Kson multi-reticule RDF

[Anweniel]

Recently purchased this finder as it was advertised at nearly half the price of the William Optics own branded version (£38 delivered, as WO is just under £75 at FLO)

I found I missed my rdf and having been using my 50mm finder as a finderguider, it was a bit of a nuisance having to swap the QHY5 and finder eyepiece around every session, also I feared that inevitably this would have a detrimental effect on the thread which I suspect would end up causing me guiding issues, a complication I wish to avoid!

What was the attraction to the KSON?

Price inevitably, thats quite a big difference

Build quality looked about the same from website

After experiencing a very long wait for the WO finder bracket for the 50mm finder and the KSON being promised immediate dispatch (and it was dispatched immediately), another plus.

Verdict?

So the build quality, yes the parts do feel very rugged, heavy duty, is well machined and doesn't look too dissimilar to the WO version. The shoe and quick release mechanism fit well and come flush when attached. Unlike the WO finder bracket shoe, this shoe is very sturdy when the thumb screw is tightened no noticeable movement when I put pressure on it. I had to tighten the WO finder bracket so much so it almost started to tap a thread into the column if the finder bracket to ensure no movement! However the mechanism for attaching the finder to the column doesn't fit together at all well, despite this is does fit securely which is, in my opinion, more important.

Another plus is the handy little rubber dust jacket that goes over the window to the rdf.

The multi-reticule is very bright (when set to the higher 6-7 values on the brightness adjuster) and easy to see.

A few critical comments though, I think the reticule selector and brightness adjustment knobs are very clunky and although they give a satisfyingly assured click when they are completely in position, it would be much nicer if it were a bit smoother requiring less force to make alterations during a session.

I could do with adjusting the height downwards a little more to align a bit better with the optical path of the scope on my setup but due to the height of the laser to the top of the body it cannot be adjusted any lower.. bit of a design issue there for me but it is close enough just not spot on as you might hope. Also the supplied hex key didn't fit correctly with the adjustment screw! I think maybe a metric/imperial mismatch?

Lack of any instructions left me a little confused as although obviously its not the most complicated of items the parts came separately including the battery but with no indication where to put it! Although I guessed correctly and I think most would too it is feasible that you could end up taking bits apart trying to find the battery compartment that you probably wouldn't have wanted to!

My final comment would be that there is no supplied screw to attach the shoe to the focuser. Now, it does clearly state this on the website and I did read and accept this before I purchased it and I can understand that they probably cannot accommodate every possible combination of screw required to fix the RDF to different scopes and/or setups. However it did require a bit of an out of the way trip to B&Q to get the correct screw.

Overall I think it will do the job that I wanted it for and will save me some hassle. It also represents a good saving on the branded version but some of the negatives probably go a long way to saying why this is the case.

I hope this review doesn't demonstrate any bias either way and I hope it helps others who may be thinking of saving money on a WO-style RDF to make an informed choice.

Barry.