[Updated] Bring your Heritage to the Moon - Final Version

[Update 2022-11] Bug fixes, optimization and improvements : the true Finale version

• Material change : the PolyCarbonate Carbon Fiber(PC-CF) from Prusament is awesome for the spider support !
• Secondary support now fits the original cap and don't hurt the base (and a lot of others details fixed)
• new accessories : fan enclosure, bathinov …
• reduced supports on many parts
• total print time reduced to 60h, total plastic use reduced to 600gr
• special “Halloween Edition”

Ah, the Sky-Watcher 130 Heritage !

Perhaps one of the most inquired about telescopes by beginners, thanks to its affordable price, and the one about which the regulars have the most mixed opinions because of its technical limitations.

Its mirror is very good (for this price range, let’s be reasonable here), the general design is well thought out and it’s very compact and easy to carry.

But then, its wobbly eyepiece holder, its single branch spider, its floating mechanics, all these constitute drawbacks when you want to dabble into astronomy under proper conditions.

So, how do you turn this inexpensive little telescope into a real war machine?

The adventure began during the Great Lockdown in Spring 2020. I spent the first few days catching up on Netflix (like everyone else) and then I started chasing my tail. Like everyone else. I had to build something, anything! And then, I stumbled upon this: my little telescope, which I have used only a handful of times to observe the Moon and Saturn and which had been collecting dust in a closet since last summer.

When I visited various astronomy online boards, little did I know that I was actually sticking my finger into a black hole that will end up swallowing me for nearly 18 months. Being a total newbie, I learned things the hard way, looking for a solution to each and every problem that I encountered, only to find out that someone else had already brought it up and resolved long before.

A few (hundreds) of hours later and there I was, with a more or less functional first version. It is then that I discovered the Stellina: a fully automated “2.0” telescope, incredibly compact and devilishly powerful … with a hefty tag price near €4,000.

And this was my eureka moment: it was what I wanted to build, even though I didn’t know it at the time! Only, I wanted a DIY version that would be more efficient and above all much cheaper (although a little less plug-and-play, I have to admit).

I was back to the drawing board, with (many) visits to the workshop and the purchase of a 3D printer. In the meantime, I spent the winter on a small side project (namely a homemade camera with a full redesign of the electronic board), and, by the end of spring 2021, the first version of the Mark III was released. The last tweaks took place during the summer and the project is currently in its final stage.

Here is the tutorial, it will allow you to build this mod all by yourself from the off-the-shelf tube and a handful of parts.

On the budget side, you’ll spend some €250 for the supplies and various materials (excluding tools, of course, and electronics, see step 3). Concerning the 3D printed parts, you’re looking at almost 90 hours of printing with your trusty printer, and just under 1 kg of filament.

And if you don’t have the telescope yet, you’ll find it here for instance : PierroAstro - Optique Unterlinden - AstroShop

Complete how-to on Instructables