RE: ATM Re: 8 to Great (& India mirrors)

[Paul LeFevre <paull@lucasarts.com>]

Rob, Kent, & all:
I sent mail to Galileo and heard back from Nilesh almost immediately.  I was
interested in a 12.5" mirror also, but since that was a non-standard size
for them (12" is standard), he said it would take longer and encouraged me
to consider a 12" mirror.  Seems like good business practice to me :)

Has ANYONE on the list received a mirror from Galileo and put it to any kind
of test?  I don't mind being a pioneer, but would be a lot more comfortable
if somebody else had already had a chance to judge the quality.  If you have
seen/used/purchased one of their mirrors, please post here for the benefit
of the rest of us.  Rob might be the pioneer here, and hopefully will give
us lots of details when his mirror does arrive.

While waiting to hear about such a post, here's the price list that was
e-mailed to me.  The prices really are quite good, so if the quality is
there this may be an excellent value -- not to mention an opportunity to
support mirror making in parts of the world not traditionally known for it!

Paul
http://www.slip.net/~lefevre/scope.htm


Galileo Telescope Makers
3449, Dariba Pan, Pahar ganj, New Delhi - 110055, India. Tel. 91-11-7524326

For International Enquiries :
Nilesh Vayada
4A, Prem Kanku, Navroji Lane, Ghatkopar (W), Bombay 400086.
India, Tel: 91-22-5119195, Fax: 91-22-5102545

Email: enquiry@atiindia.com

Email: galileo@inorbit.com

Price List 

              
Ready Primary Mirrors:              
Mirror prices in US Dollars.             
Size   19mm 25mm 44mm 50mm 75mm 
6" f/8 120 155 CALL CALL CALL 
8" f/6 160 205 CALL CALL CALL 
8" f/8 165 205 CALL CALL CALL 
10" f/6 275 325 355 CALL CALL 
10" f/8 275 325 355 CALL CALL 
12" f/6 320 375 450 CALL CALL 
14" f/5 485 595 745 CALL CALL 
16"    CALL 750 950 1185 1485 
18"   CALL CALL 1150 1350 1750 
20"   CALL CALL 1600 1850 2350 
22"   CALL CALL 1900 2200 2700 
For Customized Size and F/ratio    CALL         
All Mirrors are made from Excellent quality Plate glass.             
Coating: SiO Enhanced coating.             
              
Diagonal pricesUSD             
Size 1/6wave 1/10 Wave         
1.3" 30 40         
1.5" 40 50         
1.83" 50 60         
2.1" 60 75         
2.6" 70 80         
3.1" 85 100         
4.0" 195 245         
4.5" 250 325         
All Mirrors are made from Excellent quality Plate glass.             
Coating: SiO Enhanced coating. 

-----Original Message-----
From: Kent Cheatham [mailto:cheatham@ionet.net]
Sent: Sunday, July 25, 1999 8:04 AM
To: atm@shore.net
Subject: ATM Re: 8 to Great (& India mirrors)



Rob,
The reason I ask about Nileshes mirrors is for me he is an unknown but might
have great potential. He seemed very knowledgable and said the right things
when I spoke with him about 6 months ago. He did not have a website then. He
only made up to 8" mirrors too. They were all Soda Lime glass and plate
glass.
He said in his part of the world thermal instability was less an issue. Cost
was. He did say if the mirror was thin enough, it would still cool quickly
(true) and that coatings stuck to plate glass better than pyrex (true) and
that
his mirrors were all hand figured and tested (unknown) and he used , I
believe,
93% coatings on most of his mirrors. He was MUCH cheaper than the US
counterparts. Please keep us informed. He said he could make me a matched
pair
of 8" to whatever focal length I needed, for a bino. THE problem was
shipping.
At that time he used personal courier to get into the US and from there
would
UPS. He said people left every 2-3 weeks for the US. I bought a used 8x50
finder off him cheap. It didn't take TOO long. About 30 days to arrive. And
I
think he is honorable. The finder was an India variety I would liken to
cheap
Tasco stuff. I dumped it. I hope their idea of quality is the same as ours.
I
trust the likes of Bill  Vorces opinion of a GOOD used "something" more than
Nilesh's at this point. PLEASE remember me, when you get it and send a note
after having it star tested by yourself or someone who can evaluate it's
quality.

Kent Cheatham
cheatham@ionet.net
------

Rob Teeter wrote:

> Kent,
>         Thanks for the kind comments.  Stellafane was a big thrill for me
> last year!  Like it says on my website, it is so ironic that up until only
> one week before the convention I still didn't have a clear idea of whether
> I was going to enter or not.  Glad I did, though!
>         As for my 12.5" f/5.6 mirror from Nilesh...they tell me it is
> finished and I should be getting test reports in the mail in the next
> couple weeks (that is after having ordered the mirror before last
> Christmas).  Instead of just shipping it from their facilities to my door,
> they are sending someone over with the mirror in late August to New York
> City.
>         Now either I can then have them ship it from NYC or I can drive up
> there and pick up the mirror in person (only about an hour drive from here
> in Central NJ).  They can't get here before late August due to that darn
> solar eclipse coming up!   =)   It seems that totality runs through India
> and the employee whom they would be sending over here doesn't want to miss
> it (I guess I see the logic since the next total solar eclipse for them
> isn't for another 50 yrs).
>         So around the end of next month keep an eye out on the ATM list
for
> a message from me regarding the mirror...I will let everyone know not just
> optical quality but also cosmetically how it looks.
>
> Take care,
>
> Rob Teeter
> Howell, NJ
> http://www.thecore.com/~webuser/astro/