Unitron Satellite Scope Replica

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This is a semi-replica of a Unitron Satellite scope from the late 1950s. Those of you who are familiar with the scope will detect differences both large and small, but the overall proportions and appearance is quite similar. Here is another picture with the scope posed next to an original. This may help make the differences obvious…except for one big one. Can you see it?

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If you cannot spot the “large” difference you may want to watch my video here:

Construction Details

The technique I used to make the legs is what I call a pseudo-casting. I machine standard aluminum stock, assemble the pieces together and then add some filler material to give the finished product the look of a casting. Here are some shots of that:

I used a similar technique on the altitude-azimuth housing:

The rest of the build was pretty much straightforward telescope making. The diagonal is a large secondary mirror inside a square aluminum box (pretty much). Hope you enjoy my “little” semi-replica!