Back in 2008, I utilized
the machinist skill of Belgium ATM'er Eric Moerman to build a custom
made clock drive for my Coulter 10" f/5.6 "Gary Barabino" Newtonian
reflector, which he did an outstanding job. So in 2012, I contacted
Eric again to see if he could work with me on the "GJD" project by
fabricating a collimatable lens cell and focuser backplate of my own
design, and he agreed.
So, here are the Collimatable Lens Cell
components as they arrived from Eric. They look marvelous! From left
to right you have the front lens cell section that holds the
objective, the transition piece that connects to the main tube and
support the front lens cell and the threaded retainer ring. Eric
machined all of components (including the focuser back) from a 10" x
10" billet of 6061-T6 aluminum. I even told him to sign the unit. This
view shows the cell components from the forward facing surfaces. Note
that the front lens cell's collimation rim sits at the front of the
cell rather than at the rear like most cells. But, much like other
adjustable cells, the push-pull screw sets are spaced 120-degrees from
another on the rim. Basically, the front lens cell will sit inside of
the transition piece whereby there are three threaded holes in the
front edge of the transition piece to attach the front lens cell to.
In turn the front lens cell also has three threaded holes (along with
the unthreaded holes for screws that attach it to the transition
piece) to push against the front surface of the transition piece.
Collimation is achieved by loosening and tightening each set of
screws. Below is a link to a webpage that should help:
Collimating a Refractor Telescope - A Guide to Set-Up and Alignment |
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