| Component |
Supplier |
Contact |
Notes |
| Tube |
Hastings Irrigation Pipe Company |
Homepage |
Remember, this is an irrigation company, not a regular ATM supplier.
When you receive the pipe, it will be dirty and may have surface
scratches. Still, compared with the ATM suppliers, their prices
are good, even if shipping is expensive. |
| Focuser |
Jim's Mobile, Inc. (JMI) |
1-800-247-0304 |
Not only does JMI make great focusers, but even entire telescopes. They have
no web page. |
| Primary Mirror |
Zambuto Optics |
Email |
Carl Zambuto produces some very fine optics, and each one comes with an individual
certification of its figure. |
| Mirror Cell |
University Optics |
Homepage |
University Optics has been around for a long time, and they produce a wide range
of astronomy related products. While my only purchase from them was a mirror cell,
one could almost build an entire telescope from their catalog. |
| Secondary Mirror |
Protostar |
Homepage |
Protostar offers both Pyrex and quartz secondary mirrors. Quartz costs about twice
as much as the standard Pyrex, so I avoided it. |
| Spider and Diagonal Holder |
Protostar |
Homepage |
Protostar also sells some of the best spiders on the market. They are very easy
to adjust, and not that expensive. |
| Dobsonian Mount |
Misc. |
|
The plywood and Ebony Star came from a local hardware store (Menards). The Teflon
and most of the hardware is from my basement -- also where the tools are. |