balance issues

Started by marcin, 04/13/2006 03:59PM
Posted 04/13/2006 03:59PM Opening Post
Hi,
Before I fixed my telescope tube to the carriage box I had balanced it very carefully with all elements attached - the mirror cell, the finder, the spider and the eyepiece. At the end everything was perfectly balanced indeed, but once I added a barlow, the tube goes slightly down by itself, especially when I try to observe objects that are just above the horizon, like rising Jupiter.

How do you keep balance of the tube of your dobsonian? Do you add some weights on the other end?
Thanks for any tips smile

8" f/5.9 truss tube newtonian, made from scratch 8)
Posted 04/13/2006 07:04PM #1
Bill has the right solution. The stiction of the Alt bearings should be sufficient to hold the scope during EP changes. You shouldbe able to make 1.5-2 lbs changes without having to rebalance in my opinion. Otherwise there is not enough stiction.

[SIZE="Large"][/SIZE][COLOR="Blue"][/COLOR] Floyd Blue grin
Amateur Imager
Posted 04/14/2006 10:12AM #2
Marcin
It is the size of your pads .I remember the pictures of your scope and noted 3" long teflon pads.
Sorry ,I meant to send you a comment when I seen the pictures, but forgot.
Joe