Looking Good

Good morning all, things have moved at pace this week. The base ring has been completed . Just a couple of coats of protection before bolting into place.


As you can see the dome ring is nearly there. A small upgrade to the jig had made the cutting process smoother. This job really takes time as each piece is glued and screwed and clamped. I lost several clamps during the move so having to make do. Millimeter perfect on it's shape and looks fantastic on to of the base ring giving me a 30mm clearance for rotation. I was going to use the 6 castor's from the previous roll off roof but they look just to darn big and out of place. I know they will never be on show externally just not happy with them.

THE DOOR. A few days ago Tony our chairman from our society Breckland Astronomical Society delivered and installed the steel door. He had to make a small alteration to the frame as it was just off square. Fits like a glove and now has 2 coats of red oxide primer. The inside has been painted black and the front hopefully today will have the first of its gloss white coats to match the siding.

Yesterday I received a text from Nathan to inform me the pier is now ready for collection. Cant wait to see it and get it up for a test run. Pics to follow soon I promise.

Dome ring

Tues 2nd What a lovely few days of sunshine we have had apart from the freak downpoor this morning. Time well spent in finishing off the interior. The pier base is totally isolated from the observatory and my steel pier is currently under construction from Nathan a welding tutor where I work. I cant wait to see it.

Probably the only tool I do not own is a router and a fellow Breckland Astronomical Society member Barry has lent me his. I have used 12mm external grade ply and carefully cut out the ring that will fit to the top of the walls I built a little jig and used a steel plate with a 4.5" gap to give a consistent sizing of the pieces cut. The castors will be mounted ontop of each upright so distrubuting the load quite effectively. I have cut 10 pieces that will be glued and screwed to give be a firm base ring on 24mm. Haven't taken a pic of a pile of arc sections but all they need is a sanding before construction. Unfortunately I am working now till next monday so a new set of pics to follow soon. Please feel free to comment or ask me any questions. Cheers.

Insulation and flooring

It has been a good week since anything has been done. A few well deserved days off work has allowed me to crack on. I have used 50mm Polystyrene insulation in the wall cavaties and under the floor as well as some security measueres to give added protection. This gave me the opportunity to install the cables to the light fittings, switches and get the heater cables and enough mains sockets for future add ons!!



Loft boards were used for the flooring and a layer of hardboard for the inner walls. All will be painted black in due course. A fellow society member Tony Fox Carter is currently making me the steel door similar to the style that graced my previous observatory. Probably overkill but security is my business and it never pays to cut corners on what is the most vulnerable part of the structure.

Cladding

To my surprise the cladding arrived this morning and not Saturday as arranged (not complaining). So another chance to get on, 5 sides have been done. Very simple to do just attatch the end strips and slide the 300mm pieces in, therefore aligning perfctly with the top that will soon support the fixed ring. I have also battoned at each 300mm intersection to provide additional strenth and support.I am nearly ready for  a fellow society member Tony to measure up for the steel door. He is the same chap who made the door for the last observatory. The doorway in will be on the left side nearest the fence (north facing) this affords easy acces when scopes are parked.

Framework

The wind was a bit fierce and luckily the rain cleared to allow long enough for me and my daughter to get the framing up. It gave her 40 minutes away from essay writing so I think she didn't mind helping. So what have we got I decided that the observatory would be  hexagonal in shape. I have used 3" x 2" for the general structure and used the same for the flooring, once. Not a bad morning's work. Apologies to "Nutty" and "Jack" I had arranged to get a days golf in today but the bad weather has left me a little behind schedule. I have the cladding coming tomorrow for the exterior sides so todays job is to cut the batons and to get rid of the rubbish.

What conservatories were made for

  When the weather is foul and the work still needs to be done do I don the wet weather gear and wellies and slog it out like a true Brit, NO WAY that is what conservatories were made for I have spent the last few hours glueing and screwing the framework together in comfort and watching the first day of the British Open Golf. It has eased up a bit so I think will brave it and get on. More pics soon.

Groundbreaking for the new Hills Observatory

Welcome back to all my fellow bloggers. Apologies for the delay but I am back, and pleased to announce that groundworks are under way on my new observatory.
I have decided to have a go at a dome. Gasps I hear all around. I just dont have the space for a roll roof. It will be a six sided wooden framework below a 6 foot dome. Dome concepts are still developing at present fibreglass is the preferred option. I have taken some ideas from many of the amateur domes I have seen and will post some links to the shortly to some of the amazing projects out there.
My view has somewhat improved with an almost to the horizon view to the south.

Above is a shot of the garden where Hills Observatory is to be built. I was quite lucky in the respect that huge patio slabs have been laid previously and are level. I have removed 2 slabs for the hole for the pier. A work colleage is making me a custom made pier. I have dug a reasonable depth but hit solid clay and rock. so the pier fixing bolts will be raised a couple of inches higher on the observatory floor after the flooring is fiited. No great worries really better that than a bad back trying to excavate another 6 inches. 

Everthing is nice and level and now waiting the concrete pour. Hopefully this afternoon! fingers crossed.

Times Up

I knew the time was looming fast. We move in 3 weeks now and I have to work a nine day stretch. So I have spent this evening Stripping out cables and power supplies. So Saham observatory has seen its last photon. It has served me well. Never once leaked or failed to operate as it was designed. A testament to my over engineering me thinks. There own trumpet blown. So goodbye and thank you for the service you provided. However I shall utilise as much as I can into the new Hills Observatory opening ???????. Just missed out a 2.1m dome too 24 hours too late (gutted). So it will be a while before any new pics posted but I will be posting the new build project, In whatever form it may take. Cheers everyone and keep looking in from time to time.Clear skies to you all while I am out of action.

M13

We have been graced recently with some great clear nights. 5 in a row at last count but tonight was the 1st without the wind. So on goes the canon. I have said now a couple of times this may be the last pic for a while as I am moving, but the clear skies just keep on coming!!!

Anyway onto the good stuff. This is a slightly cropped and DDP processed image of 20 x 300 second exposures at ISO400.

It never fails to amaze me the sensitivity of the cameras just seems to get better. We can now image detail in the nearby 12th mag ngc6207. No longer just a fuzzy blob next to it.

About 124 light years in diameter M13 contains a few hundred thousand stars.

M3

I was not going to give up on the chance of was last imaging run before we move and be without a working observatory over the summer months.

A few outside lights left on by my soon to be ex neighbour caused a few issues so I reduced the ISO to 400 and let off a few 5 minute exposures. This image was a total of 1 hour 20 minutes with a DDP stretch and star spikes. I am quite pleased with result despite the fact it is not the perect focus I have achieved before.

Last Light

Sad news fellow bloggers from Saham Observatory. Last light from my observatory maybe anyday now. For four years I have viewed the heavens from what is a reasonable, dark sky. Equipment has performed almost flawlessly giving me some wonderful images I have posted here. But alas all good things come to an end.

Now for some good news. We have a new house, bigger than the last one for our expanding family. and a better view of the southern sky from which to observe. No more trying to observe Orion from behind our roof. No more searching for a cosmic clouds of smoke, but  instead imaging smoke from the neighbours wood burner at two in the morning.

So it is back to the drawing board for me to come up with a new design for the new Hills Observatory. Bigger better, and for heavens sake Malcolm remember the the difference between external wall and internal wall measurements!!!!!!!

So a moving date of the first of june is on the cards. Whether I can get something built before the winter is another thing.

I will keep you all posted as to progress and will be sure to have a detailed photo blog to see the progress throughout construction.