At long last I built a POD Zenith Table (PZT)

[Astrobdlbug]

I have had my Skyshed POD for nearly 8 years now and when it came to imaging near the zenith I had adopted a rather precarious method of tilting the dome off its rails and balance the entire stucture on my shed. This had a few incidents when the dome fell down between obsy and shed and took a bit of an effort to get the dome back on the POD... @Carastro was quite shocked when she saw the dome at this alarming angle - so as you can see Carole I've got a PZT - I ldid look your website to see how you had constructed yours as well btw, before I decide to build the standard  shaped PZT.

 

Last week I contacted Wayne and he sent me the instructions to make the table - so yesterday I made one and using some fences posts and off cuts from a deck I built several years ago built the supports for the PZT - it works, I was out imaging at 3am on Elephant trunk which is almost overhead at that time of night.

So I still have to treat the wood and not sure if I will fit the additional 'side lobes'  - I also need to source some PTFE blocks to help slide the dome on and off more easily - but I am happy with the PZT and as it is at the back of the dome its not really visible from the rest of the garden..

 

Oh - and if anybody is wondering why there is a purple penny board in the image - I used it to wheel the large plywood sheets from front drive where the delivery driver  put them - they are heavy !!!

 

Bryan

 

[TerryMcK]

Great work Bryan. I did wonder what a Purple Penny Board was and then saw it is a skateboard 😁

[Carastro]

That seems eminently safer Bryan.  

 

Unfortunately I was unable to do the conventional PZT because my POD is located in a corner, between next door's fence and my shed, so width and access to screwing up the bolts was a problem without removing next door's fence, so had no choice but to do it the way I have.

 

Glad if I gave you the shove.

 

Carole