ETX-70AT focuser extension, take two.

Not wanting to drive back down to Ace, I started rummaging through my junk pile to see if there was anything I could use to fabricate a new coupler to replace the aluminum spacer I had tried to use. I looked at some 1/2″ steel bar stock I have, but decided I really need a […]

ETX-70AT focuser extension, take one.

So I attempted to to build a flexible focus extender for the ETX-70AT telescope. The concept is solid, and the price is right but mistakes were made. I spent a grand total of $2.42 at Ace for an aluminum spacer, a foot of cable, and some set screws. As I drilled and tapped the holes […]

The myth of the so-called “Safe Place”

Several weeks ago I removed these three items from the Meade ETX-70AT telescope in preparation for tearing it down: That’s the focusing knob, and the tripod bolts. I put them in a “safe place” so they would not get lost, but once I got around to tearing the telescope apart and putting it back together, […]

ETX-70AT Teardown

More telescope fun. I have an Meade ETX-70AT telescope that I got at a pawn shop for $15. It was missing the battery pack, eyepieces, and the focuser seemed jammed. Since I have eyepieces that fit it, and the focuser seemed like it might be an easy fix, I naturally bought it and brought it […]

Mini Dob update

Fairly clear skies last night, so I took the Dob out for a test viewing. I found that the bolts I was worried about hitting when adjusting the telescope up and down were the least of my worries. I think they only hit once or twice, and even then they weren’t too jarring because the […]

4.5″ Mini Dob Project

I have a 4.5″ Newtonian reflector telescope that I got for $10 at a local thrift store. The views are OK, but the dovetail mount to the tripod is super wobbly, and the thing will shake if you even breathe on it, so I decided to build a Dobsonian mount for it. I designed some […]

DIY Spot-welder, part 2

Found some lugs, found the starter relay, and cut one of the leads from the secondary to hook it up: Next I started looking at the control board, and it occurs to me that I want all of this stuff in an enclosure of some kind, but I need to be able to access the […]

DIY Spot-welder, part 1

I’ve watched a bunch of YouTube videos on the subject, narrowed my approach down to two methods, and I may end up building both. One involves a rewound transformer salvaged from an old microwave oven, and the other a really big capacitor. I already have the transformer, so that’s where I will start. Step one […]

Long time, no post. Still lame!!

Well. Almost two years without posting anything. I’ve been working on projects, honest I have… Like the clock I found at Goodwill and turned into an old-time internet radio thingy: And the jaws I built for the jaw-less vise I found for fifteen bucks at the local surplus store: And my latest obsession is building […]

My new latest obsession

I’ve had a fascination with radio for ages. My grandpa was a ham radio operator, and would give my brother and I ham study guides and HF receivers to listen to in an attempt to fan the flames of interest. Back then one needed to be able to send and receive Morse code to pass […]