I started, but never finished grinding an 8" mirror. I began making a low-focal ratio mirror for deep sky observing (which means grinding it to one curve) then decided I wanted a high-magnification planetary scope instead (and reground to a different curve) then kids came along and my hobbies stopped.

Along the way, I built my own tools, like the necessary Foucault tester and a mirror grinding machine. My machine was basically a variable speed drill driving some eccentric gears that pushed the blank around. I have no idea whose plans I followed but there are lots out there. I planned to use it for the polishing stage but ended up giving the machine to a friend who tells me he used it successfully to polish a mirror.

Mel Bartels is a giant in the amateur telescope making (ATM) community. He's made many amazing scopes and advanced the art for the amateur a lot. See his scopes and articles at http://www.bbastrodesigns.com/tm.html

Stellafane is an annual gathering of amateur telescope makers (and astronomy enthusiasts) in Vermont. They have some nicely organized ATM info at http://stellafane.org/tm/atm/index.html