The pictures at
the right show how I mounted a Robo-Focus™ to a FSQ-106ED.
The left side focus knob is removed and
replaced with the Robo-Focus™ coupler. The Robo-Focus™
motor is mounted to the telescope with a custom made bracket.
The motor is connected to the telescope focus shaft with the
coupler.
The bracket is
fashioned from 0.065" 6061 aluminum sheet stock. To
construct the bracket, I first made a template from stiff
cardboard (a tablet back). I mounted the Robo-Focus™ motor
to the cardboard and then mounted the assembly to the coupler on
the telescope
focus shaft. I cut the cardboard to the correct size
and shape, noting the mounting hole locations and where the
bracket needed to bend to attach to the telescope finder
mounting location. The measurements were transferred from
the cardboard template to the sheet stock. I cut the piece
out with a milling machine and drilled the appropriate size
holes with a drill press. Two bends with a metal brake and
the bracket was complete. I mounted the Robo-Focus™ motor to the
bracket and then the bracket assembly to the telescope. Along the way I
made a few slight hand adjustments to the bends to ensure that the
motor is mounted 90 degrees to the focus shaft to
prevent any binding.
If you decide to
make your own bracket, I would advise taking the time to get
your template correct. Get an idea of how everything
mounts, the location and angle you need to bend in the bracket, and where to drill
the holes before starting on the final product. You may
wish to build some adjustment into the bracket (small slots
instead of drilled holes) in the event that a measurement is
slightly off.
