The question probably shouldn't be "is it less expensive" but "is it a better value".
The general sentiment behind these 3d printed telescopes are that you'd generally get better quality and potentially better QoL features at the same cost of buying some commercially available options.
From the Hadley project
>The mission here is to make an attractive alternative to the shoddy, hard to use "hobby-killer" scopes in the $100-200 range.
I need to build a Dobson mount for my old homemade 8" F 5.5 Newton ... Why doesnt have a mount ? Well, it had 2 mounts in the past. It was built by my father, and we moved to another house, we need to ditch the mount. I managed to save the tube and the parts, and lately built an adapter to be attached to an EQ6 mount that I was allowed to use with a university astronomical association.
Some of the best telescope buying advice I was ever given was to only buy a scope as big as you can carry/setup by yourself. It's hard to find time in one's schedule to take a scope somewhere, but it can be next to impossible to align schedules with another person. At least for a scope meant to take somewhere. Most people don't have a permanent setup though, so it's a pretty decent thing to consider.
The weight is only part of the equation, but also consider if it takes more than two hands to assemble.
yehoshuapw | a month ago
shamaz65 | a month ago
BadJo0Jo0 | a month ago
The general sentiment behind these 3d printed telescopes are that you'd generally get better quality and potentially better QoL features at the same cost of buying some commercially available options.
From the Hadley project
>The mission here is to make an attractive alternative to the shoddy, hard to use "hobby-killer" scopes in the $100-200 range.
muyuu | a month ago
labcomputer | a month ago
People have been making telescopes with this method before 3D printing existed. They just used something else for all the little dodads.
chantepierre | a month ago
https://www.printables.com/model/1325533-smallest-telescope-...
Wallace, my 6” f/2.8 :
https://www.printables.com/model/997327-wallace-6-f28-telesc...
And my tiny but mighty 3” f/4 : https://www.printables.com/model/1475113-76300-pocket-dobson
Wallace is built, but Gromit, a 16.5” F/3, is under progress. Working on the mirror and CAD :)
Zardoz84 | a month ago
shamaz65 | a month ago
TehCorwiz | a month ago
JKCalhoun | a month ago
dylan604 | a month ago
[OP] big_Brain69 | a month ago
mongol | a month ago
ftchd | a month ago
[OP] big_Brain69 | a month ago
[OP] big_Brain69 | a month ago
archerjax | a month ago
dylan604 | a month ago
I like this, but...
Some of the best telescope buying advice I was ever given was to only buy a scope as big as you can carry/setup by yourself. It's hard to find time in one's schedule to take a scope somewhere, but it can be next to impossible to align schedules with another person. At least for a scope meant to take somewhere. Most people don't have a permanent setup though, so it's a pretty decent thing to consider.
The weight is only part of the equation, but also consider if it takes more than two hands to assemble.
CubicalOrange | a month ago
What's the next upgrade?