ATM Almost done polishing

["Michael Burr" <mtburr@msn.com>]

I put in about 2-1/2 hours of polishing this evening, and I can say that the
surface looks good to me. I cannot see the mirror surface with a glancing
light _at all_. It's totally invisible, except for particles of dust. If I
hold it up to the light and look through it from the back, however, I can
detect widely scattered pits. I think this might be what Texereau describes
as "a certain scattered grayness" (2nd ed., p. 52).

I'm going to put in a couple more hours before I call it done, but frankly I
think I'm about ready to begin figuring. It's a good thing I just completed
building my Foucault tester!

(BTW, I built my tester for under $20, not counting the few tools I had to
buy, such as a couple of new drill bits. I used 100 percent scrap wood,
milk-jug plastic for the sliders and miscellaneous screws to put it
together. The only store-bought parts were the electronics and major
hardware. I am not, however, using a dial indicator, but instead using a
measuring disc on the Y-axis bolt.)

Regards,
Michael Burr