What I did today -instead- of Rocketry.

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thanks all, she seems to be a little more alert this morning, still a little wobbly but she should be back to her usual self later today.

prognosis is good (if it is this), and we just need to keep her out of the sun..
 
Went down to Jim Mitchell (originator of the Thunderflame propellant course) to install a hitch on the back of my RAV4. Jim is "Cast Iron Welding" in TN, about 40 minutes south of me. Two people made the work go much faster and funner, and Jim has a nice torque wrench, which I do not.
 
Went mountain biking at a nearby lake. First time off-road. I am seriously unfit. Managed 2.5 hours. Passed a roo at about five feet away at one point. Good fun morning :) . I am used to jumping the bike around on skate parks and on the commute to/from work, but off-roading I am a bit of a beginner at.

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Came home and repaired a pulse oximeter for my wife's university. Then looked started looking at some of their defective aneroid sphygmanometers.

Our washing machine is dying, again. Time for a new one this time. 19 years is a good run. Have to go for a drive to see what we can get.
 
Went down to Jim Mitchell (originator of the Thunderflame propellant course) to install a hitch on the back of my RAV4. Jim is "Cast Iron Welding" in TN, about 40 minutes south of me. Two people made the work go much faster and funner, and Jim has a nice torque wrench, which I do not.

I have not heard Jim's name mentioned in conjunction with Thunderflame in a long time. I met him once in Orangeburg, SC (2003 I believe), I had arrived just after he had finished giving a class out of his hotel room... classic! Greast two-day weekend of launching research at O'Burgs old field.
 
I took the polesaw and some reflective triangles down to the road and cut up three trees for the third time in as many years.
 
I took the polesaw and some reflective triangles down to the road and cut up three trees for the third time in as many years.
And why? I have some Box Elder trees near my observatory and they grow like weeds. I have to cut them every 3 years otherwise I loose my view south to the horizon.
 
And why? I have some Box Elder trees near my observatory and they grow like weeds. I have to cut them every 3 years otherwise I loose my view south to the horizon.
Given my suburban location, I have a swath of sky running north and south between the trees. Probably an arc of 45 degrees east to west.

I’m about 90 minutes away from a dark sky location near the Donner Pass where our astronomical society has its observatory.

Big glass for the win.
 
Given my suburban location, I have a swath of sky running north and south between the trees. Probably an arc of 45 degrees east to west.

I’m about 90 minutes away from a dark sky location near the Donner Pass where our astronomical society has its observatory.

Big glass for the win.
Another amateur astronomer! :) Cool. I live on an old dairy farm and from my observatories I have a great view to the east & north. West is trees and to the south there are some trees farther away and a long shot to the SW. Those two white rectangles on the mid east side of my property are my observatories.

The largest scope I have currently is a 12.5" F5 Newtonian on a GEM with servo drives. I'm making a thin 18" F4.7 mirror and I'm going to put it into a truss tube Newtonian Dob mount mostly made out of CF composites to keep the weight down. A buddy of mine who used to be a CPU health programmer for Cray and I have built some equatorial platforms, and my friend has used an Arduino & several peripherals to run the stepper motor at at sideral, solar, & lunar rates. I think he's thinking about adding an ISS mode. And you will be able to run it from a smartphone via Bluetooth. I'm the member of the team that designs & builds the platform. Requires woodworking, metal working, and lathe & milling machine work.
 
And why? I have some Box Elder trees near my observatory and they grow like weeds. I have to cut them every 3 years otherwise I loose my view south to the horizon.
Nothing so grand as all that, the vines on the trees make it difficult to see the maniacs going 20 over as they whiz by my driveway.
 
Changed four burnt out light bulbs.
Replaced with LED bulbs.
It was a nice sunny day, and I was going to do some much needed yard work but....
I got distracted.
0711201707[1].jpg

Started a Hasegawa egg plane: Boeing 747 toting a Space Shuttle Orbiter.
Finally started my collection.
😄
 
Another amateur astronomer! :) Cool. I live on an old dairy farm and from my observatories I have a great view to the east & north. West is trees and to the south there are some trees farther away and a long shot to the SW. Those two white rectangles on the mid east side of my property are my observatories.

The largest scope I have currently is a 12.5" F5 Newtonian on a GEM with servo drives. I'm making a thin 18" F4.7 mirror and I'm going to put it into a truss tube Newtonian Dob mount mostly made out of CF composites to keep the weight down. A buddy of mine who used to be a CPU health programmer for Cray and I have built some equatorial platforms, and my friend has used an Arduino & several peripherals to run the stepper motor at at sideral, solar, & lunar rates. I think he's thinking about adding an ISS mode. And you will be able to run it from a smartphone via Bluetooth. I'm the member of the team that designs & builds the platform. Requires woodworking, metal working, and lathe & milling machine work.
Yep.

Been gazing at the stars since my early teens when I received a small {mostly a toy) reflector. Built a 6" f/8 reflector in my early 20's (pushed glass, pipe thread EQ mount, open tube before they were cool) inspired by the Sam Brown (Edmund Scientific) book. It was stolen from the roof of my apartment. Knew John Dobson when I lived in SF and visited their garage workshop near Golden Gate Park a few blocks away on several occasions. A few years later I assembled a 6" f/5 reflector from commercial parts (Coulter optics, etc) which I still have but never use anymore. As things turned out, I worked across the street from Vic Maris of Stellarvue fame before he went full-time astronomy and own two of his refractors (80mm f/8 and 102mm f/11 - not quite an Apo) which I use on a heavy duty Meade tripod and EQ mount with Televue eyepieces. As I have aged, my eyesight is no longer what it was when I started this hobby so I'm looking into Mellencam gear.

I have been a member on and off of the local astro society since 1977. Several of local rocket club members belong to the society as well. Guess we are all interested in celestial matters having grown up in the early days of the space race. I was in the 4th grade when the first satellite was lofted. A number of TRF members tell the same tale.

Your current project sounds very impressive. Someday when it's "presentably complete" (these things are never actually finished, right?), please post a photo of your light bucket.
 
Yep.

Been gazing at the stars since my early teens when I received a small {mostly a toy) reflector. Built a 6" f/8 reflector in my early 20's (pushed glass, pipe thread EQ mount, open tube before they were cool) inspired by the Sam Brown (Edmund Scientific) book. It was stolen from the roof of my apartment. Knew John Dobson when I lived in SF and visited their garage workshop near Golden Gate Park a few blocks away on several occasions. A few years later I assembled a 6" f/5 reflector from commercial parts (Coulter optics, etc) which I still have but never use anymore. As things turned out, I worked across the street from Vic Maris of Stellarvue fame before he went full-time astronomy and own two of his refractors (80mm f/8 and 102mm f/11 - not quite an Apo) which I use on a heavy duty Meade tripod and EQ mount with Televue eyepieces. As I have aged, my eyesight is no longer what it was when I started this hobby so I'm looking into Mellencam gear.

I have been a member on and off of the local astro society since 1977. Several of local rocket club members belong to the society as well. Guess we are all interested in celestial matters having grown up in the early days of the space race. I was in the 4th grade when the first satellite was lofted. A number of TRF members tell the same tale.

Your current project sounds very impressive. Someday when it's "presentably complete" (these things are never actually finished, right?), please post a photo of your light bucket.
Will do.
 
Black raspberries are ripening... into ice cream.

Ambrosia!! Growing up in central PA, we just called them raspberries, because they were the only kind that we could afford---they grew wild. We went berry picking around July 4 (parents, me, and 4-9 siblings depending). Dad knew all the good spots, and Mom would make about 30-40 quarts of black raspberry jam each year.

Black raspberries are very fragile compared to red, so you won't often find them in stores (sometimes at farmer's markets). After 10 years or so of trying, this year we finally got a few quarts off our canes here in western KY.

If you've never had them, look for black raspberry ice cream w/dark chocolate chunks; it's in Kroger or one of its subsidiaries. Can't be as good as Charles homemade stuff, but still darned tasty.

Best -- Terry
 
Which ones did you get? Please let us know if you like them.
Reolink 8channel NVR with four cameras (4K Ultra HD 8MP, 3840 x 2160): https://reolink.com/product/rlk8-800b4/

Worked as intended. User interface seems quite intuitive and functional. Early days yet, but the reviews I read said the UI was better in the Reolink than some of the other popular brands.
 
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