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Why am I selling telescopes?

I didn't plan to sell telescopes. My joy comes from challenging the status quo and trying out new ideas. Likewise, others have found building a scope to be personally rewarding. Consequently, I encourage you to build your own. If you decide to build one and like my designs, you are free to copy any and all features for your personal use. Brief descriptions of my telescopes can be found by clicking on the images shown below. A lot of construction detail for building the 12.5" f/5 ultralight (Mark III) is available in an article I wrote for the ATM Journal. I also am happy to answer questions.

However, many people do not have the time, equipment, or inclination to build their own telescope. After turning down numerous requests, I finally decided to build scopes for others.

12.5" f/5 ultralight (Mark III)

1u12_5am.jpg (45805 bytes)All of the telescope designs shown below contributed to the optimization of the Mark III. The one new feature is the use of cylindrical struts which permit tool-less assembly. This version won a Merit Award at the Riverside Telescope Maker's Conference.

 

 

 

Early Designs

(click on any image for additional information and images)

12.5" f/5 (Mark I)

12_5m.jpg (79261 bytes)This is the first telescope I made using three parallel struts. It demonstrated that three parallel struts were more than sufficient to build a rigid telescope "tube" assembly. However, it is overbuilt. Although it assembles and reassembles quickly, it still weighed over 100 lbs.

12" f/5.3 ultralight (Mark II)

12Umod1AM.JPG (44597 bytes)This is the second iteration of a telescope with three parallel struts. I pushed the envelope with this telescope. It weighs approximately 40 lbs. It also contains some unique vibration-damping features.

 

6" f/6 portable (Mark I)

6f6L2.JPG (25650 bytes)This is my first version of a lightweight, portable 6" telescope. Only two parallel C-channel struts are required to make a rigid telescope tube assembly.

6" f/5 portable cube (Mark II)

6f5step1_2am.JPG (38720 bytes)This is the second iteration of a 6" telescope using only "two" struts. It doesn't quite fit the airlines' 9" minimum dimension, but everything except the struts fits into an 11" cube.