Here are a couple of 8 inch Dobs I built for friends of mine several years ago.
They are 8 inch f/6 Newtonian telescopes on a Dobsonian mountings. They were designed to give bright, wide field views of the night sky, while still having excellent high power planetary performance. The two piece design means setup/breakdown time is nil.
The 8in. f/6 Dobsonian telescopes have a low to the ground "kid friendly" design. The
optical assembly may be rotated in it's cradle to provide a comfortable eyepiece position. Their
intuitive point and shoot motion makes them easy to use even for absolute beginners.
The 8in. Dobs are medium size telescopes with a simple two piece design. They are very easy to set up
and break down. They are also small enough to transport in most passenger cars.
The wide spread feet of the base and the low center of gravity of the telescope make for
a very stable instrument, both during use, and during transportation.
The altitude and azimuth bearing surfaces have been designed to provide just the right amount of
"sticktion" for ease of use. The optical assembly can be rotated and moved fore and aft in
it's cradle to allow for eyepiece rotation and balancing.
Specifications of the 8in. Dobsonian telescope
| Primary Mirror: | 8 inch f/6 |
| Secondary Mirror: | 1.52in. |
| Mirror Manufacturer: | Meade Instruments |
| Focal Length: | 48in. / 1219mm |
| Primary Cell: | Custom with 2 point Collimation |
| Secondary Holder: | Custom Fully Adjustable |
| Spider: | Custom 3 Vane Curved |
| Focuser: | 1.25in. |
| Finder: | Telrad Reflex Sight, or 50mm finder scope |
| Eyepiece Height At Zenith: | Approx. 50in. |
| Overall Length: | 50in. |
| Weight: | Approx. 35lb |