My obsy soon to be remodeled :(

[Astro-Nutz]

Hi all, if you haven't already seen this on a few other groups then here is the build process of the obsy i designed and built for myself a couple of years ago.

Feel free to ask why i decided to do it the way i did etc, unfortunately however due to back problems this will soon be getting a total remodelling and turned

into a ROR of my own design. It will be a shame and i will miss my dome but i just cant get under the "hobbit" door that dome obsy's use. At the end of the pics

there is my bespoke pier i also designed and built that i will put up later.

Thanks for looking in 😉

Edited April 7, 2021 by Astro-Nutz

[MarkAR]

Nice set up, shame about the hobbit door.

[Astro-Nutz]

43 minutes ago, MarkAR said:

Nice set up, shame about the hobbit door.

 

Cheers Mark, yer.... its the only downside to a dome obsy for me. Even the standard Pulsar sides utilise these <>1.2m little doors 😕

[Padraic M]

That really is a very fine build! It's a pity that it's not usable for you as it looks great, and I'm sure will have a lot of folk around here very jealous. Are you sure there are no other options?

 

[Astro-Nutz]

Lmao 😛 love that pic mate lol i have absolutely scratched every part of my head while redesigning just the entry but its so tight with room in the warm room area that even digging down 2 or 3 steps would take the floor where my chair sits... i will look at it again but its blooming tight and i would hate to fall down a hole lol so a hatch would need to be installed that i then would need to lift up to access the steps without bending..... its the blooming bending thats halting all my ideas other then a full height door ???  youve made me go and have another scratch pal lol......... pending lol

[Astro-Nutz]

UPDATE i may be able to dig down 16" giving me a door height of 62" i will lift the floor over the next few days and investigate the concrete joist positions. 🤞 there's more room than i thought between joists, thanks for the ideas peeps 🙂

[Carastro]

Such a shame about the door.  I have a POD and pretty sure the door height is similar and I have to duck under.  I normally put one leg inside and one outside, and then duck under the dome.  I do have back trouble from time to time, but so far it has been OK.   I have to do the same with my camping observatory which is even lower.  

 

You should see the antics of other people, especially those over 6' trying to get in there to have a look through the scopes lol.

 

Hope you find a way around it.  I was thinking more, could you lift the height of the walls, but then I guess the pier would need to be raised too.  Probably better to do what you are planning to do.  A temporary Flap could cover the hole so you don't fall down it. 

 

Carole 

[Astro-Nutz]

1 hour ago, Carastro said:

You should see the antics of other people, especially those over 6' trying to get in there to have a look through the scopes lol.

 

Lol i can image quite well Carole as im one of them 😛 despite only being 5'.7" i still make all the shapes a dance floor only sees trying to slide and twist under my door lol i will be sure to post some pics of my work around once ive confirmed its doable 😉

[Carastro]

I'm 5' 7" too.  Maybe you should try my method one leg in and one leg out and duck.  Though I guess it depends on whether you have a passageway to also navigate.  Looking at the photo, it looks like you do.  

 

Carole 

Edited April 7, 2021 by Carastro

[Carastro]

This is my obsy, but no passageway.  (My friend Ian in there who does DIY jobs for me) he's a retired engineer.  

 

....and this is my camping Obsy:

 

 

 

Carole 

 

 

[Carastro]

Going back and looking at your pictures, I can see where part of your problem lies.  Your warm room floor is higher than the observatory floor.  I can see this would make things more awkward.

 

Or is it the other way around, but having a small low hole with the floor at different levels is increasing the difficulties.  

 

Carole 

Edited April 8, 2021 by Carastro

[TerryMcK]

I absolutely would not be able to get through the hobbit door and would have gone for a roll off roof. Fantastic build there though and very impressive results. Love the pier foundation. Do you have any obstructions in any direction? Or clear take off wherever you want?

[MarkAR]

Could always raise the dome up, fit a taller door, raise the pier and add a step up around the pier.

 

[Astro-Nutz]

On 4/7/2021 at 9:32 PM, Carastro said:

Going back and looking at your pictures, I can see where part of your problem lies.  Your warm room floor is higher than the observatory floor.  I can see this would make things more awkward.

 

Or is it the other way around, but having a small low hole with the floor at different levels is increasing the difficulties.  

 

Carole 

 

Hi Carole, yes this is exactly my problem, when i designed and built my obsy i was purely visual so the extra floor height gave me better position at the eyepiece of my then LX90 but i did have to do the hockey cokey getting in lol i would step though sideways and then twist as i stood up bringing my other leg in, this was fine till i did my back the other day. I am on the mend and back to normal mobility wise now and if im careful and dont go lifting tree stumps again i may last quite a few years before im totally in need of surgery but till then while im back fit and able i am addressing this issue now to future proof my access. I am in the midst of creating a 17" double step so i will post my solution once sorted next week with some pics 😉   love your set up and camping obsy 😄 

[Astro-Nutz]

On 4/8/2021 at 10:53 AM, TerryMcK said:

Love the pier foundation. Do you have any obstructions in any direction? Or clear take off wherever you want?

 

Thanks Terry, i have a clear 360deg view to be fair, i do have a street light exactly north to which i positioned the warm room roof just high enough so the scope cant see the light but can still see Polaris 😉

[Astro-Nutz]

On 4/8/2021 at 12:37 PM, MarkAR said:

Could always raise the dome up, fit a taller door, raise the pier and add a step up around the pier.

 

 

Unfortunately the dome is fibre glassed in to the flat roof area ( see pic) so it would mean a serious cut off job to elevate it plus i would then have to get planning involved as i would exceed the 2.5m max height rule. I do have a solution though so i will post my dig out pics soon 😉

[MarkAR]

Just had a thought. As the actual dome is removable, it might count as a temporary structure and you might get away with the height.

[Astro-Nutz]

On 4/11/2021 at 11:39 PM, MarkAR said:

Just had a thought. As the actual dome is removable, it might count as a temporary structure and you might get away with the height.

 

Its a possibility Mark but not one I'm willing to test lol 😉 i have just about finished my solution so as soon as i get the warm room re-carpeted i will be positing the pics up 🙂

[Demon]

Fantastic build, really impressed, a lot of work, now the modified door makes sense, excellent.

[Marmot]

I have looked through all these pics with great interest, but not with an Astro hat on, but with a builders hat on: for over a year I have been renovating a cottage and any kind of build project therefore interests me from a build point of view.

 

have you done the work yourself or had people in to do it?

 

Either way, the quality of the finish is most impressive and I can tell that no corners have been cut from the preparation, foundation and final fix stages. You must be justly proud of the finished item particularly as you have been able to see your own design come to fruition.

 

AIso l have to comment on your scopes......how impressive they look.

If I had a set up like yours, I would unfortunately spend all my time sitting back admiring it rather than using it!

 

i am genuinely impressed!

 

[Astro-Nutz]

On 5/1/2021 at 9:16 AM, Marmot said:

i am genuinely impressed!

 

 

Martin 😮 thank you so much, your builders critique means so much to me. Yes, i designed this project with my trusty little pencil and scale rule. I did all the work myself except the actual glass fibre roof as it was such a big area for myself to do and get right i just thought sod it, get a pro in for that 😉 my only regret was the "hobbit door" that dome structures use, in hinds sight i would of built my steep work around into the build from the off but lesson learnt, it was a faffing around but i redesigned this to save my back in another thread here if you have seen it? I do quite often just sit in the garden with a glass of wine just looking at my obsy 😛 lol cheers.

[Marstiphal]

On 4/7/2021 at 1:56 PM, Astro-Nutz said:

Hi all, if you haven't already seen this on a few other groups then here is the build process of the obsy i designed and built for myself a couple of years ago.

Feel free to ask why i decided to do it the way i did etc, unfortunately however due to back problems this will soon be getting a total remodelling and turned

into a ROR of my own design. It will be a shame and i will miss my dome but i just cant get under the "hobbit" door that dome obsy's use. At the end of the pics

there is my bespoke pier i also designed and built that i will put up later.

Thanks for looking in 😉

 

This looks really amazing! I just have a couple of questions questions. Firstly, did you paper the warm room to finish it? I cant quite se how you finished the walls and ceiling but the result looks excellent! Second, did you paint the fiberglass and if so what paint did you use? I've tried to paint some fiberglass I have with very varying results. Lastly, the plastic you used on the fasure, is that just an off the shelf plastic fasure that you cut to size? Again, the build looks awesome.

[Astro-Nutz]

On 10/22/2021 at 2:52 PM, Marstiphal said:

 

This looks really amazing! I just have a couple of questions questions. Firstly, did you paper the warm room to finish it? I cant quite se how you finished the walls and ceiling but the result looks excellent! Second, did you paint the fiberglass and if so what paint did you use? I've tried to paint some fiberglass I have with very varying results. Lastly, the plastic you used on the fasure, is that just an off the shelf plastic fasure that you cut to size? Again, the build looks awesome.

Thanks for the comments 😉 yes i did wall paper the interior lol its a home from home and the GRP roof sections are all gel coated in slate grey and then masked off and the facias are then gel coated white so its all one application in principle. Hope that helps 😉