Making & Enjoying Telescopes: 6 Complete Projects & A Stargazer's Guide [Hardcover]

Robert Miller (Author), Kenneth Wilson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1995

This instruction book shows how to make home-made telescopes. It has six different sizes and styles, from a small hand-held device to a large mounted telescope. All are made with readily-available, inexpensive materials, and will provide information on stars, comets, eclipses and constellations, and other phenomena. The authors claim that these telescopes are far better than the instruments used in Galileo's or Newton's time. The guide is free of cumbersome technical jargon, and should be accessible to anyone interested in understanding the skies. The book also traces the development of the telescope, and teaches the principles and variations of design, basic construction techniques and materials. It shows how to repair and adapt older telescopes and how to take photographs through a telescope.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ian Wilson was born in London in 1941 and educated at Emanuel School, Wandsworth, and Magdalene College, Oxford, where he graduated in History in 1963. His previous books include The Turin Shroud, which became a worldwide bestseller when published in 1978 and Jesus: The Evidence (1984), a companion to the major three part TV series of the same name and another bestseller. The Blood and the Shroud was published in 1998. His biography of Shakespeare, Shakespeare: The Evidence was published in 1993 and The Bible is History in 1999. All of his books have attracted critical acclaim. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Sterling Publishing Co. Inc.; First edition. edition (October 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806912774
• ISBN-13: 978-0806912776
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,371,136 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Complex but essential for INTERMEDIATE ATM'ers, August 11, 1999

By 

Rob Simmons ( [e-mail] ) (Lookout Mountain, Tn) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Making & Enjoying Telescopes: 6 Complete Projects & A Stargazer's Guide (Paperback)

I have to say at first i was dissapointed. I bought this book as a beginer telescope maker and i had to put it away. Then i bought Richard Berry's book and was enlightened. This is not to say that i don't like this book. If you have some experience with tools and wood i would suggest this book first. Or if you have made at least one telescope before, i would also suggest this book. Robert Miller & Wilson have many insights and examples but in many places they leave you on your own. Fortunately i have a degree in physics and was able to do fine on my own. One of my favoriate scopes was built using 3 of his plans mixed together. If you have a basic idea or have made scopes before... this is the best book to buy. If you have never made a scope before and are just getting into this field of astronomy, do yourself a favor and get Richard Berry's book.. (also here on amazon.com) But i promise that if you buy this book later on, you will be happy. If you buy it now,you will get frustrated. What Robert Miller & Wilson did teach me was to, above all, enjoy the scope you make!!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well worth the price, July 30, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Making & Enjoying Telescopes: 6 Complete Projects & A Stargazer's Guide (Hardcover)

This book is very imformative and useful to the beginning telescope maker. It does not describe mirror grinding or optical testing but very thoroughly explains construction, design, and tips for making 10 inch or less telescopes

5.0 out of 5 stars A very nice and useful book., December 11, 2009

By 

Charles Hall (Raleigh, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Making & Enjoying Telescopes: 6 Complete Projects & A Stargazer's Guide (Paperback)

I've been reading a lot of older books on telescope making, and this is one of the better ones. It is new enough, 1995, to avoid wasting time on making your own mirror. It focuses on how to use telescopes, basic principles, and general plans for 6 telescopes with extensive notes on a 7th. It's especially nice that the author is not an expert woodworker and the skill level required to build these scopes appears to be within the reach of an average person.

The projects described are as follows:

- Star tracker mount for a camera

- A simple 4-1/4" reflector with a PVC tube

- A 4-1/4" reflector with a wooden tube

- A 6-inch Equatorial mounted reflector

- An 8-inch f/5 reflector

- A 10" Dobsonian

And extensive notes and photos of a portable 8" Dobsonian using only two aluminum struts instead of a 8-tube truss or solid tube. If you're thinking of building a telescope, this book is well worth a look.