More updates from RTMC.
Seated is Dann McCreary of McCreary Mounts next to his ingenious The Dickens mount. According to Dann, this lightweight portable mount has so little error that it can track for hours.
The inevitable question was asked…How does it work? Well, being that there are two pivot points and one small motor it perplexed many people.
Luckily I know a little about astronomy, so I suggested that it was a super modified barn door tracker. Close, but not quite. Dann’s mount is much more accurate than the typical barn door tracker, but is based on some of the same principles.
A closer look shows the two pivot points made from highly crafted, sub millimeter bearing with an unbelievable tolerance that Dann painstakingly searched high and low before purchasing them from Ebay for 12 bucks or so. Sandwiched between two polyethylene pieces with tight tolerance holes drilled into them…just kidding. Dann said that he just used a drill and a hole saw and made holes. The hole point (get it?) of the mount is that by adjusting the two bearings to be aligned with the celestial north (quick quiz how many points does it take to make a line).
So by using this priciple Dann was able to construct this beautiful, and award winning, mount that tracks with extremely tight tolerances, without tons of machining time and other weapons of mass manufacturing. Congratulations Dann, the award was well deserved. If you would like more information about Dann and his work you can follow him here.
– Ex astris, scientia –
I am and avid amateur astronomer and intellectual property attorney in Pasadena, California. As a former Chief Petty Officer in the U.S. Navy, I am a proud member of the Armed Service Committee of the Los Angeles County Bar Association working to aid all active duty and veterans in our communities. Connect with me on Google +
Norman