Post by jonnymac on Aug 3, 2014 15:53:42 GMT
I am new to astronomy and I don't know what other people do to hold their maps, notepads and other gear but I was outside observing last week and I found it a real pain in the rear trying to juggle everything so I decided to make something I could attach to a standard camera tripod.
The only thing I bought for this project was the threaded nut that would accept a tripod screw. £3.97 in P&P
1/4'' to 3/8'' Threaded Nuts for Tripod
Cut a thin board about 16"x14"
Cut a bit scrap lumber 16 inches long
I glued and nailed the length of wood to the centre of the board
I took a bit of L shaped wooden decorative moulding and cut one 16" length and two 14" lengths
I glued the 16" length of moulding to the bottom edge first and once it had dried I cut a notch from the middle section on each of the the two 14" pieces to allow for the centre section of wood.
Next I added a few coats of white paint and in the centre of the wood I cut out a hole about twice the size of the nut and epoxied it in, make sure the nut is level with the wood or just sightly lower than the wood so you can screw your tripod mount flat so it will good support.
To stop books and paper blowing about in the wind I attached a bit of twine and a loop of elasticated chord on one side
And a hook on the other side to pull the chord over to.
This is the finished product, it is a bit rough and ready but It seams to work pretty well. I had thought about adding an eye piece holder but my tripod is pretty flimsy so i'm not sure how it would handle the extra weight.
The only thing I bought for this project was the threaded nut that would accept a tripod screw. £3.97 in P&P
1/4'' to 3/8'' Threaded Nuts for Tripod
Cut a thin board about 16"x14"
Cut a bit scrap lumber 16 inches long
I glued and nailed the length of wood to the centre of the board
I took a bit of L shaped wooden decorative moulding and cut one 16" length and two 14" lengths
I glued the 16" length of moulding to the bottom edge first and once it had dried I cut a notch from the middle section on each of the the two 14" pieces to allow for the centre section of wood.
Next I added a few coats of white paint and in the centre of the wood I cut out a hole about twice the size of the nut and epoxied it in, make sure the nut is level with the wood or just sightly lower than the wood so you can screw your tripod mount flat so it will good support.
To stop books and paper blowing about in the wind I attached a bit of twine and a loop of elasticated chord on one side
And a hook on the other side to pull the chord over to.
This is the finished product, it is a bit rough and ready but It seams to work pretty well. I had thought about adding an eye piece holder but my tripod is pretty flimsy so i'm not sure how it would handle the extra weight.