These plans are for a homemade telescope that will be cheap to build.
Making distant objects appear close by looking through pieces of curved glass is always thrilling, but the enjoyment is increased when you peer through a telescope that you yourself have made.
The cost of making a telescope is especially low now because war-surplus stocks of perfect and chipped-edge lenses and prisms are available at low prices. You can make a good scope for as little as one dollar, and a really good terrestrial telescope for only three to five dollars for lenses.
Galilean telescope: This scope is different from all others in that it has a negative lens for an eyepiece. Good features are simple construction, a clear, crisp field and an upright image. The one poor feature is that the field of view is small and decreases rapidly with increases magnification. Hence, as made today, Galilean telescopes usually are confined to 6X or less.
A typical astronomical telescope: Typical construction of a simple astronomical telescope is shown in Figs. 20, 21 and 22. This has a 2-in. diameter objective and the focal length is 36 in. A draw tube is used for rough focusing; critical focusing is done with a 40-pitch threaded eyepiece. The eyepiece is a Ramsden....
