Popular Post Brady Posted February 7, 2016 Popular Post Share Posted February 7, 2016 Well i got up this morning with the intention of measuring up the yard for the new build, im aiming for a 3mx2m apex with a roll off roof and a partition for a small warm room, average is 1mx2m for the warm room and 2mx2m for the scope, it might be a bit tight but i dont want to dance around the scope at night and after hammering the tape measure im sure i can get away with it, im waiting on some more timber sizes to see if that can be increased from 3m to 3.5m but we will see on the waste after all it all costs.. the warm room will have a sliding door to the scope for access, at the moment i have a lounge about in the corner of the garden that has done nothing for the past few years except for hording stuff over winter, ive spent a few nights thinking on how if possible to convert this into the obsy and save a bit of time and money but i remember step by step of that build and i had cut a few corners, corners that will bite me in the future so the decision was final...its got to go I'm using the timber from the last build as the shed base, its in good condition and a shame to waste, its 100mmx50mm which is plenty and i have more on order to complete the size i need, the floor itself will be 25mm redwood T&G, the plan is to order the timber on the basis of what i need at the time, so floor first, then framing which is 3x2ish, Roof which im hoping to get 15mm redwood T&G, again waiting on confirmation and finally cladding and that will be 19mm loglap, the local timber yard has no minimum order and free local delivery so i would be daft not to take him up on that, im also thinking of insulation but have a few weeks to make my mind up on that one so if anyone has insulated their obsy, or not for that matter please shout up on the outcome. Most things including electrics will not be planned in, if problems arise i will sort them as and when, positioning of sockets and the like will be looked at when i have a dry head, although the main cable in has been accounted for Ive had quotes from shed builders for something similar, with that sort of timber i was looking at £1000 for the shed only and around £1200-£1700 for an actual shed with the roof already modified, this does not include the rails, wheels and posts for the roof to roll onto, local timber man quoted £570 for all the timber...and my bleeding thumbs...which i figure that the money saved is the ED80 i have my eye on This is something ive been looking forward to for quite some time now and it's finally here sun or not...so...lets begin This was at 9am with cup of tea in hand, contemplating where things should and shouldn't go i got bored of this and by the time i hit 10.30 it looked something like this.. 11.30 after a very small tea break i progressed to this.. And finally by 1PM after cutting the fixings and digging out the old concrete i ended up with this...and a sore back after spending too many wet days doing nothing, at this point please take note of the plum tree that has hindered too many sessions when in green..i will not have that problem this year....looking at it now it will be half the size as it is there. Where the base is up against that far fence the new build will also run along that back fence with the roof rolling towards you. How it looks now.. And finally the pier im using is about 4 inch stainless which is shown next to the upgraded 8 inch stainless...now how did that get there? BAZ, Johnnyaardvark, red dwalf and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 That's going to be a great project. Keeps us up to date on that one please A few years ago, I built a 3 metre domed obsy using one of those Black and Decker Scorpion saws. They replaced the saw twice under warranty as I'd given it so much hammer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 You have the same flagstones as me I have never had an obsy but I know a few people who have one and they rave about them. They really raise your enjoyment for the hobby to the next level. Keep posting photo's and do a build log, quite a lot of our members will be interested in this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smithysteve Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 Good start Wayne, it will be worth all thei work in the end. Anything you can do to make it quicker and easier to start an observing session - and aid a quick shut down afterwards is worth all the effort. You will get more sessions on the scope and you will be more comfortable too. ? Keep us all posted! No plum jam though this year ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Graham Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 looking good so far Wayne. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+RonC Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 You've been a busy man! Looking good so far, keep up the photo's it may help others who are thinking of doing an obsy! Cheers Ron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rowbow Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 You have a big job on your hands especially with the weather we are having, you can get tar creosote from Melton market on a Tuesday, which is better than the modern equivalent and last's much longer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted February 8, 2016 Author Share Posted February 8, 2016 Thanks guys will keep you posted, its going to take a while with the weather and all but im in no rush now..i believe "One small step" is what they used to say... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catman161 Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 This is gonna be great Wayne. I only have a roll off shed and that has made things so much easier and therefore better for me personally. A dedicated obsy with warm room is gonna be fantastic. Look forward to rest of pics of progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted February 13, 2016 Author Share Posted February 13, 2016 With a change from the rain i thought i would start the shed base today, as mentioned the plan was to use up any of the old timber from the last build, i set myself a target of getting it all screwed up today ready for planting tomorrow, up to now it's going to plan. I decided on using threaded bar with locking nuts for the supports, this makes the shed base adjustable to level off after any settling, also i mentioned i cut corners on the last build, well basicly the timber went straight into the ground and after only a few years the water started eating at it even with a few coats of the creocote so this time it's a no no.. The supports will sit around 200mm in the ground with the help of postcrete so with the quick drying it might give me time to get the floorboards down too but i think this weekend thats wishful thinking.. After a trip to screwfix for a new saw blade it was an 8.30 start Managed to get the feet on for a trial fit before creocote... The wife calls it an aluminium bistro table...i call it a makeshift welding table....that is until i got caught.. A few of the legs tacked up.. The postcrete will come to just below the locking nuts then when it's gone off the top nut is removed and the nuts are nipped up until the threaded bar sinks into the timber, leaving it flush at the top and level all round, then floorboards over the top to cover the holes. Coated up ready for tomorrow..nine small holes for the supports and the hole for the pier...dreading that one... Tweedledee and Smithysteve 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAZ Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 You got cracked on today Wayne. It's looking good. Your back will know about it tomorrow then after all that digging. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Graham Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 Thats starting to look the business Wayne. Keep at it . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catman161 Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 That's looking awesome Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 (edited) Cheers guys, well its in and so is the pier, ive left the pier as it came until the shed is built up then i will cut it down to size, so tomorrow remove bolts, final level then floorboards, im done for this long weekend There was a few changes to the plan while i was painting it yesterday...one was i liked the look of where it was while i was painting it to be honest so i set it in where it was, the original idea was the pier to be pretty much where it is now with the warm room to the left if you know what i mean and number two the shed design has shifted from an apex to a pent design..i did say nothing was planned in.. And Martyn you was right about the back Edited February 14, 2016 by Brady Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted February 15, 2016 Author Share Posted February 15, 2016 Long weekend but thats me done..next week...Framing BAZ and Smithysteve 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smithysteve Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 Looking good Wayne! Looks a solid base! It's coming on a treat!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catman161 Posted February 15, 2016 Share Posted February 15, 2016 Coming along nicely Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red dwalf Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 don`t know how i missed this thread, looks a real solid start to the build, there are loads of things to think about when building something like this, i put my build off for 2 years as i couldn`t make up my mind and couldn`t decide on what to do as you know there are some many different details to consider, one thing i do know is that when your finished you`ll be very glad you did it, makes it so much more enjoyable when it`s freezing outside. if you need any help or would like to view my build and exchange tips and get ideas then i`d be more than happy to let you view it. there are some pictures of my build on my webpage below. as for insulation i didn`t bother, can`t really see what the purpose of it is, with a roll off roof the obsy is never going to be air tight and why would you want a warm scope, you only have to let it cool down again, and a small warm room with a small heater is more than enough to keep you toastie. Brantuk 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red dwalf Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 you might need to think about cabling to the pier also as it might be a pain now the boards are down, i put in one double socket attached to the pier and 3 active and one normal usb cables, having access to them every so often is very useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brantuk Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Can't believe how quick this is going up - great job Wayne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted February 16, 2016 Author Share Posted February 16, 2016 Thanks for the praise guys, always appreciated funny enough Rob i was going to give you a shout in a week or two regarding the roof build, as for the cables the only one under the floor will be the 12v supply from the warm room to the 12v sockets which will be attached to the pier the same as my current set-up, all other usb cables will run down to the floor then across to the warm room under a Universal Cable Protector, shown below.. two reasons...1 for easy access and cable changing, crushed one to many usb cables already and 2 which is more important to me is i really dont have any patience at all with getting wrapped up in cables so when the imaging equipment gets put away and i go on a few "visual" missions everything including the cables can get put away for a while and it wont take long to set back up again, i know that sounds a bit contradictive after all the whole idea of an observatory, for me anyway is to reduce the set up time in the first place but i also like my space especially at 2 in the morning well thats the theory anyway red dwalf 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red dwalf Posted February 16, 2016 Share Posted February 16, 2016 Well your welcome to pop round anytime for a visit if your looking for ideas or any help you may need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted February 17, 2016 Author Share Posted February 17, 2016 Cheers Rob, Appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stash Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 (edited) 13 hours ago, Brady said: Thanks for the praise guys, always appreciated funny enough Rob i was going to give you a shout in a week or two regarding the roof build, as for the cables the only one under the floor will be the 12v supply from the warm room to the 12v sockets which will be attached to the pier the same as my current set-up, all other usb cables will run down to the floor then across to the warm room under a Universal Cable Protector, shown below.. two reasons...1 for easy access and cable changing, crushed one to many usb cables already and 2 which is more important to me is i really dont have any patience at all with getting wrapped up in cables so when the imaging equipment gets put away and i go on a few "visual" missions everything including the cables can get put away for a while and it wont take long to set back up again, i know that sounds a bit contradictive after all the whole idea of an observatory, for me anyway is to reduce the set up time in the first place but i also like my space especially at 2 in the morning well thats the theory anyway Wayne - we used that protected shielding a lot in IT until it was banned on health and safety - people kept tripping up on them! But they are better than trailing wires - just. Love the build by the way. Edited February 17, 2016 by stash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brady Posted February 17, 2016 Author Share Posted February 17, 2016 Cheers Clive, it was my IT department that came up with the idea well im open to options until the install day in which case i will drape the buggers over my shoulder if i have to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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