The next time anybody says the Explora Dome is too expensive just have them look at this.



I'm not really that far behind on my reading, I was just looking for some old information. At that time an average house cost about $25K and an average car about $2K. Since inflation has moved the decimal point over one unit to the left on most things, it would put the cost of this dome and ring at about $6K today. Talk about a bargain! Explora Dome all the way.

Nice find Ron! I'll say the ED is a bargain; it's even bigger than the one you found in the ad.

Not only that, but look at the problems that old dome will give you if you try to observe close to the horizon!

ExploraDome beats all comers!
Rich

Rich, your right :wink: With that scope you could only view 45* down from zenith. Also I'm wondering how one gets their head to the eyepiece being so confined like that.

Hey guys and gals, read the Edmund ad and it indicates that they made the ad drawing out of proportion. The opening is eight foot and the scope is supposed to be a six foot tube. But, we have it made with the E D since
we all built our domes to meet our own needs. Thinking about the fourty-five degree angle, with todays air and light pollution, maybe they were on to something.
Seriously, I will write about my first night in the dome, and will as soon as I get caught up on stuff I neglected while building the observatory.
I enjoy reading everyones comments and stories about construction and I know that you are a wonderful group of people.

Bob Conner
Longmont Co

BOB...WELCOME TO THIS FORUM!!!!!!!

Dont forget to open a new thread with all you want to tell us about your observatory.....Pictures always are a great plus!!!

You are right about the quality of the folks here....These guys are the main reason I am motivated to do the tedious stuff that an administrator does.....Collectively we have saved our butts several times when it comes to doing mistakes....

Thanks for posting :wink:

Bob:
Are you one of the folks who got their dome a few weeks ago, delivered by a PolyDome pickup truck instead of a tractor/trailer?

Thanks for joining our group! We need YOUR expertiese and perspective on observatory construction. You never know what ideas folks will come up with when it comes to building these support structures. The more brains we have working on the problems we encounter, the better off we all are!
Rich

Welcome Bob! We're all glad you stopped in. Make yourself at home and we hope you'll post some pictures very soon of your observatory :smt026

Yes, mine was delivered by the pick-up truck. He had four domes and some stock tanks for delivery to Colorado.
I started planning my observatory last December, and after finding you folks, revised my plans to fit your dome. I will take some time here soon to up-load pictures of my very modest effort. Everything I did was very practical and cost was an issue but quality and performance were the priority. I did evaluate certain ideas and chose those that worked best for me in the construction. I had to watch the money since I am planning to retie in the next few years. The observatory will be a great way to use my free time when I retie.

Bob Conner
Lomgmont Co.