Re: Returning to the fold!
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Hey Matt,
Wonderful to hear from you!!! Be great to observe with you again sometime, maybe a trip to Nirvana might be in the cards for Sept, according to Pierre Martin the road has been considerably repaired, in particular that last little run up to the strip itself! We bought a home on Long lake only a few km south of the original PPPP observatory. I don't have an observatory here yet, but its in the planning stage.
Ni!
Mike
On Thu, Aug 11, 2022 at 11:59 AM Attilla Danko < danko@...> wrote: Matt wrote:
>I am in the market for a 18 inch class dob
Talk to Mike. He bought a new 18" Starstructure when he donated his
18" Starmaster to the Ottawa RASC.? Mike says it's better than the 18"
Starmaster -- which is quite an accomplishment. (I've seen detail on
Ganymede with Mike's 18" Starmaster -- when it was still his.)
-ad
On Thu, Aug 11, 2022 at 11:15 AM Matt Weeks <weeksmj@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Attilla!? Very nice to hear from you.? My best memories of observing were with fellow Oafs.? Endless Monty Python quips, Nirvana observing trips (the old Irvine lake airstrip) and pre-RASC meeting dinners.? Ah, the good old days.? I actually visited the old airstrip last year while on a camping trip to Bon Echo.? Nostalgia hit hard!! haha. It doesn't look much different, a little more overgrown (without Mike's mower the place has gotten out of hand).? ?The hill up to the strip itself is a little more rutted, and although my truck had no issues, I'm not sure a car could do it anymore..but I may be wrong. I would love to have a "reunion" of Oafs sometime out there, but recognize that may be a little on the optimistic side.
>
> Beat up?
>
> Ahem. Ingrid (my partner), I and a non-astronomer friend with an
> excellent wood-shop, refubished Mike's former 18". We repaired the
> woodwork, replaced the alt gearing, re-blackened the paint, and I
> drove the mirror to quebec to get it recoated. Since then Richard
> Harding, Rick Scholes and many others have worked on improving that
> scope. It's a good scope. The only bad part is that Mike should have
> sold it to me instead. :(
>
>
> Ha!? I'm glad to hear it and kudos to you, Ingrid and the others for getting the scope back in tip top shape.? I am happy to see it get a new life. And with Rick Singmaster's passing, it seems to take on more meaning, as there will be no more Starmasters made. I am in the market for a 18 inch class dob these days, though I promised my SO I'd wait at least a year to make sure I'm fully back into the hobby before spending that much money.
>
> Btw, some of us are going to starfest (comming real soon now).
> <>
>
> Unfortunately, I can't make Starfest this year, though it is an event I'd like to get to in future years.? We'll have to see what next year brings.
>
> I hope we have a chance to observe together sometime in the near future.? It would be nice to catch up, as redoing my math, I think it has been closer to the 20 year mark than the 15 (as you alluded to)...sheesh, where does the time go!!??
>
> Clear Skies, as always!!
>
> Matt
>
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