Nasty sun filter on e.bay

[John]

In response to this:

http://cgi.ebay.co.u...em=321071714687

I've sent this message to the seller:

Hello,

Just a quick word of advice about this item. They are considered very dangerous to use these days. This video shows why:

The only safe way to view the Sun with a scope or binoculars is with filters over the entire front end of the instrument blocking 99.9% of the light.

Please take this advice in the spirit it's meant.

Thanks.

I hope the message gets through - they have been warned !

Thanks to Steve (Tetenterre) for making that Youtube video - very useful.

Shame the seller had to nick an image from it to sell the damm thing though

[Sammyb]

Great video. Very frightening these are still available. My Grandad had a telescope that I borrowed years ago. It came with those type of sun eye-piece filters. I was unaware of the danger and had a good session of viewing sunspots with them. I haven't used them since as I understand the danger.

I still have the scope with sun filters in the loft - I need to get rid of them I case my kids decide to try them out one day!!!

[Mzungu]

good video - very informative

[boss hogg]

great video.. and a good demo!

i hate it when people tell you not to do something and cant prove or show the reasoning behind it!!!

that demo proved it FULL STOP!..

[8kids]

That's a scary video, I assume it's because the light is focused at the eyepiece that causes the damage? If I hadn't seen the video I might have tried one of these....

[Astro_Gaz]

Cheers for the video, hope he takes your advice, have you reported item to eBay?

[Astro_Gaz]

Great video. Very frightening these are still available. My Grandad had a telescope that I borrowed years ago. It came with those type of sun eye-piece filters. I was unaware of the danger and had a good session of viewing sunspots with them. I haven't used them since as I understand the danger.

I still have the scope with sun filters in the loft - I need to get rid of them I case my kids decide to try them out one day!!!

Don't sell them on eBay lol

[JamesF]

I still have the scope with sun filters in the loft - I need to get rid of them I case my kids decide to try them out one day!!!

I think someone on SGL does demos on outreach days to show how dangerous they are and has asked if anyone has such eyepieces to donate to the cause in the past. Perhaps they'll make themselves known in the fullness of time.

Or perhaps they're not considered dangerous any more because we never actually get to see the Sun

James

[Sammyb]

I'll happily send on if anyone wants them... although I seem to remember they are not the usual 1.25" fit. Might be wrong.

[John]

Cheers for the video, hope he takes your advice, have you reported item to eBay?

Not yet - I'll see if they act voluntarily.

I think these things should be destroyed - thats what I did with the one that was with my old Tasco refractor. It can't get into uninformed hands then.

[Velvet]

Some of our folks have reported this item to ebay. Also we have requested that he destroy the item and tell

us what the cost would be for him to do that.

Velvet

[John]

Some of our folks have reported this item to ebay. Also we have requested that he destroy the item and tell

us what the cost would be for him to do that.

Velvet

Thats good - the more the merrier

[Astro_Gaz]

last thing we want is some poor person having there life ruined by looking through a telescope, destroy them all!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Horrible filters, those. I spotted a couple at a local photographers a few years back, and told them what would happen. They hastily withdrew them from their stock.

The problem in part lies with improvements in scopes. In the past, with a slow 40mm or 50mm scope (these were actually sold, I have seen F/12 to F/15 scopes of this size), a filter like this could probably hold for the length of a session (I still would not want to use one!). First of all the amount of sunlight was small, and it was spread out over a fair section of the filter. With the advent of faster, bigger scopes as the standard, these filters become far more dangerous than they already were. Add to that the replacement of Huygens and Ramsden EPs by MA and Plossl, and matters become even worse, as differences in thermal coefficients of expansion between kitted lenses can cause them to shatter, with potentially disastrous consequences. This is also why EP projection is not as popular any more.

Objective filters always work, Herschel wedges plus filters only work in fracs! This cannot be repeated often enough.

[Moonshane]

I'd honestly smash one of these if I ever saw it in a scope box. I'd sooner have the argument about smashing kit than why I didn't say anything and then.......

[Crimson Sunset]

It's extremely worrying that these things are allowed to be sold at all, good work all of you who are on the look out for this kind of thing. Steve's video is fantastic, it's encouraging that it's had 4000 views!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

I'd honestly smash one of these if I ever saw it in a scope box. I'd sooner have the argument about smashing kit than why I didn't say anything and then.......

HAMMER TIME!!

[Moonshane]

HAMMER TIME!!

or to put it another way "you can't touch this"

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

or to put it another way "you can't touch this"

"Blinded by the light"

(Manfred Mann) also springs to mind

[reader34]

Wow that's dangerous, thanks John!

[Pig]

There is no more to be said - Some of the technologies of yesteryear are very concerning - I wonder how many people have damaged eyes because of this type of equipment ?

[steveb1977]

A while ago when projecting the sun I managed to damage the inside of an old focuser. Frightening to think of have this as the only barrier between your eye and somthing that can do that sort o damage.

[stev74]

Just found this thread, glad I'm not the only one to see this filter. This item was in the 'recommended for you' email I get from E-bay as I've bought astro related kit from there before, this was my response -

Hi,

Can I respectfully ask you NOT to sell the sun filter as they are now considered really dangerous if used in modern telescope eyepieces' and can easily crack in use. This can lead to permanent damage to the eyes and even blindness if someone is observing the Sun at the time.

As an amateur astronomer I am well aware of the dangers of this type of filter and would recommend the best thing to do would be to destroy it....

I hope you take this advice in the spirit that it was given and not as a personal slight as I'm sure you are not the kind of person that would sell something if you knew it was dangerous.

Regards

Steven

[John]

Nice one Steve

[jonathan]

I reported it as a hazard to health, not sure how much attention eBay will give it. I know that they are very keen on things that are anything like firearms or knives, even if they are not at all; my father had a novelty letter opener removed because it 'could be used as a weapon', a bit of careful wording and the same item was not then removed. eBay are silly sometimes like that, an item that poses a very real and serious threat to health such as the sun filter doesn't get another look, but anything with the word 'knife' in the title or description is instantly removed.