Baader Solar Film

[Caldwell 14]

I believe sales in Baader's famous solar film have plummeted, it seems the market has suddenly collapsed for some reason

[Naemeth]

I believe sales in Baader's famous solar film have plummeted, it seems the market has suddenly collapsed for some reason

I'm sure they will pick up for the transit of Mercury. There will always be people wanting to look at the Sun..

[JamesF]

I'm sure they will pick up for the transit of Mercury. There will always be people wanting to look at the Sun..

I think I might have to plan on having a "proper" solar scope for the next Mercury transit. Looks like the next few are going to be entirely during daylight hours for us which should be nice.

James

[Naemeth]

Forecast for those transits: Cloudy with high chance of rain.... what can I say, I'm realistic.

[NGC404]

A solar filter is for life. Not just for transits

[cotterless45]

I could do with a rain filter.

[JamesM]

A solar filter is for life. Not just for transits

:D

[LukeSkywatcher]

My solar film should be here tomorrow. I'm just interested in having a look at some sunspots. I bet they all vanish as soon as i point my scope at the Sun.

[onesmallstep]

I could do with a rain filter.

They're called umbrellas

[sologuitarist61]

The film might not be selling, but the ready made type are still not in stock in many places, so I guess people just don't want the hassle of making one.

[LukeSkywatcher]

Last week, i could not find a ready made one for love nor money. I THINK FLO had some in stock but i was having CC issues so could not buy. I'll hopefully be able to get one in a few weeks when they become available again (fingers crossed).

Til then i'll just use the film to make a mask for the cap of my travelscope. All i need is a piece of it to cover a 35mm aperture hole.

[JamesF]

Is it possible to buy the 3.8 Baader film for imaging in sheets somewhat smaller than the 1m x 0.5m that seem a bit overkill for my needs, and does it really actually make that much of a difference anyhow?

James

[LukeSkywatcher]

Is it possible to buy the 3.8 Baader film for imaging in sheets somewhat smaller than the 1m x 0.5m that seem a bit overkill for my needs, and does it really actually make that much of a difference anyhow?

James

The only solar film i know of comes in A4 size.

[Naemeth]

Is it possible to buy the 3.8 Baader film for imaging in sheets somewhat smaller than the 1m x 0.5m that seem a bit overkill for my needs, and does it really actually make that much of a difference anyhow?

James

The 3.8 SHOULD NOT be used for visual, imaging only, it doesn't block out enough light to be suitable for visual.

[JamesF]

The 3.8 SHOULD NOT be used for visual, imaging only, it doesn't block out enough light to be suitable for visual.

Errrm. Did I even remotely suggest I was thinking of using it for visual? I did specifically say "for imaging".

To rephrase: Is it possible to buy the 3.8 film in smaller sheets, as I can only find it in 1m x 0.5m sheets for £55+, and when using it for the purpose of imaging, does it make that much difference when compared to using the ND5.0 film (also for imaging)?

James

[Naemeth]

Errrm. Did I even remotely suggest I was thinking of using it for visual? I did specifically say "for imaging".

To rephrase: Is it possible to buy the 3.8 film in smaller sheets, as I can only find it in 1m x 0.5m sheets for £55+, and when using it for the purpose of imaging, does it make that much difference when compared to using the ND5.0 film (also for imaging)?

James

Very sorry that I misread your post.

It should be fine for imaging, and may be better, but I have no personal experience of the 3.8 film. The 5.0 film still leaves the Sun bright enough, (darker than the Full Moon though), so I'm not sure if that is adequate for imaging purposes.

[JamesF]

Very sorry that I misread your post.

It should be fine for imaging, and may be better, but I have no personal experience of the 3.8 film. The 5.0 film still leaves the Sun bright enough, (darker than the Full Moon though), so I'm not sure if that is adequate for imaging purposes.

No problem. That is why I am asking the question, really. If the 3.8 film isn't safe for visual use then I guess the image could be a fair bit brighter than the unfiltered full moon (which I already find slightly uncomfortable to view). There must in theory be some difference otherwise why would Baader make the stuff in two different forms (actually, I can already think of an answer for that , but I don't recall seeing anyone saying how much better for imaging the 3.8 film is. That I don't see people recommending the 3.8 film suggests to me that either the generally feeling is that there isn't that much of a difference, or that they just tend to jump straight to a dedicated solar scope.

James

[Naemeth]

Or it may be a case of finding the Sun in the first place, perhaps many don't want to risk their eyes with the 3.8 whilst moving the scope to the Sun (you can hardly blame them can you?)

[JamesF]

Well, perhaps not, but if you have a properly aligned GOTO scope then you'd not need to look anyhow. If you're going to do it manually then obviously a solar-safe finder is required. I should add that to my list of things to do after I finish my 8x50mm binocular finder.

James