Spacing of scope rings

[skir]

I bought a cg-5 mount second hand and with the mount came a dovetail from a celestron c9.25 I think. I have a 8" newt, f5. I have used this dovetail to mount the scope to, but obviously the scope rings are quite close together.

I have run through balancing the scope using the astro shed video on YouTube as a guide. It has balanced ok, though I will need to redo it as there are a couple more small items to add to the setup.

As having the rings close-ish together going to cause me any other problems I'm not foreseeing?

[Merlin66]

I'd work with what you have....maybe later when you consider imaging etc the tube sag or vibration may push you to consider a longer more rigid dovetail.

In the meantime - enjoy!

[skir]

I'd work with what you have....maybe later when you consider imaging etc the tube sag or vibration may push you to consider a longer more rigid dovetail.

In the meantime - enjoy!

I was hoping someone would say something along those lines! I'll measure the distance tomorrow but I think it's roughly an 8" gap. Anyway it's holding ok and it balanced up alright too so I'll probably stick with it as is. My wallet could do with a bit of a rest!

[LeeB]

agree work with what you have to start with, later moving the rings further apart will help rigidity, but this can be achieved at a lower cost by getting a good piece of aluminium bar I used 80mm by 12mm and 500mm long for my 10" and fastening the rings to it and the dovetail to its base. Cost from ebay was about £12 you will need a tap and die set.

Remember the weight will add about a kg to the scope but the gain with mine outweighed the effect of the extra load on the mount.

[skir]

I'm amazed at the cost of simple dovetail bars. They all seem to start from at least £40, for a lump of ally!

[glowjet]

It is the cost of machining, casting or anodising, but bits for Astronomy do seem to get a bit astronomical at times, which is why a bit of DIY can pay dividends if you have the tools and skill

John.