AstroTuffTrUK pier review

[TerryMcK]

I have had my TuffTrUK for a few months now and only recently been able to have it functioning at night time due to the inclement UK weather and lack of astro dark. I have been using it during the day with my dual solar rig though.

So I can now review this fine piece of equipment.

 

The TrUK is manufactured from fully welded heavy gauge rectangular rolled steel tubing. The wall thickness is 3mm and sizes are 60x 40mm.  

 

The pier itself is made 5mm thick walled pier tube 168mm in diameter. Some photos below whilst being made in the workshop.

 

 

 

 

The whole of the welded TrUK is powder coated to the colour of your choice. In my case a very nice red colour. I specified a larger size equipment tray as used on the larger pier trunks and the frame was made slightly longer to accommodate.

 

 

All fittings are stainless steel and the wheels are 10” diameter pneumatic tyres. The tray has a very nice rubber mat and there is a quick release detachable handle bar.

 

 

As the TrUKs are hand made you can speak with Lee and Matt to customise the TrUK to your requirements as I did. The ordering process is very simple and Lee keeps you abreast of progress sending pictures from the workshop during the build. Delivery is excellent Lee and Matt delivered it to my house and set it up.

 

 

I specified a pier adapter for my Skywatcher mount. The one chosen was the Altair Astro Skywatcher Celestron & iOptron Pier Adapter https://www.altairastro.com/skywatcher-celestron--ioptron-pier-adapter-442-p.asp

 

This came fitted to the pier and also supplied were two hand bolts of different thread size to fit the Skywatcher mount. Lee came equipped and was ready to alter the length of the hand bolt but as it happened this was not necessary in my case.

 

In use the principle is to roll it to your designated position and align it north south. Then the three jack bolts can be extended to take the TrUK off its wheels. Three hard rubber spreader pads can be purchased to assist. The jack bolts are then locked into position by screwing down some hand operated locking nuts.

 

 

All extremely simple but effective. The whole rig then becomes ultra stable and behaves like a fixed pier. The mass of the Mini 500 TrUK is around 35kg and when loaded with my largest rig I estimate total mass is around 70kg. 

 

Lee and Matt have had the TrUKs tested to 1048kg (2310lbs) at which point the frame would deflect to 3mm but return back to normal when the mass was removed. Also the TrUKs have been further tested to 500kg to ensure that the wheels, bearings could be moved around without issue, They have a video on their website showing this. Obviously most astro rigs are a lot lighter than 500kg and this shows the TrUKs are well made and capable.

 

I chose the Mini TrUK as it has been designed to pass through a standard doorway. So it can be rolled out of my workshop straight into the yard without having to go through the large doors. It is ultra easy to push, pull and steer this can even be done with a single finger. Maintenance is simply check/inflate the tyres to 30psi on a weekly basis. I found that the tyres have kept pressure well. AstroTuffTrUK also supply a puncture repair outfit if you are unfortunate enough to get a flat. The wheels are split rim with stainless screws so making it easy to remove the tyres without any tyre irons. The inflators are also stainless steel with fancy stainless caps on. The silver against red rims look great.

 

The quick release handle also has a braking bar that applies pressure to the tyres on the steering dolly. Simply let the weight of the bar drop down and the stainless steel bar then stops the wheels moving. Great if you are on a slight slope like me. Then you can jack the TrUK up knowing it won’t slip down the slope.

 

 

You can the remove the handle using the quick release plunger. Inserting the handle is even easier as it just pushes in and the plunger clicks into place automatically. This part of the handle is stainless steel so no worries about powder coating wearing off.

 

 

The TrUK has the name and logo of AstroTuffTrUK applied and there is also a North arrow. There are also a number of luminescent circles fitted to enable you to see the TrUK extremities and jack screws in dark sites.

All in all these TrUKs are top quality, hand built like a Rolls Royce and I’m sure will last a lifetime.

 

My modifications and additions.

As I nearly always image from the same spot in the yard, although the TrUK has enabled me to wheel the astro rig to anywhere in the grounds, I decided to make an adjustable pier top plate out of some 6mm thick mild steel circular plates. Drilling 4 holes in each for M12 stainless steel studding and a centre hole to accommodate the mount hand bolt.

 

 

I finished it with red Hammerite paint, admittedly not as good as powder coat, to match the TrUK. On my first outing I aligned the pier and then levelled the top plate. The mount was attached and I did my first polar alignment. Then I marked to floor with unobtrusive red paint marks.

To aid reproducibility I also fitted a couple of cheap magnetically attached laser levellers, one at the front and the other at the rear, pointing the laser beams downwards. Then the floor was marked with red paint where the laser dots fell. So when a session has been done the TrUK can be wheeled away. Next time the TrUK can be brought out and aligned with the red dots and the top plate is checked for level. There is enough room to get a spirit level on and align in two directions. Levelling is done with the TrUKs jacking screws. You still have to polar align but it is only a fraction away. Much easier than a tripod.

 

I have also fitted an all sky camera, again attached with magnets, to capture the sky during a session. Since the photo was taken I have recently wrapped the camera with a dew band. No need for a dome housing.

 

 

 

The entire rig has been prewired and cable managed to the “observatory in a box OIAB” on the accessory tray. I’ve had derivatives of this box ever since i started astrophotography and it comprises:

• 13.8v power supply and Anderson PowerPole connectors
• Ethernet switch
• Mele Quieter 3 acquisition computer running Windows 11 and NINA
• Adjustable cooling fan for those hot summer days. It can be turned off for night sessions.
• Raspberry Pi4 8GB for the allsky camera
• Interface box for the rain detector
• 4 way mains connector.

 

 

 

Shown above is the extract fan with mesh filter. There is an opposing hole on the other side of the box again with a mesh filter to prevent insect egress creating a cross flow of air over the heat generating electronics inside. The box is a 18L weatherproof storage box with a clip on lid. I have made an identical one for the portable rig as I’m not interested in the ASIAir which locks you into ZWO.

 

Changing scopes could not be easier as it is just unplugging the 12v feed, the USB3 cable and unplugging the dew strips from the externally mounted dew control box. then remove from the mount .

 

There are just two cables that emerge from the OIAB; ethernet and mains. So connection to the outside world is simple. I also have outdoor weather proof ethernet and mains sockets mounted to the external wall of the workshop. Setup times have improved markedly since acquiring the TrUK.

 

I first met Lee and Matt at PAS2024 where they were displaying their products. I knew straight away that a Mini 500 was for me as I had struggled for years with a tripod and a fixed pier in an observatory was off the cards due to locational problems. If you are interested head over to https://www.astrotufftruk.com for more details.

 

 

 

[Astro-Nutz]

Wow !!!! Hi Terry, this is an outstanding review, and we are forever in your debt for taking the time to write it.

Matt and I are delighted that you are pleased with your TRUK and its helping you get out there in super quick time with little to no effort.

Please feel free to add any constructive critique as you use it Terry as we love to take onboard our customers suggestions

just like Stacey (AstroStace) did when she gave us the idea of a brake system, so we developed the brake bar and its now a standard part an all our models.

Thanks again Terry, it was a pleasure meeting up at that show and your home, and we hope to see you again at the upcoming IAS if you can mate it ?

Best wishes,

Lee and Matt.

[Orion25]

Great pier "peer" review, Terry! Thanks for such an in-depth account 😉

Reggie