DobSTUFF - Testimonials

Scopes and Testimonials:

I hope things have been well for you over the pas couple of months. I'm very happy to say I've finally finished the telescope and took it out last night for the first time. I think I may hold the record for the longest time taken to build one of your kits!

It's a marvelous scope and I could not be happier. Considering I raced to finish it only hours before I left to go observing, it performed very well. I'm going to tweak it a bit over the next couple of week and I'm sure it will get even better. Your instructions were clear, the kit went together easily, and it was simple to breakdown, transport and setup.

As promised attached are a few pictures of the finished kit. I'll work on some better ones next time I take the scope out. I went with a dark grey-black stain and I'm not sure the pictures do it justice. I think it's beautiful, despite my limited finishing skills. These pictures are from the Astronomical Society of Victory December star party, and there were a number of people interested in the scope. A few people recognized it as one of your kits, and it received quite a number of compliments for it's unusual design and clean aesthetic!

Thank you again for the kit and for all of your help.

My dob kit from Dennis surpassed my expectations. Every piece was beautifully & accurately cut from top-grade Baltic birch & went together just as shown in the directions. This kit reduced the weight compared to the original 12.5" Discovery Dob by at least 30#, plus the ETT feature allows me to easily slide it into our mini-van, taking up less than half the space occupied before. I'm convinced the "minimalist" Dob design (3-tube) is a proven design approach, and I would recommend Dennis' kits to anyone. Dennis is just a quick email away to answer any questions during assembly, as well.

Greg.

"Hi Dennis, I received the 18 point cell and I wanted to thank you for your interest and help with my project. The quality of the cell is excellent and I am delighted with your services.

Very Best Regards,

Brian, Vineland, New Jersey"

A 12" F5 kit delivered to Pete in Mt. Shasta California. It so happens that Pete's father-in-law is noted physicist Dr. Freeman Dyson. During a trip to his son-in-law's home in Mt. Shasta, Dr. Dyson assisted Pete and Pete's children assemble a 12" dobstuff kit. Here's what they had to say about the telescope:

"This is a brilliant design, fun to put together, easy to carry around, lovely to use. Freeman Dyson"

"And I will add, having ventured into finish carpentry, what a pleasure it was to have such a thoughtful design, precise measurements, and top quality materials.
Peter "

Click here for more pictures.

(Mt. Shasta California, January 2011).

"Well, nobody is awake in my house, so I'll share my excitement with the CN reflector forum. I've been working on putting together a dobstuff kit for my 8" f/6 Wessling primary, and finally had a clear night and some free time to cut the struts and test it out under the stars tonight. I've still got a little fine-tuning to do, but at least I was able to bring it to focus and test out some eyepieces. It's going to be a great scope -- I'm very pleased.

Dennis Steele at dobstuff deserves a major "shout out." Working with him was an absolute pleasure. Everything about his work product is first-rate, and he's a helluva nice guy, too. He went above and beyond to help me with this project. I give him the highest possible recommendation. Thanks, Dennis!

Brian"

Kit completed and shipped November 2009.

"Dennis, here is the 'finished' scope. ... Thanks for such a great quality kit. You can tell that a lot of thought and engineering went in to the design. I can't wait to bring this to a star party..."

Read the full text of Bob's comments and see more pictures here.

Completed November 2009

Allow me to formally thank you for building me such a beautiful scope. My wife thinks it goes perfectly with our hardwood floors. It's a telescope that thinks it's a fine piece of furniture. You've significantly reduced both the weight and footprint of the original telescope. Set up time is a breeze. I can easily pick up the entire truss/mirror box structure in 1 piece. It's light-weight yet rigid and the motions are buttery smooth.

Thank you again Dennis. I look forward to many years of use with this beautiful scope.

16" F4.5 for Carl Ching in Sunnyvale, Ca.,. It has a Moonlite focuser, Protostar spider and secondary and a Telrad base. Carl lives nearby and was able to help build most of his telescope himself. 12/23/07. Here's a link to Carl working on his own scope in my shop. Here's what Carl has to say about his scope:

" Dennis was great to work with. His patience working with me was amazing considering I had not been in a woodshop class since my junior high school days. While I did not put this telescope together entirely by myself, I'm nevertheless grateful for his patience and assistance for I now have my LAST telescope. (It also helps Dennis & I have been friends for a long time...) Anybody wants to put together a really great telescope at a very reasonable cost, I strongly recommend going with Dennis at www.Dobstuff.com."

A 13 Inch F4.5 (a Discovery mirror) made for Joe in Northern California. It uses a Moonlite focuser and Destiny curved vane spider. November 2007.

15" F5 Discovery Make-over for Jim Falls, September 2007. Here's a comment from Jim from Pleasanton California:

"Dennis is terrific to work with, and his craftsmanship is superb. His elegant design has allowed me to significantly lower the overall weight of the scope, while preserving excellent imaging quality. Because of Dennis’ efforts, I expect to be using my scope for many years to come. "

Greg in Visalia CA. and a Coulter 13.1" f4.5 makeover kit. Greg's well-appointed wood shop is something to envy! February 2008. Left photo shows Greg in his shop with the kit. The right photo is the finished product. A beautiful job assembling one of our kits.

Here's what Greg had to say about assembling our kit.

A 12.5" f5 with digital setting circle stalk for Stuart in Gardner Kansas. It has a University Optics mirror cell, a Moonlite 2-speed focuser and a Destiny curved vane spider. I've also mounted the encoder installation kit on this scope.

Completed July 2008.

"The 10" F4.5 scope I received from you is better than I expected. Quality woodwork, smooth motions, and very light weight. I can actually carry the tube assembly easily with one hand, something I've never been able to do with any other scope of this size. I look forward to many nights of observing. Thanks again for a great product."

John in Wooster, Ohio, July 2008

A 6" f8.3 for Dean in Nashville, TN. A small telescope like this, with a light mirror, balances a bit more toward the center of the OTA, so the rocker box needs to be made a bit higher. The scope is very stable and exhibits no vibrations.

March 2008.

A mirror cell for a 10" f4.5 Newtonian. The cell has an insert underneath in which a small counterweight can be added or removed. Depending on the need, 1.25 or 2.5 pounds can be added to the rear of the cell without effecting the mirror in any way.

10" f4.7 for Tom in Cambridge MA. This scope includes "travel struts", and makes into a 17" tall assembly. Features a Moonlite focuser and Novak mirror cell.

Completed 02/08.