"If you can't buy it, you can make it!"
My Amateur Telescope Making hobby started already at the beginning of 80's. As a young man I was very eager to try out everything and a trial of making a mirror by own hands did not end to the perfect paraboloidal mirror. Instead of that my 5" mirror had bad turned down edges and the polish of the surface was far from adequate! Still the telescope served many years and afterwards thinking the manual own hands made mirror left thoughts and feelings that you can if you try hard enough! And what would be the most valuable than own and share with your family and friends something which you have done by yourself!
In the beginning of the new century after 20 years of my first ATM experience I happened to find Mel Bartels' great instructions to motorize a telescope. Since then I have felt the ATM things are very interesting and sharing instructions belongs to the hobby. Many times I have found out the best instructions and solutions from the net. Let's keep it that way!
I try to show shortly on these pages how I constructed my "Motorized 5" Telescope" and the latest "Lurie-Houghton Newtonian Telescope". Making telescope optics has always been the most interesting part of ATMaking. By building grinding/polishing machine I have got the required boost to the hobby. Manual mirror grinding does not feel good anymore and it would take a lot more time too. Using of machines has also brought own kind of ATM hobby part because to learn to use machines is not always simple and straight forward. There seem to be own tricks and lessons learned things too.
Aki Lötjönen
In the beginning of the new century after 20 years of my first ATM experience I happened to find Mel Bartels' great instructions to motorize a telescope. Since then I have felt the ATM things are very interesting and sharing instructions belongs to the hobby. Many times I have found out the best instructions and solutions from the net. Let's keep it that way!
I try to show shortly on these pages how I constructed my "Motorized 5" Telescope" and the latest "Lurie-Houghton Newtonian Telescope". Making telescope optics has always been the most interesting part of ATMaking. By building grinding/polishing machine I have got the required boost to the hobby. Manual mirror grinding does not feel good anymore and it would take a lot more time too. Using of machines has also brought own kind of ATM hobby part because to learn to use machines is not always simple and straight forward. There seem to be own tricks and lessons learned things too.
Aki Lötjönen
Introduction
Motorized 5" Telescope
Making of LHN Telescope
Machines
Links
