror), complete with Takahashi 4" refractor and
equatorial platform of my own construction. Below is pictured my
13.1" telescope which collapses into a box making it
"airline transportable." (I recently--February,
1998--took this scope to The Big Island of Hawaii). At present, I
do not have plans available for either of these designs.
If you are interested in some of these more advanced designs of the Dobsonian, allow me to make some recommendations:
First, a couple of books:
The Modern Dobsonian by Tom Clark of Tectron Telescopes, is a wonderfully written book about an ATM's evolution with the Dobsonian design. Packed with useful information, especially if you like the "scope in a box" approach I took with my 13" above.
A Guide to Building Truss Tube Telescopes by Randy Cunningham of AstroSystems, is another book with clear explanations, formulas and notes on construction.
Both Clark and Cunningham are part of larger, commercial outfits which cater to the advanced telescope maker. Catalogs, as well as hard to manufacture parts (like 18-point mirror cells, and truss-tube clamps) can be ordered from either Tectron (813)758-9890 or AstroSystems (303)587-5838. Both books, by the way, are stocked by Pocono Mt. Optics (800)569-4323.
As far as "hard to find" materials are concerned, you might try Crazy Ed Optical, a wonderful source for Teflon, Ebony Star plastic laminate, tube rings, and other "stuff."
The ATM Resource List is the ultimate list for amateur telescope makers here on the 'net: mirror supplies, kits, books, electronics, and much more are listed here.
Interested in the Equatorial Platform approach? Tom Osypowski makes superb custom platforms (Tom helped me make mine). TLSystems sell very affordable plans and kits (minus the plywood). Finally, Chuck Shaw has an innovative design (with plans) and an excellent explanation of many of the details of construction, not to mention a good introduction to platform design.
Web Author: Ray Cash
Last update: 2/18/98