Observatory
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This is the site before construction - a sloping knob of Taconic Mountain ledge. Looking south, and the N-S line is visible.

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Looking north.

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Also north. To the west, the ledge drops 50-70 feet.

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Sonotube footings for the building have been placed by excavating the till 6" to 2' to ledge.

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Six footings support the main beams for the building, and two support the outriggers that carry the roof in the open position. Looking south.

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Looking north, in the direction to which the roof will roll off.

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Formwork is up for the telescope pier - a 3' x 3' footing supporting an 18" square pier. In hindsight I would have made the footing bigger. We sunk 6-8 lengths of 1/2" rebar into the ledge.

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Rebar drilled into ledge for the building footings. The contractor relied on the concrete poured into the tube to secure the rebar into the ledge. Bad idea: they should have been grouted or (better) expoxied in place.

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Immediately after the pour. The contractor hand-mixed about 85 bags of concrete mix in all. The mounting bolts and template for the LeSueuer Astro-Pier have been placed into into the wet concrete.

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We sunk pairs of 1/2" stainless threaded rod into all the building footings to secure brackets that hold down the main beams.

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Simpson Strong-Tie brackets designed to support a 4"x4" post were used for the outrigger footings.

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Formwork is off and the footing has been backfilled.

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The mounting bolts for the pier are at what will be the floor level of the observing room.

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If I'd done it myself, I would have kept better dimensional tolerance. We had to "spring" the main beams by an inch or so because of inaccurate N/S alignment of the footings and anchor bolts. Functionally not a problem, just annoying.

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Looking south along the N/S line after completion of the footings and pier.

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Without the trusty John Deere tractor, moving supplies from road and house (350' away) would have been a lot harder.