Can anyone see any problems with this webcam adapter?

[Feral Rabbit]

Hi All,

Well I bought my scope with the intention of getting into imaging at some point and I have been lucky enough to have been given an old webcam (Logitech Quickcam Pro 4000) to adapt. I'm not sure if this is a good webcam to use but it was free. I have now removed the filter inside and the lens. I am going to be in the market for the webcam adapter. I have seen them on FLO, Astronomia, Grovers etc, whom I normally buy from but I came across this one on an auction site.

ClIcky

I see that it has an IR filter already fitted (I thought I had removed an IR filter from the camera. Sorry for my ignorance). Is having this built in filter in the adapter a good/bad thing, limitations etc? Would it interfere with other filters that I may want to attach, like my Baader Moon and Skyglow filter?

The price of the adapter is on par with those from astro shops so cost isn't the driving force for purchasing off of eBay but if having an IR filter already in the adapter is a plus then I would give it a punt. (Obviously I would be taking a bit of a gamble with the quality of the filter).

The seller sells a lot of astro accessories and has remarkably good feedback so I can only assume that his stuff is good.

Thanks for the advice

Martin

[Feral Rabbit]

Sorry, I think I may have put this in the wrong section

Would a Mod move it to the correct one please

Thank you

Martin

[szymon]

Sky's the limit is a bona-fide astro shop, just one that operates via eBay ;-)

I'd say go for it.

[knobby]

+1 for skies the limit , good seller

[Mick J]

There is older post here http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/175140-quickcam-pro-4000-webcam/  and google finds a few long exposure mods,  I think you need to check the thread size on the adapter matches the webcam, google will find skysthelimit and a phone number.  I think you do need some sort of IR filter, some may be better than others.

[Dave In Vermont]

I agree with Mick J. The only possible problem is whether or not it will properly fit/seat the adapter. If it will - pull the trigger. And please post your results for any/everyone's elucidation!

Clear & Dark Skies,

Dave

[Feral Rabbit]

Thanks for the input guys.

Thanks for the link Mick J

I have sent seller an e-mail re fitting.

Many thanks

Martin

[Mick J]

found this page http://www.astronomylog.co.uk/how-to/logitech-quickcam-pro-4000-astronomy/  suggests adapter thread is the same for Quickcam & Philips cams, so the above adapter looks good.   Have fun with this.

[Feral Rabbit]

 Thank you Mick.

 Alan from STL has emailed me to say it will fit, so ordered.

Will be hoping for some clear skies now which doesn't appear to be too forthcoming, looking at the long range weather forecast 

[Robp]

Now you have purchased something, cloud is guaranteed!

[Feral Rabbit]

Yes and it's been compounded by the fact that yesterday I washed, polished and waxed the car.   

Never mind I've cheered myself up with buying a 2" Moon and Skyglow filter from Sky's The Limit. Had a lovely conversation with Alan over the phone. What a gentleman.

[Feral Rabbit]

I received the adapter yesterday and after modifying the webcam I have got it fitted although I will need a 3-5mm washer to go between the casing of the webcam and the adapter. The sensor is protected but there is a 4mm gap between the adapter and the casing and I would like to protect the circuitry from any moisture that may ingress.

You have to split the casing (one screw on the left hand side) to get at the internals of the camera. This allows you to remove the donut shaped finishing on the front of the camera. Attached to the circuit board there is a black plastic funnel which goes around the sensor and holds a small filter (IR I think). It is attached by two screws and is easy to remove. Once removed you can push out the filter with a screwdriver. 

This piece of plastic is what you screw the adapter too but it is only threaded at the bottom part (Nearest the sensor) and the nose piece on my particular adapter didn't reach.

To overcome this I cut off the distal part up to the thread with a hacksaw and tidied it up with the wife's emery board  . Put everything back together and screwed in the adapter. the hardest part was getting everything aligned to put the casing back together.

To adapt the webcam I followed this guys tutorial

Clicky

He has a longer nose on his adapter so didn't encounter the same problem as me.

I don't usually entertain DIY, it normally goes horribly wrong but I'm happy with the result, especially when I get a plastic/rubber washer to finish off. Here's hoping for some clear skies soon.

P.S Had a picture of the end result (a bit dull really) but I don't know how to upload to this site.

Regards

Martin

[D4N]

Nice one, sealing it is definitely a good idea, it's bound to get damp inside otherwise.

On mine I just removed the lens then glued some 1.25" plastic pipe I had laying around to the body of the camera. Also prised the LED off of the circuit board for good measure.

Web cams are a lot easier to mod than DSLR's that's for sure.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Gary085]

Interested to know if the adapter with ir filter built in is any good? Thinking of getting one to mod a spc 900 but not sure whether to go for that or pay bit more for separate adapter and ir filter.

 

Gary.