ATM hope to push some glass real soon now

[Kenneth Scharf <scharkalvin@yahoo.com>]

It's been a while since I trepaned out two disks out
of a sheet of 3/4" plate glass.  I had hoped to start
grinding, but my mother-in-law's rapid demise to
alzhimers and malpractice, and our search for a larger
house got in the way.  Well, we close on the new place
at the end of the month (will probably take a month or
two to move in and square things away).  After that I
will finally have some time and room to work on my
projects.  

Nice thing about the new place is that I will be far
enough from the nearest streetlight for good viewing
(if I shut off my own exterior light pollution).  It's
still an urban area, but most of the worst nearby
light will be over the horizon, or nearly so, with no
nearby lights shinning into the scope.  (If the county
or city decides to put one up on my street I'm buying
an air gun.  Actually I'd probably drill out the lock
and cut the wires.)  

After reading the Ritchey paper, I get the idea that
he thought a dia/thickness ration of 8/1 was about
ideal, with 12/1 being as thin as one should go.  With
that in mind I ended up cutting my disks 7" in dia
('bout 9/1), after leaving something for the bevel
I'll actually have a 6.75" mirror.  I was thinking of
making an f ratio of 7, if I go with a 48" fl, it will
be f 7.11.  Sounds like a good target for a second try
at a first mirror.  I already have the grit kit from
'gotgrit' (needed the #80 to trepan the glass, so I
ordered extra).

I'm already thinking about what I might do for a
second mirror if the first works out ok.  Probably a
10" made from BVC.  That will also probably be a split
ring mount instead of a dob, and I also have two large
stepping motors that could get pressed into service
for a drive.  (Has anyone posted some ideas on this
kind of mount?  BTW I'm at about 25 degress lat if
that makes a difference in building something like
that).  It would be nice to have a 10" by 2003 when
mars will be the closest it will ever be in my
lifetime.

Clear skies!

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