I sent my mount in within the past 6 months to get the L6 upgrade, ra/dec extension, and springloaded worm addong. I started noticing after this it is taking forever to get calibration and after East/West calibration it takes several minutes to clear the backlash ( I get an error that Ra/dec rates differ by unexpected amounts). I did a guide assist and measured my dec backlash which gave me this is the result.?
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I am not entirely sure how to fix this or go about adjusting the spring or the dec gears. Any advice is greatly appreciated. My initial guide calibration used to take 1-2 minutes maybe 5 at most. Now its 5-10 minutes. I get the error every time, I will discard the calibration 2-3 times before I can get a good calibration.?
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Re: No phone or internet at Losmandy
Well, the tree line is well below the telescopes on Mauna Kea, to be sure. I hiked it a few years back with an altimeter and I think the last of the large vegetation stopped around 8,000 or so feet, not to mention that the eastern side is usually very wet. But it's right next to Mauna Loa, Hualalai, and Kilauea, with the potential for vog. Hualalai erupts only rarely and it's pretty far away. Kilauea is closer, but the summit is much lower, between 4,000 and 5,000 feet, and Mauna Loa is in the way, plus the winds would carry any vog to the northwest, away from Mauna Kea. But Mauna Loa sometimes erupts along the saddle separating Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea, at 8,000 feet. So, while vog would not likely reach the telescopes directly, an eruption from Mauna Loa could potentially threaten Saddle Road and the observatory access road, which would interfere with astronomers and support personnel reaching the telescopes. The dormitories are at 9,300 feet, a few miles away from Saddle Road, so anyone there could stay there as long as they had supplies, but eruptions can sometimes take a while to clear out.
Oh, by the way, vog usually consists of water vapor, sulphuric acid, and microscopic glass powder, among other nasty things, so it's not something you want to breathe or expose your sensitive instruments to. While not as severe as Mt. Wilson right now, even Mauna Loa has its threats.
In the book, "Glass Giant of Palomar" about the design and construction of the 200" telescope, they dwell a bit on the fire issue. A loss of the ground cover vegetation seriously disturbs the local seeing. So they included local water storage and fire fighting equipment in the specifications.
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As well, the structures were concrete, the utilities were all underground and the ventilation systems were capable of being closed off to prevent smoke or burning matter from entering the buildings.
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Fire fighting is probably not a serious issue at either the Hawaiian or Chilean scope sites!
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Mike
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sorry I meant to go and get the image immediately. here is my current setup.?
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Sure though I have updated it, and i think my ulitmate plan is to just move the gemini way out of the way.?
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I just ordered 2 of these
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I then plan to move the Gemini completely out of range of my cables for the camera. So that should elminate that as an issue I would imagine. I'll post my full setup shortly.?
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Re: No phone or internet at Losmandy
In the book, "Glass Giant of Palomar" about the design and construction of the 200" telescope, they dwell a bit on the fire issue. A loss of the ground cover vegetation seriously disturbs the local seeing. So they included local water storage and fire fighting equipment in the specifications.
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As well, the structures were concrete, the utilities were all underground and the ventilation systems were capable of being closed off to prevent smoke or burning matter from entering the buildings.
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Fire fighting is probably not a serious issue at either the Hawaiian or Chilean scope sites!
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Mike
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""Too rich to justify the work."? :)? There's a nice
problem to have!"
Y&es.? I spent much of my 20s and 30s working for telecom
and networking startups.? How to become wealthy.?
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"Thanks for response. I have not received one from Mr Nugent
yet. But he does say it's part time and may be a while before
response is sent.? But I see no way on the site to order the
product.? ?Maybe I missed it?"
I do not see it either.? I am surprised. When it was mine, I
had a PayPal ordering page.
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I use these under my various shop machinery including a 500 lb. band saw (somewhat overloaded in that case but it still rolls about without the use of slaves and a whip).
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The wheels are perhaps too small but it's an interesting solution to a common problem. And when it's in the parked position it is very stable.
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Mike
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Re: No phone or internet at Losmandy
As a retired emergency manager in Oregon, I've seen the increased risk of urban interface fires spread across the West.? With anthropogenic climate change continuing to warm the earth, I'm afraid that conditions that sparked fires like those in LA are the new normal.? It's only a matter of time before events like we're currently witnessing expand across even more of the West.? Oregon had its most expensive wildland firefighting year to date in 2024, requiring an emergency session of the legislature to provide additional funding to battle fires.??
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While changes to building codes and zoning can help to prevent the risk from spreading into new neighborhoods, only a massive effort (very expensive) to retro-fit older structures and bury power lines, along with such things as changes in allowable landscaping will help to mitigate the risk of more frequent and larger urban interface fires.? This will require revenue increases both to respond to and mitigate the effects of fires.? Raising taxes to pay for it all, and rules banning large water-intensive landscaping will be unpopular, but likely necessary to keep fires like these from destroying even more homes and lives.?
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In the days long, long ago when I I owned an iron for dealing with my laundry I had not only an electric iron and an ironing board but an accessory that controlled the cord to the iron.
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I have no idea what it was called but it consisted with a C-clamp to attach the whole thing to the ironing board and perhaps a foot or two of stiff wire with a loop at the end through which I routed the cord to the iron. It had, in addition, a coil spring next to the clamp which kept the wire with loop standing up straight. It worked quite well in keeping the iron cord from getting snagged on everything.
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Ah! Here's one for sale.
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Not that hard to make one of your own or modify one of these.
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Mike
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I'm in California.? Sounds like a lot of shipping cost. Ugh.
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"I looked at the scope roller site and it said they are doing make to order no inventory. Perhaps it's due to capital inventory cost and level of demand.
I have no idea.? "
That was always how I did it, too.? Some products had enough demand that making a few extra sets at av time was not a problem. Some versions, I sold ONE over a ten year period.? Labor was not substantial, so keeping it on a as ordered basis makes sense.
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On 1/15/2025 12:53 PM, Paul Goelz via groups.io wrote: Sigh. Looks like the list stripped off my embedded photo.? Here it is as an attachment.
Paul OK, I give up..... my attachment got stripped as well. Last gasp.... lets try a link: Paul -- Paul Goelz Rochester Hills, MI USA pgoelz@... www.pgoelz.com
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On 1/15/2025 12:48 PM, Paul Goelz via groups.io wrote: I posted earlier about my solution made from a JMI Wheely Bar. Here's a photo in case my description wasn't clear enough. I find this is the best solution I have seen yet.... it is easy to build, easy to roll around and the large wheels reduce vibration going over cracks in the driveway. Sigh.? Looks like the list stripped off my embedded photo.? Here it is as an attachment. Paul -- Paul Goelz Rochester Hills, MI USA pgoelz@... www.pgoelz.com
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On 1/15/2025 11:19 AM, George Cushing via groups.io wrote: Not happy with CN build. The height of the center of gravity makes me nervous. Buy the time you get the wheels up you'll have three kind'a?skinny?columns supporting everything. See this CN H-D Dolly discussion for a design with large wheels and a lower COG.
I've filed this design idea away for future consideration.
Attachments:
* image.png </g/Losmandy_users/attachment/83428/>
I posted earlier about my solution made from a JMI Wheely Bar. Here's a photo in case my description wasn't clear enough. I find this is the best solution I have seen yet.... it is easy to build, easy to roll around and the large wheels reduce vibration going over cracks in the driveway. Remove all wheels, make a triangular plywood piece that bolts to the bottom of the wheely bar using existing bolt holes, add an axle (held in place with simple pipe clamps) and 8" semi-pneumatic wheels.? Not shown is a handle I made from bent conduit that attaches to the front leg of the wheely bar.? The jackscrews are in their original locations attached to the wheely bar.? Note that the axle is mounted above the level of the tripod leg ends so the legs are only a couple inches higher off the ground than they would be without the dolly and LOWER than they were with the stock 5" wheels. At rest, it rests on the two rear wheels and the front jackscrew. In use, lower the two rear jackscrews until the wheels are just off the ground.? Fine tune all three jackscrews for level if desired (not strictly required).? Once adjusted, I tightened double jam nuts on the jackscrews so they were tight in the down position, which adds stiffness and repeatability. To transport, raise the two rear jackscrews (leave the front jackscrew in place), lift the front slightly with the handle until it is off the jackscrew, hold the end of the counterweight bar for security and roll on the two rear wheels.? Easy peasy and it is VERY stiff with the rear jackscrews lowered.? The only gotcha is to make sure the front leg is secured to the wheely bar (I used a bungee cord) or the tripod can tip backwards if you lift the handle too high. If anyone wants, I can take a couple more photos.? And yes, you could omit the wheely bar entirely and just use a larger triangular piece of plywood..... but I had the wheely bar already and it provides receptacles for the tripod legs and the jackscrews ;)? Note that without the plywood base, I found the wheely bar to be fairly springy even with the jackscrews down. Paul -- Paul Goelz Rochester Hills, MI USA pgoelz@... www.pgoelz.com
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Not happy with CN build. The height of the center of gravity makes me nervous. Buy the time you get the wheels up you'll have three kind'a?skinny?columns supporting everything. See this CN H-D Dolly discussion for a design with large wheels and a lower COG.?
I've filed this design idea away for future consideration.
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"Too rich to justify the work."? :)? There's a nice problem to have!
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Thanks for response. I have not received one from Mr Nugent yet. But he does say it's part time and may be a while before response is sent.? But I see no way on the site to order the product.? ?Maybe I missed it?
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Leveling I guess I could do the first time then roll scope onto marked locations on driveway.? Good for PA also.?
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Thanks again.
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Just a thought ¡
Maybe get a barber¡¯s cape/apron and fasten it at the base of the G11, so that it drapes over and covers all of the knobs and cable ends. The ones I¡¯m familiar with are heavy duty and smooth so that hair trimmings fall off easily. Something like that might allow the cables to move without getting snagged. It could easily be installed/uninstalled and moved out if the way when necessary. You might even anchor the bottom edges to create a ¡®cone¡¯ below the G11 so there is nothing sticking out that a cable could snag onto.
I saw one on Amazon for like $6.
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Clear skies!
KW
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I looked at the scope roller site and it said they are doing make to order no inventory. Perhaps it's due to capital inventory cost and level of demand.?
I have no idea.??
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Ryan
