Build your own telescope part 1: The mirror – Thomas ...
Rough grinding. This step is about making one side of the glass concave. It will give your mirror its overall focal ratio. If you make the centre deep, you will end up with a fast telescope (e.g. F/D = 4) well suited for deep sky observations. On the opposite, a shallow mirror (e.g. F/D = 8) will be performing very well on planets and the moon.