DIY Observatory Build

As all UK astronomers can attest to, the rarity of clear skies are sadly too few and far between; I’ve always wanted to maximise the opportunity to capture more and avoid lugging all the kit in and out for each imaging session, so had started to consider a more permanent setup, with a pier outside I could leave my kit setup under a rain cover. So as this journey begins, at this point I didn’t even have any intention on building and observatory.

Luckily a chap named Alan from my local astronomy club (Wessex Astronomical Society) sent out an email listing some equipment that was available, and after a few emails and a visit to see the him down in Swanage, I picked up up a nice solid pier and an original Skywatcher EQ8 mount for a great price. As a huge bonus the payment was being donated to the astronomy club so it was perfect excuse for me to start building my outdoor setup.

NOTE: While reading through my build process please bear with me and remember I had no real idea what I was doing and was just winging it as I went and I know I likely made lots of amateur building mistakes.