The Philosophy was to simply make a large Aperture Telescope as light as possible so that one person can handle it.  The total weight was 105 pounds, with the heaviest piece 72 pounds, that being the Cell/Mirror combination.  The Pyramid Spider was to get the Secondary high enough so the focuser is above the Cage Ring, the bottom of the Cage was flat for nesting.  

The material used was Baltic Birch with an epoxy coating.  The outside of the Cage Ring was lined with an aluminum ring on the outside and a partial ring on the inside to give the Focuser additional support.  The Cell is an Astro Systems Baltic Birch with numerous holes and aluminum angle under and an Aluminum Strap wrapped around the rear outside to the Cell.  The trusses are made from foam filled 3/4 inch Graphite tubing and the Spider is made from Aluminum and Composite plates.  The tubing and plates were supplied by  Aerospace Composite Products.  A flex board with Cam Follower Bearings is the Rocker that sits on a heavy Ground Base.  The Base is hubbless to permit clearance as the Telescope rotates to the horizon.  The Primary Mirror was supplied by Swayze Optical. 

This Telescope was sold in March of 2009 to make way for the 20 inch.

Unfortunately, this Telescopes never saw first light.  In fact, they were roughly assembled only once for these photographs.  These were prototypes for a possible production Telescope.  The "Single Arm Fork" (left)) was made of a cast aluminum and the "Broken Arm Fork" (right) was out of welded plate aluminum. 

In college, I decided that I needed a more portable Telescope then the 8 inch f/7.2.
I contemplated building a new short focus 8 inch Telescope, but I did not want to make what would likely be a back-words move in performance.  So I opted for a short focus 10 inch f/5 instead and sold the 8 inch.  The Mirror was made by Coulter Optical.   I was fascinated by an article is Sky & Telescope that discussed different Equatorial Mountings.  It spoke highly of the "Torque Tube" design. 

 This was the mount that I choose to build.  This design placed the counterweight to the rear of the mount, thereby removing it as an encumbrance to the observer.  This is a design Boller & Chivens chose for their research telescopes.  The long Right Ascension (RA) Axis housing replaced the pedestal.   The mounting was built out of iron plumbing pipe.  The Telescope weighed 140 pounds.  The telescope's 4  long foot tube was a portability plus.

This was my first "Home Built" Telescope.  The decision to build it came when a friend talked me into purchasing his an 8 inch Edmund Scientific Mirror Blank and Cell for $25.00.  Until then, I was saving for a 6 inch Dynascope.   I was attracted to the 80% light gain of an 8 inch over a 6.   For $70 Cave Optical completed the mirror.  I joined the Eugene Astronomical Society (EAS) to acquire help and confidence to complete the project.  Charles Coffey graciously donated his time on the project.    Jerry Pennigore, EAS Member , nearly shattered my confidence as he having numerous problems building his 8 inch.   But his Scope was "very" complex.

The 8 inch Telescope was completed in 1972.  At the time, it, Jerry's and the club owned Telescope, were the largest in the EAS.  The mounting was made of the high tech material of the day, iron plumbing pipe.  A 3 inch “sanitary Y” was used to achieve the latitude.  The Telescope weighed 135 lbs.

GOT TO SAY IT; If I could go back in time and re-do this scope, I would remove that guide scope, pushing the balance forward, and cut the pedestal height in half and shorten the Declination Axis.