Why waste your valuable and limited observing time setting up your scope and struggling for that perfect polar alignment?
By having your own backyard observatory you can be enjoying your scope in as little as five minutes. You also get the benefit of limited wind protection on those cold winter nights.
Unlike other roll-off roof observatories, this design provides a robust track system that reliably secures the roof to the walls whenever the observatory is closed but also provides a quick and easy method for opening the observatory for telescope use.
The plans set includes over 60 pages of highly detailed CAD drawn diagrams in ".pdf" format with easy to understand instructions written with the understanding that not everyone is a professional carpenter. You will be led step by step all the way from site selection to putting shingles on the roof.
This observatory with almost 100 square feet of floor space will provide plenty of room for you, your equipment and even a couple of guests.
Designed At Digital Reality With CAD
Complete set of construction plans on how to build your own backyard observatory. Also included are plans for a rock solid pier for permanent telescope set up and alignment.
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Build Your Own Backyard Observatory
By Jim Pennington.
Pier plans are included in the plan set. The welded up pier
is constructed of a massive heavy duty 8 inch OD steel pipe that
features a 3/4" offset top mounting plate that helps keep the center
of gravity of your polar mounted scope installation as close as possible
to the center point of the pier itself. This ensures that
the pier will stay vertical over time by not having to deal with
persistant off-center loadings. Additional vibration protection
is addressed by filling the pipe with concrete while the pier is being
installed. The precision CAD drawings guarantee exact fit of
all cut out parts.
An additional bonus is instructions on
how to apply shingles to the roll-off roof. Shingles give the
observatory a more permanent and "blended in" appearance to your property
and neighborhood. Most people have no idea the structure is
an observatory and accept it as being just another attractive
outbuilding as is commonly seen. If you have no idea of how
shingles are applied to a roof, then these very detailed and illustrated instructions
make the price of the plans well worth it because your knowledge
gained can be used in other projects around the home!
