Teleport 10"


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Subject: Moved Message
By: Anonymous (xxx.xxx.173.137)
Date: 03/19/2002 01:43:45 pm PST
Does anyone know how one goes about ordering one of these scopes? I left an e-mail inquiry on Tom's website but got no answer. Do you have to be a friend of this guy, or what?


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Subject: Re: Moved Message
By: Anonymous (xxx.xxx.187.67)
In Reply to: Anonymous (xxx.xxx.173.137) (Original Message)
Date: 03/22/2002 09:58:48 am PST
>Does anyone know how one goes about ordering one of these scopes? I left an e-mail inquiry on Tom's website but got no answer. Do you have to be a friend of this guy, or what?
>> I've pasted an emai I received from Tom below. Be aware that there is at least a 1 year wait now, possible longer. I'm thinking about buying one myself but the price!!! is beyond my means just now. Delivered a 10" costs about $3400.00. That's steep even when compared to starmaster EL11 at 2550.00.

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Thanks for your interest in the Teleport. This email will provide information on all three sizes. The original was a 10", so it became the first size in production. Thirty-two have been completed, plus eight of the 14.5" and eleven of the 7". All have 10:1 Zambuto mirrors, and all now come standard with the built in power supply, secondary heat, and eyepiece heater that were originally optional.

Prices on the three sizes are: 7"--$2800, 10"--$3300, 14.5"--$5500 A pdf file of the order form and the price list is ttached. A deposit of 50% of the scope base price is required to secure a delivery position and hold the price.

Teleports are far more complex to build than other scopes. I make almost everything in them myself, and it just takes a long time. We have held off on the web site to limit the exposure but orders have still come faster than I could fill them. The site will go up in a couple of weeks at http://www.TeleportTelescopes.com. It seems likely that at that time I will be unable to accept further orders for a while and will go back to a waiting list mode as I did last year.

Six of the 14.5" are now in process for delivery mid-summer, all long sold. Next will be a larger run of the 10" for delivery about year end. All are spoken for, although deposits have not yet arrived for a couple of them. No schedule is officially established beyond that. Some folks have sent deposits for the 14.5" size anyway, so it appears I will do those next, probably to finish in late '03. It appears likely all will be reserved within the next week or two.

My wife Linda is a graphic artist and fellow engineer. She makes the Teleport shrouds and covers, and the brochures and manuals. An early version of the brochure and manual for the 10" are shown as examples of her work at http://www.annexstudios.com. Customer reviews are at
http://www.weatherman.com and http://www.cloudynights.com.

The 14.5" is an F/4.5, and weighs 68 lb. It is similar to the 10", but without an eyepiece drawer. This allows 4 section struts from the new Bogen 3249 monopod to minimize the closed height. At 19x20x28" closed, it will fit most auto seats. Eyepiece height at zenith is about 63".

The 14.5" features a 1.5" thick Zambuto mirror in a nine point cell. A fan in back cools the mirror, and dual fans in front pressurize a plenum with an air knife outlet that pushes a sheet of air across the primary front surface and out adjustable vents on the other side. The result is faster equilibration than any other 14.5" I know of.

The front surface cooling system design was inspired by Schlieren video studies done by Bryan Greer at Protostar, who supplies the diagonal assemblies for The Teleports. He first presented his studies at Table Mountain in '99, then in an article on page 125 of the September 2000 S&T. Further work in this area is reported by Alan Adler on page 132 of
the January 2002 S&T.

The 14.5" has a Rigel finder and Feather touch focuser, the finest 2" dual speed Crayford available. Pneumatic wheels go quickly on and off without tools, and a lock on the altitude axis makes it easy to wheel around, open or closed. It has a 12 volt (8 C-cells) built in power supply for the secondary, fans, and Kendrick eyepiece heater.

Besides being light, portable, and fast set up (about a minute), it is at the high end of the optical and mechanical performance range for an altazimuth Newtonian of this size. I can carry the 14.5" either open or closed with one hand, though that's only practical for a short distance.

I easily put it in and out of a vehicle alone, though smaller folks or those with a physical limitation probably should not.

The new 7" is an F/5.6 and weighs 18 pounds. It looks and feels more like a very compact 6". Closed, it is about 9 1/4" x 11" x 21". Like the 10" and 14.5", it pops up ready to go in about a minute. It has the same electrical package as the 10", a 1-1/4" version of the fast helical focuser, and the Rigel Finder. An optional folding stand is available, recommended except for shorter or sit-down observers. Linda also makes
a special padded case to allow carrying it on flights, if your airline's rules dujour so permit on the day you are flying.

A favorite trick at a star party is to stroll the observing field
leading the 14.5" on its wheels with one hand, carrying the 10" in the other, with the 7" in its case over my shoulder. Yes, it's showing off, but after hundreds of hours of design work, I just can't resist.

Encoder mounts are now available for all three sizes. Adding encoders to a Teleport is more difficult than with typical Dobs because of space limitations. The hardware is a bit involved, but it installs easiy (at the factory or as a field retrofit) and works very well. It adds less than an inch in height and only a few mm in width, so the standard cover still slips on. Teleports can be ordered with complete Sky Commander
systems or with just mounted encoders if you already have the computer. In either case, you will need the special encoder mounting hardware.

Some photos of the "Teleport Trio" are attached. On the porch in the background is the 360 lb., 12.5" GEM Newt I completed in 1991. Unused since '93 because of The Teleports, it's filled with wasp nests. Still, it served it's purpose by inspiring the first 10" Teleport in 1991.

It was designed to ride to star parties on the seat of my Gold Wing motorcycle. In 1992, it rode to Vermont for the Stellafane conference, where it won four awards. The following year, it was disqualified at Riverside as a "professional" or "commercial" design (thanks?). As it
turned out, the RTMC judges were right, and just saw farther into the future than I could. Full time work on a commercial version began in 1977 and the first 10" Teleports were delivered in 1999.

If you have other questions, You can also contact me by phone at 972-442-5456. Snail mail is received at 4030 N. Hwy 78, Wylie, TX 75098.

Clear skies,

Tom


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