For Something Completely Different

[cheesy]

One of my wife's friends is selling her place and moving to the Mississippi gulf coast, so she gave Mrs. C some plants from her beautiful garden for Mrs. C to transplant at our place.

We returned the containers she dropped the plants off in and had a short visit. As we were getting ready to leave, Julie(Mrs. C's gal pal), says to me, "I have something in the garage you might like." So, I'm thinking an old bike, some tools, or a lawn mower.

No. She holds up the big white cylinder and I'm thinking "Why would I want an old water heater?" She spins it around and there is an eye piece and the word 'Meade' printed beneath the eye piece. So, it's not an old hot water heater, but a 12" Meade Newtonian Reflector telescope. And it has a clock drive equatorial mount. This is something I'd sold my soul for as a kid.

The optics look okay but need a good cleaning. The tube, though, may need to be replaced. And a new stand made for the drive. My buddy in Finland who made the CDI for the CX also grinds his own telescope mirrors and told me that concrete forms for pilings make better replacement tubes than getting new.

So, a winter project.