Author Archives: Radan

Jun 28

Frosty morning…

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Damn it was cold this morning, had to get a jug of water to wash the ICE off the windscreen of the car so I could go to work 😕

The Dashboard display read 2 Deg C as I left for work… sure is winter!

😛

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Radan

Apr 23

Puzzle me!

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Hi again,

Added yet another hobby to my list (actually a few inc some gadgets but later)

Saw a jigsaw puzzle in a Toy & Sports shop located in Milton NSW that I just HAD to get, actually they had about a dozen of them I wanted but just one for now…

Heres a link to the site and a picture of the one I purchased (1000 piece – should take me a while 🙂 )

Awesome! It’s just so me 😉

I’m thinking I might Webcam the construction, not 100% sure yet, going to test the feasibility of it.

(if you think I should webcam it let me know by comments!)

Other new events are gadget purchases that have kept me busy along with watching more anime and playing Wii games. My partner and I have been stuck on playing Rune Factory for the Wii, complex game, sometimes frustrating, but awsome fun as well. 🙂

Purchased myself a MID – Mobile Internet Device, basically a cheap iPad type thing, 7″ screen, reasonably light and portable, runs 3 systems, Android, Windows CE6 & Ubuntu Linux. Lots there for me to tinker with ( and being a cheapish unit it needed a little tinkering 😉 )  Half the price of the iPad and far more ability to tinker…

Learning Java as I can, thus the MID purchase with Android being java based and potential profit maker if I can start developing apps for it…

Well that’s most of my catching up, let me know about the webcam thing, or any other comments, any suggestions on apps? 😉

seeya again soon!

ttfn.

Radan.

Aug 29

DIY Astronomy Step #3

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Moving along… Just finished stabilizing the mount.

Now has a new base box to bolt it firmly to the tripod.

IMG_0073-sm

Also a new mounting plate for the telescope itself to position the center of gravity a little better, also drilled 4 positions for it so I can move it as needed depending on the weight of the camera attached etc.

IMG_0074-sm

The unit is now usable again! Next step is to motorize…

Aug 20

DIY- Astronomy!

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Greetings!

I’ve been into astronomy for a long time now, having had a few different telescopes and binoculars. My current telescope is a Tasco Galaxsee reflector with a 4.5″ mirror, 114mm x 500mm focal length.
My problem with this telescope has always been the RA mount, being confusing and time consuming to setup and find anything useful. So since I also use a computer program to track stars, planets etc and starting to get into astrophotography using a webcam, I’ve been wanting a computerized ‘GOTO’ mount to hook up to my laptop for easier locating and tracking of objects, especially to go with the astrocam applications.

Now the easiest way to achieve this goal would be to purchase one, but since they’re all about $500 upwards and that I have limited funds, I figured I should make it a real hobby and build one.

The following are the current and planned steps, I’ll blog further as I progress to the final product.

Thanks and enjoy!

Radan.

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Step #1: The Design:

The Sketch

The Sketch

Step #2: The 1st Build (just the mechanics):AltAzMount1aAltAzMount2a

Step #3: The Stabilised Mount: TBA

Step #4: The Motors: TBA

Step #5: The Electronic Controller: TBA

Step #6: The Computer Interface: TBA

Step #7: The Final Product: TBA