The last episode had us compacting the gravel and waiting out the rain. This time we had to get the sand into the hole, smooth it, lay the pavers and tamp them down. Then we could begin moving the POD into place.
We went to the local garden supply to get sand. It was cheap and didn't have too many large stones in it. Bonus was that it was outside and pre-wetted for compaction. I sprinkled Amdro ant killer on it before laying pavers. Having a long straight board is important for screeing sand. I was wrestling with a shorter board than I would like to have had. As the pavers were laid I tapped them down with a rubber mallet, since I didn't want to rent the compactor again.
The pavers were purposely laid out so that I could leave a gap for the pier. Not having to cut them was a blessing. Kneeling on the plywood and knee pad worked okay until I could stand on them. Standing on them before there were enough to lock into place would have shifted them too much. It ended up fairly flat so I was pleased. There was a bit of a fall toward the yard for drainage.
Sweeping sand into the cracks meant some broom work. I used fine dry sand from the big box store for this. Two bags did the trick. You can see it in the bottom left corner. My neighbor was out at that point so I convinced him to come over and give Karren and me a hand moving the POD into the new digs. Having more help is mandatory for moving the dome in two pieces. If you quarter the top it might be possible with one person if you have gargantuan arms and strength, but then you must install the weatherstripping off of a ladder. Not good, ask me how I know! I had already sealed it together with silicone so was not willing to take it apart again. I used a 1/2 inch strip of foam weatherstripping on the bottom of the walls to keep out bugs and water - it worked well. You cannot move it around after the foam is in place, so get it where you want it first.
The Skyshed website showed a minimum distance of 114 inches square for the POD with 3 bays, but I found out that it needed a few more inches across. Glad I went a bit wider.
A proud owner after a couple of long days. I got called to work while laying pavers the day before and had to leave things a few times. As long as there are highways there will be people that run over stuff and needs to be fixed... Also, keep in mind that I am 6 feet 5 inches tall and 250 lbs., so I make the POD look smaller than it really is.
Here's a view of the inside showing the pier. Notice I painted the top of the pier where the mount will pivot-- DON'T DO THAT! I had to take it inside and remove the paint. It caused the mount to drag paint around the top, causing a binding action that ruined smooth movement for alignment. I also lubed the top of the rotor with dry lube for even more smoothness.
The electrical is not hot yet but is installed. I did not feel the need to run any signal wires to the observatory because I am wireless to the house router. I am going to cut the tips off the pier through bolts after the summer heat dissipates. Now comes developing a plan for cabinets with drawers in one of the bays for storage. The pier height worked out great (about 36 inches), and can be extended with the bolts if necessary. I like the look of the walnut plate, but am reserving judgement on it until it proves itself. I may have another brake rotor in my future. So just order two rotors if you go this route.
One major problem I ran into was that the elevation knob for the mount contacted the mounting bolts and the brake rotor, so I had to sand off part of the knob. Celestron made it crooked to begin with, so I only had to modify one side. It is an odd thread size (18mm), so I couldn't replace it easily with local parts, and I didn't want to wait for Amazon. Now the mount is easily and smoothly brought into polar alignment with no worries.
Now it is time to shoot some pics! I spent the majority of one night dialing in the polar alignment until I was satisfied with the unguided performance... Okay, I really just sat and revelled in the satisfaction of having my own observatory! Next comes getting the first pics done to evaluate the walnut. I think I will be okay. But then I have to take the mount off for Hypertuning, so check back in a while for the results.
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