Green Laser Pointer Mount For Your Telescope

Greetings!
This is my first instructable. I hope it goes well.

As an avid astrnomer on a very tight budget, I have to make do with what I have. I star hop to my targets and have no motorization on my scope. But I have found an easy way to shorten the time it takes to reach my targets. I have attached my green laser pointer to my scope and use it to aim my scope.

If you have visited a star party or sidewalk astronomy session you may have seen how wonderful these green lasers are at pointing out the wonders of the night sky. It seemed only natural to put it on my scope. This instructable will tell you how I did it.

Step 1: Tools and Materials

Ok, Heres what you need:

Strong Magnet(s) big enough and strong enough to hold your laser stable on your telescope. (I used a big speaker magnet but a rare earth magnet should work as well.)
1/4" aluminum U channel about 6 inches long
sheet tin or steel (as long as it's magnetic)
1/8" wall aluminum angle with 1" sides
brass strip 1/2" wide
#4-40 allen screw about 3/4" long
#2-56 wing nut
#2 nylon washer
#2-26 steel nut
#2-56 brass nut
#2-56 machine screw (2)
green laser pointer

tools:

hack saw
drill and bits
epoxy glue
pliers
soldering iron
4-40 tap

Comments

[kelseymh]

You haven't provided any guidance on what kind of laser pointer to use with your mount, nor have you indicated any knowledge or understanding of the legal limitations on pointers which can be used in this manner.

While your build is technically excellent, the lack of any recognition of the legal and safety issues involved raise concerns about how it could be inadvertently misused by people who are not themselves aware of those issues.

You should read the following (and the referenced links).

http://www.laserpointersafety.com/laser-hazards_aircraft/laser-hazards_aircraft.html

[georgeATM]

Kelsey: indeed, safety is very important with all lasers. I only specified a green laser to be used because the wattage and brand can,change with equal effectiveness. As far as misuse, anyone who would misuse it will likely not get much advantage using this mount.

[meeware]

I've tried a similar though less elegant project recently, and ended up getting a £10 mount of the internets when I hit a couple of snags- firstly, my scope isn't ferrous, so I needed to add a metal plate to stick the finder onto, and the magnets didn't have as reliable an attachment, so would easily be knocked and require a recalibration. Secondly (and also magnet related) I found it very difficult to glue to rare earth magnets- granted I tried cyano acrylics, but the little blighters just wouldn't stick. I de greassed, I sanded, I dremelled to rough up the surface, but I have found rare earths to be really hard to work with.
I'll probably give this another go though, as I have a teeny 76m reflector that I fancy lasering up.

[gmartin2000]

I'm a little late to the party but having done something similar, I can say that the 5mw lasers sold by astronomy outlets are recommended. See links below.

Keep the lasers warm. Below about 50 degrees f they fail. When its cool out, I keep mine warm in my breast pocket till I need it.

Alignment is too easy: The beam can be seen in a low power eyepiece so there is no need to find a star or object on the horizon like you would need for a typical optical finder. Loosen the mounting/alignment screws of the holder and slowly move the laser around. It will pass through the field of view and you can lock it down. A bit tricky till you get the hang of it.


here are a couple of links:
http://tinyurl.com/laserpointersafety
http://tinyurl.com/Astroscan-laser-finder

[chichimus]

this is just what I am planning to do. I have a small Dobson that is a pain to orient. Thanks for the ideas.

[Dannne11]

Warm batteries are dying batteries :D

[georgeATM]

Cold batteries too. Its not like I am keeping them "warm", just "less cold"

[thirtyfivefox]

Is this really that effective for aiming a telescope? It would be crazy difficult to zero a laser for the huge distances you would have to cross.... especially if you are using a radio tower. The geometry doesn't make sense. I also wouldn't recommend putting a laser in the sky over 15mw... unless you want to start popping up on DHS and FDA blotters... pilots report lasers in flight increasingly and that stuff gets reported around. (still high altitude aircraft should be fine as long as you stay under 15mw, most off the shelf is less than 5mw)... also check a map of where ever you set up to make sure you are not near an municipal airport or something. Also I would recommend fashioning a momentary on push button switch on a wire lead that could be used to remotely turn the laser on and off from somewhere that wont affect alignment. That way you can turn it on when you need it and it stays off when you don't! like one of those camera shutter release buttons you see on high end photo setups...

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/22/us/22lasers.html

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/01/06/laser_man_charged/ (not the most reliable source but meh... looks like the guardian..)

[georgeATM]

Yes this is good for aiming a telescope. The alignment suggestion is workable & good for alignment. The beam can be seen and due to perspective it appears to end in a point. My laser is spec'd for just shy of two mile range. there is no way to actually hit a distant tower(much less anything outside of the atmosphere) so the beam is all that is being used for alignment.
Again, lasers and planes dont mix. If you are responsible, it wont be a problem. I only leave the laser on long enough to aim my scope. For heavy handed individuals, a remote switch is an excellent idea.

[dimtick]

I really love this. gonna have to make one for my scope.
one question....How do you align the laser once you have in mounted to your scope? You kind of explain it, but I didn't understand it.

[georgeATM]

The key to alignment is simply making sure your scope and laser are pointed at the same thing. A radio tower in the distance is a good example. The mount is very intuitive to align by moving it left-right, then adjusting it up-down. I hope you complete one to see how simple it really is.

[dimtick]

that makes sense. I'll let you know how it goes.
I have always used the moon to align the spotting scope. Didn't seem like that would work with the laser. Using something "local" like a radio tower makes a lot more sense.