Re: Tips and Tricks for 18 inch

Mel Bartels (mbartels@efn.org)
Sun, 9 Apr 95 00:17:19 PDT

> 1) What thickness of plywood to use for the primary
> mirror box and rocker box

I would use 3/4" plywood for the side, front and back boards; (2) 3/4" ply layers for the bottom board. >
> 2) What thickness of aluminium tubing to use for the
> serrurier truss tubes

I use aluminum 1" square tubing 1/16" walls.

> 3) What thickness to use for the ground board

I use (3) 3/4" ply layers with feet spread 3 feet apart. I do this because it results in a very stable vibration free environment at the eyepiece. A solid knock results in instant damping.

> 4) What thickness to use for the semi-circles that
> will be used as altitude axis

A single ply layer is sufficient.

> 5) We would like to make the secondary mirror cage
> rotatable ( for later ). Are teflon pads
> between two rings of plywood ( one covered
> with formica ) enough to provide a smooth
> rotation of the cage ?

Yes.