Planetarium Star Projectors

[SpitzSTP]

Hi, I am new in here. I have collected a and restored a number of commercial opto-mechanical star projectors that I have pulled out of planetariums, museums and schools across the USA with the desire to add laser displays to the starfields in my home. I started with just one, now I have slid down the splippery slope with four of them. They are all large and weigh 1000+ pounds each. Just wondering.. if there is anyone else like me in here? Back in the 80's I spent nearly every weekend hanging out in the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, watching the Laser shows, and from that point on forever hooked. Rather than begin with laser systems, I started with star projectors and am now finally adding laser displays to them after acquiring a Chroma 5 AVI from a planetarium.

[beamann]

@ SpitzSTP,
to answer your Q, yes I belive thair is . I don't know his name but last year at the SELEM 2010 he did a demo of his star stuff at the selem event. I love planitariums I would also like to learn more about them and how they work in the optical and programming! I as a kid built (in my early twentys that is) a 10' Newton and a Shmit cold camera so I could take some awesome astrophtoghraphy pics NEBS, clusters ,sprials and such, When my best friend ran off with my wife and two kids,Well lets say he needed that stuff to" like every thing I had". When I was releast from jail I owen a pair of shoes,socks, pants, shirt and a need to find a new place to live.Yea it sucked! but now I have lasers!!!

Welcome to the PL forum we like you allready!!!! your are in the right place to get involved with lasers and all that gose with them. Alot of members here are welth of knowledge and help as well.
My friend buffo (Adam) knows the person that did the star demo at Selem I belive, Send him a PM and intro your self to him, and ask him your self. He is one of the good guys and very likable, you won't go wrong having him as a friend here and he is just one of many, many!

1000lbs each WoW I had no Idea they are that heavy, and from the pics you posted they look rather complicated in there structure and for lack of a better word "gearing" I have only been to two panituriums in My life. Sandiago ,Cail and here in Phoenix, Az sience museaum and it was at least 15 -20 years apart but gave the same awe inspiring feeling I like and remember from the first visit to a Planetariume.

Are buy any chance going to SELEM 2011 in N.C. conover? If thier is any way I could talk you into going, I would! Great, 3 days of laser shows, music, demos on Pangolins Software and hard, people working and tuning very large argons, and hi wattage laser projectors and a Garage sale selling just about anything on lasers and thair support equipment and componets.
See the "Official selem V sighn up thred on the laser meet and great" on the home page! If you are intrested that is. Ware in the world are you?

[Jem]

Hi, and welcome to Photonlexicon.

Wow!, Wow!, Wow!

You've gotta be one of the luckiest persons alive. OMG *Four* starfield projectors. Do ya fancy shipping one of those over to the UK?... Probably not, don't think there's a chance I could afford one though

I guess DSLI Jon (Daystar Lasers) will be here shortly. He's the guy you need to speak to about this stuff and Lumia etc. I'm sure he could build you a 'proper' old skool lumia projector to sit alongside your starfield

http://www.daystarlasers.com/

http://www.laserium.com/index.html

Cheers

Jem

[DZ]

Hi, I am new in here. I have collected a and restored a number of commercial opto-mechanical star projectors that I have pulled out of planetariums, museums and schools across the USA with the desire to add laser displays to the starfields in my home. I started with just one, now I have slid down the splippery slope with four of them. They are all large and weigh 1000+ pounds each. Just wondering.. if there is anyone else like me in here? Back in the 80's I spent nearly every weekend hanging out in the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, watching the Laser shows, and from that point on forever hooked. Rather than begin with laser systems, I started with star projectors and am now finally adding laser displays to them after acquiring a Chroma 5 AVI from a planetarium.

Are you saying you have a planetarium and a dome setup at home?!?! Wow, if only I could convince the wife! I've worked on a few planetariums in my time, in the theater I worked at and on the road with JHE. Even came close to buying a surplus one, but it didn't work out. They are an incredible piece of machinery. I'm intrigued by your reference to a Chroma 5 AVI, can you elaborate? Is this an old Omniscan or the 4 scan head projector?

Regarding your pics, the first pic looks like a Goto. I'm not sure what the second pic is, it is a basic star ball, undoubtedly with an arc lamp inside. Who made that one? I do see an Omniscan in from of the star ball, guessing this is the AVI projector you picked up. Man, if you have a dome and one of these you are all set!

[SpitzSTP]

Thanks for the warm welcome, I can tell I am in the right place. I am in Phoenix, AZ off Chandler Blvd in a rather innocent looking house that has been transformed into a workshop for star machines. There have been as many as nine machines in here now I am down to four. When I started refurbishing them I went for Spitz A3P and 512 (most common machines onnce typically found in high school planetariums and small museums) then my taste was refined, now I only go for the most powerful and rare models. The four I currently have are: (1) Spitz Hybrid STP once installed in the old Fillmore East theater in NYC in a nightclub called "The Saint" that had a 70 foot dome circa 1981-1988, this machine sat upon a hydraulic lift in the center of the venue and uses two 300 watt xenon lamps for starfield generation (2) Spitz Starscape / Electric Sky, a massive four foot starball standing 10 feet tall, (3) Minolta/Viewlex IIB I recently pulled out of an elementary school planetarium in Indiana, and (4) GOTO MkIIA which is still being used by the school until they find a suitable upgrade. I am working on getting a fifth machine in here, the largest one I have ever found that weighs in at 2.75 tons. I do not have a dome but the house has a tall vaulted ceiling and is the next best thing I suppose. The living room furniture has been replaced with a 2 ton gantry crane so I can assemble the machines. I would really like to find out what is this SELEM 2011 ? I am looking forward to adding the laser display element to what I hope will be a completely immersive experience. I've grabbed alot of stuff over the years, Lexel 95, ALC60X, Chroma 5 AVI, optical table, scanners, galvos and a 40kw Onan generator I pulled out of a grocery store with 176 hours on it but I don't know what the h*ll I am doing and haven't much clue how to set it up. The exact placement of stars above is not so much of a concern especially since I do not have a dome. Rather, having all 5 star machines up at once should yield approximately 35,000 stars, plenty to fill the "sky" , all that is needed now are laser displays and music. It's a work in progress, and I have a feeling I am on the right forum board.

[swamidog]

do you give tours? i'm in goodyear.

let me know if you need some lumia to go with your star projectors.

Thanks for the warm welcome, I can tell I am in the right place. I am in Phoenix, AZ off Chandler Blvd in a rather innocent looking house that has been transformed into a workshop for star machines. There have been as many as nine machines in here now I am down to four. When I started refurbishing them I went for Spitz A3P and 512 (most common machines onnce typically found in high school planetariums and small museums) then my taste was refined, now I only go for the most powerful and rare models. The four I currently have are: (1) Spitz Hybrid STP once installed in the old Fillmore East theater in NYC in a nightclub called "The Saint" that had a 70 foot dome circa 1981-1988, this machine sat upon a hydraulic lift in the center of the venue and uses two 300 watt xenon lamps for starfield generation (2) Spitz Starscape / Electric Sky, a massive four foot starball standing 10 feet tall, (3) Minolta/Viewlex IIB I recently pulled out of an elementary school planetarium in Indiana, and (4) GOTO MkIIA which is still being used by the school until they find a suitable upgrade. I am working on getting a fifth machine in here, the largest one I have ever found that weighs in at 2.75 tons. I do not have a dome but the house has a tall vaulted ceiling and is the next best thing I suppose. The living room furniture has been replaced with a 2 ton gantry crane so I can assemble the machines. I would really like to find out what is this SELEM 2011 ? I am looking forward to adding the laser display element to what I hope will be a completely immersive experience. I've grabbed alot of stuff over the years, Lexel 95, ALC60X, Chroma 5 AVI, optical table, scanners, galvos and a 40kw Onan generator I pulled out of a grocery store with 176 hours on it but I don't know what the h*ll I am doing and haven't much clue how to set it up. The exact placement of stars above is not so much of a concern especially since I do not have a dome. Rather, having all 5 star machines up at once should yield approximately 35,000 stars, plenty to fill the "sky" , all that is needed now are laser displays and music. It's a work in progress, and I have a feeling I am on the right forum board.

[SpitzSTP]

Wow you used to work with JHE ? small world ! The Minolta I just pulled out of Indiana was maintained by JHE for many years, as was a similar star machine I pulled out of San Antonio a few years ago. I don't know anything about the AVI yet, or what it does. It came with a bunch of water cooling equipment and I was told that it works, but may "need new optics".

[DZ]

Wow you used to work with JHE ? small world ! The Minolta I just pulled out of Indiana was maintained by JHE for many years, as was a similar star machine I pulled out of San Antonio a few years ago. I don't know anything about the AVI yet, or what it does. It came with a bunch of water cooling equipment and I was told that it works, but may "need new optics".

Interesting! I helped Joe renovate the theater in Kokomo, IN and San Antonio, TX. I just talked to him a couple weeks ago and he expressed interest in joining us for SELEM, not sure if he's going to make it though. If the AVI projector is pictured in the first post, in front of the star ball, then it's an Omniscan. Basically, a fiber fed scan head with a lens that enables it to scan 360 degrees by 180 degrees. If you're lucky, it'll also have an array of optical effects in front of the scan head. I've been trying to get my hands on one for years without any luck, almost got the one out of Boston last year. The Omniscan (replaced with todays Skylase) is the most amazing laser projector you can get for a planetarium. I hope you got a box full of show tapes with it!!!

Regarding SELEM, if you want to learn a thing or two about what you have and how to use it, then you should really try to attend. It's rather short notice at this point since it starts next Friday. Located in Newton, NC, it's a 3 day event where you'll get the chance to learn plenty about lasers, projectors and software. Check out this thread for more information: http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/...245#post191245

Also, I sent an invite to AVI to attend and they seemed interested, so there might be an AVI rep at SELEM.

[DZ]

do you give tours? i'm in goodyear.

let me know if you need some lumia to go with your star projectors.

Arg! You make me jealous, I wish I lived up the street from this guy!

[SpitzSTP]

Wow how cool is that, you are in Goodyear. Sure C'mon over, I am right off I-10. I do need to get this place straightened up first as it is a real mess right now. I just got back from the midwest with a 26 foot Penske full of star machine stuff and getting ready to fly out again, and bring another truck full of planetarium stuff. Many theaters are converting to digital and no longer need their opto-mechanical projectors. So I save as many of them as I can, as I personally think the quality of star images far exceeds what any digital projector can currently display. There is hardly any place to walk in here at the moment. The floodgates sort of opened up recently in terms of surplus star projection equipment and I have been on the road alot typically flying out to a distant city, renting a truck and hauling it back. Two more trips are planned over the next couple of months then I hope things will quiet down enough to start assembling the AVI and get the generator running. The amount of time I spend on this project is only limited by my day job as a software engineer. I am fortunate to have found this board, as I hope to share this endevor with those who are interested (and perhaps rather shamelessly, seek a pointer or two in the process from those far more experienced than I). Over the past few days I have been getting the Minolta control panel restored, adding a 1U server to form the backbone of my audio system and a place to keep all my MP3's. One advantage of having cables and equipment everywhere in the house is the need to run the vacuam cleaner alot less because I don't worry as much about the dirt I cannot see because it is underneath something. I don't often have vistors here since I generally work all the time and lost track of my friends years ago, through countless corporate transfers. I value friendships especially when there is common ground to be shared. Every so often I have someone like an A/C repairman over here and the usual first comment is something like, OMG or WTF are you doing in here ???? I will definately need to cover a few of the windows on the front of the house when I get the lasers running or else someone around here will freak out and have some new rules passed in the HOA. I did read the HOA rules, it says "release of radiation is not permitted" but they do not specifically state what types of radiation are forbidden, and nobody shall be the wiser as long as I cover up the windows. I'll never forget the first laser show I ever saw in late late 70's, a Laserium show with these giant racks full of analog controls and water lines running on the floor and then later, a large inflatable dome at the Texas State Fair with beanbag chairs circa 1978-79, that was the wildest show I ever saw and from that point on an experience I dream to replicate. I especially like the abstract displays, woefully sick of the modern crappy Laser Floyd junk. I wish there was a place to go, to see truly good laser shows like I used to see in Seattle. In my area the typical form of entertainment for the masses seems to be shopping watching movies and sporting events, that just doesn't do it for me I NEED MORE !!!!

[mikkojay]

Hi Spitz!
Awesome!
The first time I ever saw an X-Y laser scanner was at a show in my high school planetarium. I am a devout space-case, and would absolutely love to have my own dome someday. I bet once you get a taste of some of swami's lumias you will be even happier you wandered to this site Also as said above, dsli_jon will amaze you with info about Laserium hardware & magic.
Nice stuff & welcome! Anyone with a crane and coolant lines running through the living room is OK by me.
-Mike

[chad]

Hi Spitz,

As you can see there are some dome heads around. I grew up at Gates planetarium in Denver.
About 10 years ago Gates went digital and rebuilt the entire wing. I was offered the dome and the Minolta if I could get it out. Unfortunately I didn't have the storage space or the money to remove the dome properly so it all went for scrap. I did get the Tesla coil though

A friend of mine still has the old original Spitz that has been converted into the 'vomit comet' we used to use it for lasershows.

You have a great collection!

chad

[SpitzSTP]

Hi Spitz!
Awesome!
The first time I ever saw an X-Y laser scanner was at a show in my high school planetarium. I am a devout space-case, and would absolutely love to have my own dome someday. I bet once you get a taste of some of swami's lumias you will be even happier you wandered to this site Also as said above, dsli_jon will amaze you with info about Laserium hardware & magic.
Nice stuff & welcome! Anyone with a crane and coolant lines running through the living room is OK by me.
-Mike

Hey Mike, I am like a kid in a candy store in here. A friend of mine has been trying to get the permits to build a dome on his property in Cave Creek, AZ for a few years and is running up against alot of local opposition for erecting such a structure, not to mention the rediculous prices being charged simply for pouring a concrete foundation. He would have been better off getting permits to build a box structure making no mention of what it is for, and putting the dome inside of it. It would seem that actually having a dome may be firmly out of reach but there is nothing wrong with dreaming BIG , right ? At one point star projectors were firmly out of reach, with many of the ones I now have costing a quarter million dollars each, now nearly discarded for scrap. Often they just need a little TLC to get them running again. The Starscape projector is one that fascinates me as the prototype was originally built to train NASA astronauts and accurately simulates spacecraft pitch and yaw. Although this may place me at jeapordy of being a tad crazy I really would like to simulate the experience of leaving the planet and this may be the only way I can come close to that goal. Darken all the windows, get it pitch dark in here, fire up some stars and GO !! I am really looking forward to my time on this forum and I am truly thrilled to see the level of interest in what I am doing. Others I know, look at these machines and ask, "why do you have that in here" .. they just don't get it. The true magic only happens when it is too dark in here to even see the equipment. I somehow know, that you guys know what I am talking about

[Laser Wizardry]

With the gear you have, we might be able to convince the local dome to have a laser again someday... I do have some contacts over at the Az science center.

When we meet in person, I shall bring an old 1980's era planetarium projector and a solid state RGB for show and tell. You have an incredible collection, it is amazing and refreshing to see that there are persons such as yourself who are this passionate about the (lost) artform of dome shows.

[Jem]

" .. they just don't get it.... I somehow know, that you guys know what I am talking about

Hehe... Well, if it's any consolation you're definately amongst friends (addicts ) here and we *completely* get what you're talking about!

Great to have you on board and I for one look forward to reading your posts and looking at the hundreds of photographs you're going to post... You will be posting more photo's won't you?

Jem

[mophead]

All I can say is WOW!! It's great you're able to help save all that stuff.

You have found the Promised Land of forums. Welcome to the PL

[mixedgas]

When you hook up the Chroma 5, if its a Omniscan with a fiber optic extension, be careful not to burn the fiber in the projector with the initial alignment. It needs to be done at near idle, a hundred mW or so. Also, expecting a Chroma 5 to be in cavity alignment after a 500 mile trip is a bit of a stretch, so you'll to probably walk the optics.

There is a non-linear element, aka Polychromatic Acousto-Optic Modulator in the beam path as well, for color selection. Karl just LOVES doing PCAOM alignment, so you have some decent help in town

One last warning, usually the SP power supply can source more far juice then the plasma tube needs, it is wise to find out what I(test) for the tube is and stay well below it.

Enjoy the laser.

Steve

[GoolGaul]

Welcome Spitz,

Another interesting character on this site.

1) I been to the Saint, and I remember that projector... hazily, tho i must admit.

2) i have a few multi-channel audio amps you might like - pm me if ya need. or any of that stuff/info I'm one of many Audio guys here.

3) if you really get that space experience thing going, you'll make a ton of money franchising it out to tourist spots...

4) nice to meet ya! have you seen the new planetarium at NYC's Museum of Nat hist? just awesome,,,

[SpitzSTP]

Hey Karl, that would be really great to get laser shows in the AZ Science Center. I am all for it ! I believe the AVI to be a functional unit although the previous owner said it will need "new optics" and thought the cost would be in the range of 700-800 to replace them. I would love to see your equipment, and you're welcome here anytime. I would like to see the artform presented in such a way as to be a completely immersive experience. I few years ago I came across a Lexel 95, with the name "Lasermation" stenciled on the road cases. I got it from a guy in San Bernardino and he said he got it from a company in Phoenix .. perhaps you may know some of the history of this unit? Hopefully it will fire up although its been sitting for awhile. I will need to get the generator working first. So glad I have this forum to share this adventure, I have felt a bit as if stranded on an island up to this point.

[SpitzSTP]

Hi Jem, sure I got lots of photos if you guys are sure I won't be clogging up the board with them!

[SpitzSTP]

Wow.. you were at The Saint? That place was notorious .. I missed it by a few years but knew they had a star machine so I went looking for it about ten years ago. After searching for seven years I found it, in a Warehouse in Utah. nine crates total, remarkably intact. It was built by Spitz Corporation, the only one I know of that was ever built specifically for the entertainment industry. The starfields are accurate to the night sky, as Spitz used the star chambers from one of their other models called a "Model B". I knew from the records that Spitz had only built 3 model B's, one was at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, another in Flint, Michigan and the third in Uruguay. Apparently, Spitz re-acquired parts from the one they had sold to the Air Force and re-engineered it into the projector they later sold to The Saint. They only made one of these "hybrids". Some of the history behind this projector is remarkable, as the venue it was installed in was way ahead of its time.

[SpitzSTP]

Hi Steve, thank you VERY MUCH for the tips and warnings. The head is a Spectra Physics Chroma 5 and it has a fiber-optic cable that goes to a pedestal upon which the spherical head is mounted. It also has a heat exchanger, power supply and a few other control-unit chassis. I am flying out there and renting a truck to fetch it in a couple of weeks along with all of the old Spitz Electric Sky racks loaded with equipment that drives the starball. This will be the second of two trips to this theater. Since I work a normal job, these adventures typically involve a weekend effort to fly there, rent a truck, remove the equipment, and drive non-stop back to Phoenix.. stopping only for fuel and to well, um you know. If I don't make it back alive you can have all of my stuff. When I have the AVI system unloaded and organized, I will definately be seeking expert advice so I don't mess it up.

[polishedball]

Awesome collection!! the big question will we meet you at SELEM?

[SpitzSTP]

Gee now you got me thinking how bad I want to go .. with only one week notice I wonder what airline ticket prices are going to be. I'll have to mapquest the city .. is this near to Raleigh Durham airport ?

[polishedball]

Gee now you got me thinking how bad I want to go .. with only one week notice I wonder what airline ticket prices are going to be. I'll have to mapquest the city .. is this near to Raleigh Durham airport ?

Nope 50 miles from charlotte if I recall correct, it is in Newton, NC http://maps.google.com/maps?q=60+W.+...ed=0CBYQ8gEwAA