Problems: What I would (did) do differently
1. It was too heavy for the airlines - The ultimate solution was a total rebuild.
The major problem with the scope
was the weight as illustrated by the problems during my Australian
trip. The closed box weighed 72 pounds while the airlines had (2000) a
70 pound limit. To solve this problem, I rebuilt the top of the rocker box
that is only used to close the packed scope up into a cube. The new box
was 8 pounds lighter than the old box because it was made with reinforced 1/4"
baltic birch instead of 3/4" and 1/2". Additionally, it was 1 inch shorter
than the original as that 1 inch was empty space anyway.
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The new box top is pictured here all glued together but before
covering with polyurethane.
The corners are all reinforced with a double layer of 1/4" ply. A double layer is also seen on the bottom edge (the top as seen in this upsidedown photo. Also a double layer reinforces the curved edges to strengthen the section which is used to bolt the top and bottom of the box together and to provide a strong region for the handles. |
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The other important change regarding weight was to dissassemble
the mirror cell, shown here installed in the mirror box, and ship part of
it in my suitcase and part of it in the cardboard
box used to ship the aluminum truss poles, sleeping bag, and
mattress. This saves another 8 pounds. The cost is
extra time reassembling it on the other end, probably about 20-30 minutes.
NOW THE CLOSED BOX WEIGHS ONLY 56 POUNDS! Which worked fine for my 2nd trip to Australia OK, OK - 2005 - NOW, THE #&*# AIRLINES LIMIT THE BOX WEIGHT TO 50 POUNDS FOR DOMESTIC FLIGHTS! SOLUTION: Remove the entire mirror cell and the altitude bearings and put them in my suitcase. NOW the empty boxes weigh 49 pounds. What a waste! If I was starting over, size and weight would be my first considerations. When I first looked at Ray Cash's solutions and saw he had to carry a 5 pound chunk of lead around, I thought "Just build a bigger box and move the altitude bearings higher and you won't have to carry lead." Now, I think he was right. At any rate, I am set to go through Miami on the way to a deserted Cay in the outislands of the Bahamas. Should be nice. |
2. The boxes needed either a screwdriver or a knife to open them. The TSA didn't like this. | |
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NOW -2006- The TSA is not liking the fact that these boxes are not easy to open and inspect. So, I got rid of the cardboard box for the truss tubes, etc. and made a box of 1/4" Baltic Birch for the truss tubes, disassembled mirror cell, altitude bearings, etc. etc. etc. It is 44" x 9" x 8.5" and is less than the 62" maximum allowed. Corner bracing of 1/2" wide triangular strips of poplar were glued in all corners. The length of the braces was usually as long as the corner. i.e. a strip runs the full length of the box in the bottom front and bottom back, sides etc. It weighs nearly (but not quite) 50 pounds packed.
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This box and the one below close securely with wing-turn catches from Nielsen Sessions (http://www.reliablehardware.com/). This is a
RH-2201-SS
Stainless Steel clasp with a They were about $6 and 50c each, respectively. |
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The catches open by flipping up the paddle and turning it counterclockwise, which extends the little catch (see left picture).
They seem very strong and unlikely to jiggle loose. |
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I also put on these catches on the scope box, replacing the aluminum plates that screwed on (necessitating the use of a screwdriver to open the box). For extra security I have a strap on this box as well as the truss tube box (not shown).
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So, hopefully, the two boxes will get me there and back.
2011 update - These boxes work well Bahamas '06 Costa Rica '07 Chile '11 n.b. I put 'legs' on the dissassembled top of the scope box and it works as a little table to hold eyepieces and maps. You can see this in the second picture on the Costa Rica trip. |
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