I think at some point in the distant future, I'd like to find some templates for an astrolabe and try to build one. Thanks for the link, lots of good info and pictures
It's been a while since anyone posted to this thread, but I figured I'd chip in. When I was a grad student, I learned PostScript so that I could generate an astrolabe on the fly. It worked, but I didn't get my PhD Anyway, if anyone wants a printout of an astrolabe and its parts, drop me a line and I'll see about generating the parts for you. Here are some pics of my final project. The rete isn't very ornate, but the rest of it is pretty good. I styled it after a 15th C model, so the script on it is archaic, but otherwise it's very functional.
I did all of my engraving with a Gravermeister, and their Quick Change handpiece. All the pieces were cut out using a jeweler’s saw, and the mother and the limbus (back & front) were riveted together with 1/8 inch brass stock. Lots of filing and shaping. I’m still not finished with the rete (needs filing, sanding and polishing), but the rest is so highly polished that I had a dickens of a time photographing it… I ended up using a small LED tracing box that I just purchased (Lightpad by Atrograph – very nice!), with the camera balanced in one hand and the lightbox balanced in the other. About one in five actually came out because the camera had trouble focusing (it kept trying to focus on the reflection instead of on the piece).
Enjoy!
Doug
(who can be reached at "brownwell" (at) gmail.dot.com)