Whats your Work-Bench/lab look like? Post some pictures of your Lab.

[Gary350z]

For this image of the Andromeda galaxy I used a modest 5" refractor:

Very nice.   My mind is blown. I had no idea you could do that with a 5 inch telescope.
Now the big question; approximately how much would it cost for the setup to take this picture (telescope, electronics, hardware, etc.) 

[kj7e]

^If you have to ask, your not going to want to spend it.  Obsessive hobbies know no monetary value.

[Mr. Scram]

^If you have to ask, your not going to want to spend it.  Obsessive hobbies know no monetary value.

Sadly, that doesn't work. I tried declaring my house an obsessive hobby, but the bank still wants its loan back. Bugger.

[ChrisLX200]

For this image of the Andromeda galaxy I used a modest 5" refractor:

Very nice.   My mind is blown. I had no idea you could do that with a 5 inch telescope.
Now the big question; approximately how much would it cost for the setup to take this picture (telescope, electronics, hardware, etc.) 

Well you don't need to spend too much money to get a decent result - say, £1k-1.5k for everything including camera, but astrophotography is an intrinsically expensive hobby and if you're a perfectionist who isn't happy with the flaws produced by anything less than top quality then you get sucked into the whirlpool. I happen to use kit capable of much more tricky objects than that simple RGB image, I use a 10-Micron GM2000HPS robotic mount, A big (sensor) cooled CCD camera (requiring correspondingly large 54mm narrow-band filters), and several different telescopes (that particular one being a Televue NPS127 fitted with autofocuser). There is also an almost endless list of accessories needed.

I will try to frighten you off   The aforementioned filters (OIII, SII, Ha in 3nM bandwidth) were close to £1k each. The mount currently runs around £12k (that's just the head, needs extra stuff to work too like counter weights etc.,), the 5" Televue scope about £8k, the Moravian CCD camera about £5k. Believe me, that's just the start of the expenses..

[bd139]

I am going to point at your post the next time my wife complains about the odd 200 quid disappearing here and there 

[kripton2035]

electronics can be a cheap hobby compared to astrophotography ...

[bsudbrink]

True story.  I collect "vintage" computers.  I have two friends from college, one of whom collects (and plays) symphony orchestra instruments, the other collects Corvette cars. All three of our wives complain.  My musical friend and I, whenever challenged, would reply "at least I don't collect Corvettes". My musical friend's wife finally tired of this response and retorted "at least if you collected Corvettes, they wouldn't be in the damn house".

[Mr. Scram]

True story.  I collect "vintage" computers.  I have two friends from college, one of whom collects (and plays) symphony orchestra instruments, the other collects Corvette cars. All three of our wives complain.  My musical friend and I, whenever challenged, would reply "at least I don't collect Corvettes". My musical friend's wife finally tired of this response and retorted "at least if you collected Corvettes, they wouldn't be in the damn house".

Time to build a garage and buy a Corvette. At least one.

[xmo]

"...buy a Corvette. At least one...
--------------------------------------

I'm in.

[Mr. Scram]

"...buy a Corvette. At least one...
--------------------------------------

I'm in.

Looks like those years of playing Tetris were well spent.

[VEGETA]

True story.  I collect "vintage" computers. 

Do you have IBM5100? to hack SERN and save the world from dystopia.

[bsudbrink]

Do you have IBM5100? to hack SERN and save the world from dystopia.

Nope, that's one I don't have.

[VEGETA]

Do you have IBM5100? to hack SERN and save the world from dystopia.

Nope, that's one I don't have.

Then we are fked!! Now SERN will create a time machine and makes dystopia which enslaves mankind.

Also, we won't be able to solve year 2038 problem.

[Phil_Tech]

latest pic of my workbench.

Melbourne, Australia

[JohnnyMalaria]

I'm not ashamed...have fun seeing what stuff is lying around.

[Leiothrix]

Then we are fked!!

Such is the will of Stein's Gate

[Mr. Scram]

latest pic of my workbench.

Melbourne, Australia

I don't trust folks with a work bench too clean.

[VEGETA]

Then we are fked!!

Such is the will of Stein's Gate

El Psy Congroo!

[Kjelt]

I don't trust folks with a work bench too clean.

I kinda envy them, I spent way too much time searching for some tool or part I knew was lying somewhere on the bench buried 
But a clean bench could mean a lot of things:
- a partner that cleans up after you,  naaaaaaah never heard of that.
- you have no projects , naaaaaaah never heard of that.
- you're a tool and TM collector instead of a tinkerer
- you are in doubt which project to start
- you're in the drawing phase on the computer
- a burglar robbed your tools
and so on....

[Phil_Tech]

..mild OCD

[xrunner]

I'm not ashamed...have fun seeing what stuff is lying around.

What sort of work are you doing with the optical system? 

[badSCR]

Im still alive.   

Wow the number of posts. This is awesome and you all are awesome.

[JohnnyMalaria]

I'm not ashamed...have fun seeing what stuff is lying around.

What sort of work are you doing with the optical system? 

It's a variation on laser-Doppler velocimetry/anemometry applied to nanoparticles dispersed in liquid and moving in an electric field. The particles move with a velocity related to the electrical potential at the interface of the liquid and the surface of the particles. The optical system measures the velocity. Specifically, it measures the phase change of the light scattered by moving particles (a Doppler shift). I'm reinventing my own wheel from 30 years ago (my PhD) and taking advantage of the amazing progress in electronics to significantly improve it. Even though it sits near my lawn mower, I can measure 500nm diameter particles oscillating by 5nm while undergoing a random walk with <1nm accuracy. It corresponds to a change in the frequency of the laser light of one part in one quadrillion The instrument allows you to assess the amount of charge on the particles. The more charge there is, the more resistant they are to aggregating together. Aggregation is something you want to avoid in something like paint but is something you want to promote in waster water treatment where you want to precipitate out suspended particles (e.g., clay from papermaking). Hence, having a quantifiable property that you can measure helps in developing the products/processes that are influenced by the charge.

[Monkey123]

Well this is my lab. I’m a symphony orchestra musician, but I don’t have an electronics workbench yet. I hope I will have one soon. Can’t wait to start setting things on fire.   
Btw this forum is amazing.

[Mr. Scram]

Well this is my lab. I’m a symphony orchestra musician, but I don’t have an electronics workbench yet. I hope I will have one soon. Can’t wait to start setting things on fire.   
Btw this forum is amazing.

Plenty of room for some boat anchors. If anyone asks you can just say it's your instruments.