Canopus56 wrote:
Could someone remind me of the history of the SPOC refractor? Isn't it, like the Ealing, a former standard model for university astronomy teaching? At a club meeting, I seem to recall seeing a picture of it installed in a doom at the U of U. - Canopus56(Kurt)
There will eventually be two refractors involved. The one currently installed (the red tube) was built by me between 1982 (when I bought the 200 mm f/16.8 Brandt lens from Siegfried) and 1988. Sometime next year Siegfried will be donating the steel tube from a 1915 9" Clark refractor that used to belong to University A who gave it to College B which then threw it out (!). Siegfried has already donated the pier that originally went with the Clark telescope and that is what is now supporting the current refractor at SPOC. As for the mount, Siegfried donated the Byers gears and Bruce designed, built and donated the mount. Machining of many parts of the Clark tube has been done and is being done by Guy. If it all comes together as currently planned, the scope will eventually consist of: The Clark pier. The Grim/Jachmann mount. The Wiggins focuser, finder and Brandt objective lens. The Clark tube. On very special occasions, the Brandt lens will be temporarily replaced by the Clark lens. Patrick