11.10.2021 Morning imaging. AR2882. Shutter drawer slide fitted.

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Monday 11th 50F, clear and bright with fast clouds arriving from the west. White sky around the sun.

10.50 An hour struggling with the PST etalon and focus again. I have double checked the bare focus and reset the etalon at 200mm inside. Not sure if it has helped much. 

Incursions into the AR umbra from the SW and NE.

I just had a wren chirping from the base board of the observation slit opening. It makes a change from wasps.

Much more cloud now and the seeing is turning to mush.

I haven't bothered to renew my annual sub to the ASCOM[AWR] garbage driver from Tigra software. ASCOM[AWR] has been denying the existence of COM3 for months now. 

The AWR[Technology] GOTO system has never managed a single GOTO in the the several years since I was ripped off by this long out of date, crap expenditure. I have wasted countless hours trying to get it to work since I installed it in 2017. The mounting alignment has been checked hundreds of times by various methods. It can't find the sun from a few degree away. Can't find the moon a few degrees away when centered and synced on the sun. 

 
I gave up on imaging with the seeing so soft. I am back to working on the shutters. I have them open and propped top and bottom. After lunch I shall remove the drawer slides from the dome zenith board. Followed by fitting the slides to the top boards of the shutters. It is all but impossible to reach the insides of the shutters. The top of the dome is so close and the shutters so low-profile.

The slides have to be adjusted in and out to reach the inner screw holes. The shutters are only two ribs and a couple of dozen brackets. So I have to remove the shutters completely again just to fit the slides. Once the slides are fully open the screw holes are clear on the heaviest section. 

I managed to get one complete shutter down without killing myself or damaging it. Then I removed the top board and played with levels while I was stretched right out across the top of the dome. 

After three attempts I finally had the drawer slide properly arranged. The top and bottom curves of the boards had to be parallel with the dome. While ensuring there was adequate clearance for the GRP cover over the zenith board. The images show how ludicrous the boards look when outboard. The never reach this far out because the ribs meet first.

Getting the heavy shutter back up again was rather fraught! Eventually I was able to fix the corner plate to hold the top board to the outer rib. I finally have a reference for shutter height at the bottom. More rib sawing is sure to follow.

16.00 I tried imaging again but the seeing was still hopeless mush. Lots of cloud coming now. With a much stronger wind than earlier. I gave up.

17.00 Exhausted and aching from a hard day's work. The second shutter slide will have to wait until tomorrow. At least I know the levels to use and what to do this time. Both shutters are closed and propped. I still have to decide how to join the shutter, center ribs to the top boards. Whatever brackets I use they have to reach right over the zenith board.

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