Wilcox rings

[murgen]

I am not sure whether this is the right place to post this, but it's certainly about equipment, and I'm certainly a beginner, so here goes.

It also might be old hat and blindingly obvious to seasoned gazers, but it seems like a novel and elegant solution to me.

Wilcox rings, as far as I had been able to find out can be "made" from either an expensive second set of tube rings (£40 for my scope), or some kind of hose and a length of adjustable Collier clip threaded through it.

in both cases a bolt reversal and counter-sinking modification to your existing tube rings is required to allow free rotation.

An astronomical friend with a Mak and no need for Wilcox rings was making himself a camping mat dew shield.

He proudly showed me the finished article and the neat way he held it in place using a plastic embroidery hoop.

*Head/Light bulb moment*

These hoops include a plastic ring with an opening that allows adjustment and tightening with a screw.

They also have a nice low profile that fits under the sticky-out tube-ring screw.

They come in a range of sizes.

They cost about £3-4 apiece and can be got from Amazon.

My only slight problem is that a SW 200P needs a 9" hoop, and these only come in wood (the plastic ones come in even numbers of inches, and a 10 incher is just a bit too big ).

The wooden ones still work though, but require a little more care stretching them onto the OTA.

I hope this is a help to somebody, and please let me know if anyone finds the 9" in plastic.

M

[Jiggy 67]

have you got a link to amazon

[brantuk]

Good find - a link would be useful I agree.

[martin_h]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_11/277-4777850-2760504?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=embroidery+hoop&sprefix=embroidery+%2Caps%2C231

[madatter]

does anybody know if the size is the inside or outside circumference?

[jimmyjamjoejoe]

I got that exact ring from hobbycraft, they come in 6,8,10,12 inches, maybe some others too.

The 10" one was about right for the dew shield on my 8" dob after allowing for tube width and camping mat thickness.

[murgen]

Martin has linked to the wooden ones.

here's a link to the plastic ones

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pony-Plastic-Embroidery-Hoop-18cm/dp/B004VZ91NM/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1354318407&sr=8-16

I have a 10" plastic one and it's a bit too big for my 8" reflector.

The 9" wooden ones i am using are just a tad small, and i have had to substituted a slightly longer bolt/screw.

I am thinking of seeing if i can chop 1/2" off the 10" plastic one and rejoin the two halves in some way (just because i have one to mess with).

I haven't measured whether the 9" is inside or out (but can if you need to know).

like Jimjam says a 10" is perfect on an 8" reflector for holding a bit of camping mat, but is a bit too big to tighten up on its own onto the OTA.

Glad people are interested.

I did have a try earlier in the year with a chunk of hoolahoop and some cut to length collier clip, but it was a [removed word] bending the hoop without kinks, and i still didn't fancy taking a power tool to my new scope to do the countersinking.

M

[murgen]

apologies for the "removed word".

it wasn't that naughty.

M

[Jiggy 67]

apologies for the "removed word".

it wasn't that naughty.

M

Yeh Right....

[SpaceDawg]

I wish I'd seen this post sooner. I've just wasted a lot of time and money trying to make ones out of rubber hose and jubilee clips. Ended up scratching myself and my scope to buggery only to find the ruddy things only adjust by a margin of 10mm. Far too precise for my liking. Amazon, here I come!

[Pete D]

I found this 23cm diameter Plastic Hoop on amazon it's just over 9". Should be just about the right size.

[Pete D]

Sorry not sure how to post the link.

[Pete D]

Think thats right

[Pete D]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/23cm-diameter-Plastic-Embroidery-Hoop/dp/B00CTMGHHW/ref=sr_1_1?m=AD96L1PNYMJAF&s=merchant-items&ie=UTF8&qid=1371589820&sr=1-1&keywords=23cm+diameter+Plastic+Embroidery+Hoop

[Steve Ward]

They're ideal for making Solar filters from Baader film too ....