Re: [Utah-astronomy] compact parallelogram bino mount
Jim, Regarding compact bino mounts, I have a full pennies worth of advice :). If your tripod legs open up as wide as the parralelogram, and you set them up at a star party, some klutz is apt to trip over them, (I won't name any names but her initials are J. G. ). If you make the parallelogram a bit longer, it really helps..... Jo
I would like to build one and like the idea of the adjustable Aluminum crutches, but wanted one more compact than the crutches make. Just my 4 cents worth (keep the change). Jim Stitley
--- "Josephine M. Grahn" <bsi@xmission.com> wrote:
Jim, Regarding compact bino mounts
Jo, the neat thing about Bruce's compact parallelogram is that is can be used on ANY commercial tripod...so, pick your spread. C. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? LAUNCH - Your Yahoo! Music Experience http://launch.yahoo.com
hhhmmm, I would have expected that the longer arms (crutches) would require a wider spread of the legs to prevent tipping over. If the parallelogram arms are longer, are you saying the legs can be closer together? Seems like it would be the reverse, intuitively. Jim --- "Josephine M. Grahn" <bsi@xmission.com> wrote:
Jim, Regarding compact bino mounts, I have a full pennies worth of advice :). If your tripod legs open up as wide as the parralelogram, and you set them up at a star party, some klutz is apt to trip over them, (I won't name any names but her initials are J. G. ). If you make the parallelogram a bit longer, it really helps.....
Jo
I would like to build one and like the idea of the adjustable Aluminum crutches, but wanted one more compact than the crutches make. Just my 4 cents worth (keep the change). Jim Stitley
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--- Jim Stitley <sitf2000@yahoo.com> wrote:
hhhmmm, I would have expected that the longer arms (crutches) would require a wider spread of the legs to prevent tipping over.
Unless the leg spread is very slight, tipping isn't a problem if the unit is balanced (or it's very windy!)
If the parallelogram arms are longer, are you saying the legs can be closer together?
Not wanting to Speak for Jo, but her point is one of ergonomics, not design stability. If the arms are short, you must stand closer to the tripod, thus making it more likely that you'll stumble over one, becoming more of a problem the higher the bino is aimed, or the taller the individual. Even super-long arms can be positioned close to the tripod (in planform) if raised near their upper limit. C. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? LAUNCH - Your Yahoo! Music Experience http://launch.yahoo.com
One additional 'tweak' to my design is to dangle a set of weights straight down from the platform (the top of the tri-pod). Actually, my design is a quad-pod; four legs instead of three. I was fiddling around with it in my workshop and somehow the legs started wobbling and things got a little weird; that's when I decided to hang some extra weight. When I used the setup this past weekend, I never had the problem in field that I expereinced in my shop. My original concept was to have the legs much wider than they are; I did a little trig to create 30 degree angles, and as it turns out, they are much steeper than that, yet the stability is maintained.... Joe Borgione -------------------
--- Jim Stitley <sitf2000@yahoo.com> wrote:
hhhmmm, I would have expected that the longer arms (crutches) would require a wider spread of the legs to prevent tipping over.
Unless the leg spread is very slight, tipping isn't a problem if the unit is balanced (or it's very windy!)
If the parallelogram arms are longer, are you saying the legs can be closer together?
Not wanting to Speak for Jo, but her point is one of ergonomics, not design stability. If the arms are short, you must stand closer to the tripod, thus making it more likely that you'll stumble over one, becoming more of a problem the higher the bino is aimed, or the taller the individual.
Even super-long arms can be positioned close to the tripod (in planform) if raised near their upper limit.
C.
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participants (4)
-
Chuck Hards -
Jim Stitley -
Joe Borgione -
Josephine M. Grahn