Just finished a project to make a hefty parallelogram mount for my 80x20 binoculars. I used 2cm aluminium tubing, M6 bolts and a couple of old brass covered lead weights from a cuckoo clock. The bracket the bins are screwed to needs to be a bit heftier, it bends under the strain. The surveyors tripod was £40 inc. next day delivery, my photographic tripod wasn't up to the job.
Been looking at the Moon and M44 the Beehive Cluster before the murk rolled in. Excellent.
(http://ancientlight.amateur-astronomy.org/equipment/Paralellogram%20Mount%20with%2080x20s.jpg)
And the moon taken with my phone.
(http://ancientlight.amateur-astronomy.org/equipment/Paralellogram%20Mount%20with%2080x20s%20and%20Moon%20with%20phone.jpg)
Now that's what I call a serious parallogram mount for a serious pair of binoculars!
Mark
How did you fix it to the tripod?
I took out the 5/8" surveyor stuff fixing and replaced it with an M5 bolt and nuts. A nut is fitted in the centre 2cm tube and held in by the ply plate. Obviously there is a hole in the ply for the bolt. I need to make the ply plate bigger and make a plug to keep the plate centred as the tripod has a large central hole. It rotates on the polished surface of the tripod quite nicely.
I'll bring the lot to observing on Tuesday. Never know, might even be able to use it!
What an excellent result, those bin's must be really heavy but the only flex looks like the bracket which you're going to sort out anyway.
Will you be bringing them to the next DSC (assuming we ever get some clear weather)?
Robert
I got some ali from Tony a while back to make my own parallelogram mount for my 25x100's as they are just too heavy to hold. Must crack on with that sometime.
Mike, the thing I wish I had done differently would be to borrow a drill press to make sure all the holes were square on. Some ended up being a bit oval to enable the bolts to fit through three tubes in a row.