monolith accessories

Monolith Accessories

Like the Monolith itself, a great deal of thought has gone into the design and manufacturing of the accessories. The Monolith accessories are unique and designed to maximize Monoliths functionality. They are manufactured to the same exacting standards and high quality of the Monolith.

Full Index Adapter (FIA) 360 degree rotating pier adapter

One of the most important features of the Monolith is its leveling feature. Monolith can be setup up on a reasonably sloped or uneven ground and leveled without compromising stability. Traditionally, leveling with fixed height legs has been achieved by changing the spread of the legs or by placing a block of wood or a similar spacer under one or two legs. These methods of leveling, though functional, make the setup less stable. For example, if changing the spread of the legs is used for leveling, pulling one or two legs in closer to the body of the tripod/pier to level the mount which decreases the spread of the legs, hence the radius formed by the legs, while increasing the height of the mount/telescope and the overall center of gravity. In the case of using spacers to achieve a level state, the mount and telescope height is increased, again placing the center of gravity higher. Clearly, both methods compromise stability of the system.

Monolith also uses the spread of the legs, as well as the fine height adjustment build-into the feet, to level the mount. But what makes Monolith different is the fact that the leg opposite the carry handle has an extra 8 degrees of travel. On sloped or uneven ground, Monolith is positioned with the leg opposite the carry handle up the slope and the other two legs, fully spread, down the slope. The extra travel of the leg opposite the carry handle is then used for leveling the mount. This arrangement actually lowers the center of gravity while increasing the spread of the legs and the base radius, making the leveled setup far more stable than the leveling methods previously mentioned.

If setup up on sloped ground, or not in the right orientation, a simple bolt-on adapter plate will not suffice, because the Monolith and the mount atop could be positioned away from the north. Since most mounts only have a maximum of few degrees of adjustment in azimuth, the adapter plate will have to be detached and or the pier would have to be rotated to position the mount properly. This rotation, depending on the mount, the adapter plate and bolt positions, could be 120, 90, 60 degrees (or somewhere in between).

In similar circumstances, the full index adapter plate is designed to take full advantage of the leveling capability of the Monolith, without the limitations of a standard bolt-on adapter plate by providing 360 degrees of rotation without the need to be removed and repositioned. The rotation and repositioning can be quickly accomplished with or without the mount attached. The full index adapter plate is machined from a solid piece of 6061 T-6 aluminum and comes standard with a high quality compass and four highly accurate glass level vials (10 minutes accuracy). The vial levels are viewable from the top and from the side (the side view is useful while adjusting the height and leveling using the height adjustment built-into the feet). The full index ad pate is 0.5" to 0.8" thick depending on the mount and very solid. As with Monolith, it has structural ribbing to make the adapter lighter without sacrificing rigidity.

There are four basic full index adapters

Astro-Physics FIA - accepts both 900 and 1200 mounts
Software Bisque - accepts both Paramount ME and GT-1100s and AP 1200
Universal - accepts MI-250 and Losmandy MA, MAL adapters, Meade and Celectron SCTs.

Custom - custom machine to less common mounts such as 10Micron


Paramount ME	AP 1200/900	Universal

The Full Index Adapters can accept other mounts with the appropriate adapters. For example, with the Takahashi NJP adapter, one can mount the NJP on the Universal adapters.

Adapters available are:

Astro-Physics 400/600 and Mach1

Takahashi EM-10, EM-110, EM-200, NJP, EM-400 and EM-500

Losmandy GM-8, G11, HGH-200 and Titan

Celestron CGE

Other custom adapters

Extension

To gain additional height, an extension can be use. The extension are machine from solid billet of aluminum and mated to Monolith tube extension. The extension are extremely strong and rigid - using an extension does not compromise the strength and rigidity of Monolith, nor its quick vibration dampening abilities.

Extensions are available in 5", 9", 12, 14" and custom height. Extension can be stacked to gain even more height.

Please note; the Monolith pictures has a 5" white extension installed. We used white to make it distinguishable from Monolith. Extensions can be matching to the Monolith or different as specified.

Skate (commonly referred to as wheelie bar)

The convenience and the usefulness of the wheelie bar is immediately obvious. One can have the equipment mounted and ready for use but safely stored inside. When setting up for observing or CCD imaging, the equipment can be rolled out to the drive way or the patio and quickly readied for use. However, the traditional wheelie bar design has some inherent shortcomings. For example, because the tripod or pier ride on top of the wheelie bar, the overall height of the equipment is increased by as much as 8" with 5" wheels. This not only places the center of gravity higher, making the setup somewhat less stable, but it could cause a clearance problem when rolling the equipment through doors, especially with taller tripods or piers. For these reasons the Monolith skate was designed to add minimal height to the equipment.

The design of the skate itself is very simple yet solid. Three equal length bars with steps at each end (matching the angle and placement of Monolith legs and feet) are water jet cut from 3/8" cold rolled steel and are secured together end to end to form a triangle, placing the steps at the corners. The Monolith, with its legs extended, is placed on the skate with the feet situated at the base of the steps. The feet are then fastened to the skate to prevent slippage and to effectively make the skate and Monolith a single unit. Once assembled, the Monolith, mount, telescope and other attached equipment can be easily rolled to the observing location. Since the steps have a 5" drop, Monolith and the equipment attached are raised only 2.5" off the ground. This arrangement not only places the center of gravity lower, providing more stability, but also avoids clearance issues. Each corner has individual height adjustment via in house designed and machined jacks. The tallest jack has 5" height adjustment. The jacks completely raise the skate off the ground and off the wheels to provide a steady and solid platform for viewing or imaging.

An optional tray can be attached to the inner section of the skate to provide a large storage area. This storage area can be used for holding a battery or other accessories/equipment. Since the battery and other equipment can be loaded on the tray and rolled out with the skate, fewer trips back inside are necessary to setup the equipment for observing or CCD imaging.

The skate comes standard with 6" lockable polyurethane tread molded to steel wheels and is available in black or light gray/silver powder coat finish.

Paramount ME and Custom colors

The standard finish for the Monolith is black, or clear anodized (Type II anodizing with the exception of the moving parts such as the leg stays and the locking mechanism which are hard anodized/Type III).

Other colors or color schemes can be specified and are available as an option including Paramount ME color scheme (the actual Paramount ME color scheme has black leg stays unlike the green pictured here).

For extreme wear resistance and corrosion protection - hard anodizing is available for Monolith. The hard anodizing s only available in black (stainless steel parts such as the leg shaft, fine height adjustors and etc. will not be anodized and will have stainless steel finish).

Powder coating is available as and option

Shoes

Two types of shoes are available for Monolith. The standard spike shoes and the optional flat shoes. Both types have the build-in fine height adjustor for the feet ( 1" of adjustment). Like the Monolith, they are both fully CNC machined from 6061 and 17-4 stainless steel.

The flat shoes have 20 degree of swivel all the way around. The flat shoes are best for hard surfaces such as concrete or soft surfaces such as carpet or hardwood floors.

(Place your pointer to see the spike shoes)

Mud Pad

The mud pads are designed to provide a wide footing for the Monolith shoes on very soft ground and prevent sinking of the shoes in the soft ground. They are 6" in diameter and accept both the original Monolith shoes and the newer style convertible shoes.

Quick Release Knobs

Quick release knobs are available for both full index adapter and extensions. The quick release knobs release the screws, so no tools (Allan key) to loosen the FIA or to remove and re-install extensions. The quick release knobs are custom machine to match the quality and the aesthic of Monolith.

Available in black, red, clear or custom colors.

(Place your pointer to see the knobs on Monolith)

Monolith Semi-Rigid case

Designed for storage and light transportation (not for airline transportation or cargo shipment) - the Monolith soft case is made from water and mildew resistance heavy ballastic nylon with heavy duty zipper.

It is square shaped with the zipper located on top. The shape and the location of the zipper, makes inserting or removing Monolith much easier. The case is padded all the way around with 0.5" closed cell foam. In addition to the padding, each side has a plastic insert. The plastic insert maintains the shape of the case and provides additional protection especially against sharp objects. The case is made slightly oversized to accommodate additional 0.5" padding should anyone requires the additional padding. The PWT and Monolith logo are embroiled on top.

The case is navy in color with silver strap for accent. The carry handle is adjustable so that it can be adjusted for comfortable carrying of Monolith regardless of how tall one is. The carry handle also doubles as shoulder strap by adjusting the strap to its longest length. When needed the carry handle is completely removable. All stitching is either double stitching or heavy stitching. Though ballistic nylon is not water proof, it is water resistant so Monolith is protected against accidental spills.

The case has three pockets build-in for carrying other items such as tools, adapters and etc. One pocket is internal (gusseted pocket). The other two pockets are external with one locate at the end and one on the side. The end pocket is the largest and is zipper closable. The side pocket is located on the back side of the case and in between the straps. It is Velcro closable. The bottom of the case is additionally protected by a vinyl protection layer. The vinyl layer not only offers protection against scraps and tears of the ballistic nylon, but it protects against wet ground such as grass. The vinyl layer is attached to the case by Velcro and if ever damages, can be removed and replaced (or removed entirely if one should want to do so).

The case available in five lengths.

Short: Fits 24" to 30" lengths
Medium: Fits 33" to 36" length
Long: Fits 39" to 42" lengths
Xtra-Long: Fits 48" lengths

Monolith Hard Shell case (ATA Approved And Mil Spec.)

Offered in several construcion, they meet or exceed all requirements set for the by the Airline Transport Association. Also offered in Military Spec. cases that add to the durability of the ATA cases improved resistance to environmental extremes and anti reflection treatment of the hardware. In an age where checking in baggage poses inconveniences and some risks (carrying through crowded terminals, clearing security, making connecting flights) these cases provide the easy option of simply affixing a FedEx or another carrier's label on the outside and then sending the items so that they arrive at your destination, and at your convenience. Shipping via a professional carrier can reduce risks and provide full value insurance coverage that is often not provided by the passenger airlines. and custom made to fit

These cases are engineered so that the interiors may give way to one degree or another to cushion the shocks that might otherwise be transmitted to the content; this is accomplished by employing various densities of foams, in the appropriate layered thickness, calculated with the surface area and mass of the contents in mind. We are not aware of any instance where the contents of our case were damaged in transit.

The standard case construction includes wall of plywood covered in scrape resistant exterior coverings of heavy duty plastic, fiberglass or aluminum. However we also offer the choice of a honeycomb laminate wall construction consisting of lighter weight synthetic materials where wight savings are a concern. The corners and edges are all steel and aluminum reinforced. All interior seams are sealed with silicone and gasketed lid channels provide weather resitance. The lids may be made hinged to open in a conventional manner, or the lid may be designed to be removed completely. The linings are precision cut of foam with each layer varying in its degree of stiffness and thickness; this is a part of the engineering principle of cushioning the interior contents so that they do not become a projectile while in the case. The cases are made with corrosion and weather resistant components and can include carrying handles at convenient locations, retracting tie down loops, tamper resistant valence spanning latches, gasketing, and choices of combination locks. The spring loaded retracting handles are rubber covered, and we provide latch handles wide enough so that these are easily manipulated even by the gloved hand, and in all practical extremes of temperature. All hardware is of metal and is flush fit or recessed. Case corners may be either rounded or formed to facilitate stacking one case upon another. Stenciling is available so that the cases may bear on their exterior the shippers address or contact information.

All cases are custom made to order. Available not only for Monolith and Pinnacle but many other equipment such as telescopes, mounts and etc.

For ordering and information, please contact Company Seven.