Where can I get a cap for 12" secondary?

[emadmoussa]

I'm thinking about replacing the stock nylon/leather cover with a proper plastic cap same as the one primary section in the 12" Flextube. It tends to slip and doesn't really provide protection to the secondary mirror section. So far, apart from the GSO 12" replacement which apparently doesn't fit Sky-watcher, nothing has come my way.

[crashtestdummy]

I had a look when I had a 300p and couldn't find a supplier either.

[John]

You can use animal feed bucket covers. This one is for 20" buckets but you can get all sorts of sizes / colours on e.bay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bucket-Cover-for-horses-feed-water-Jumbo-buckets-/370437887861?pt=UK_Horse_Wear_Equipment&var=&hash=item563fd19775

Some are made of plastic but most are cloth. I got a black one a while back for an 8" dob.

[Steve Ward]

Strange that it only has one hard cover , my 250 had one for each section ... ?

Time to start sweet-talking Gina , her new 3-D printer's arrived ...  ]

Only does 200 x 200 mm though if I recall ... 

[mitchelln]

One thing about the SW cover is that it is breathable. If you seal these tubes up tight you may get damp problems bringing it in after a cold night possibly?

[emadmoussa]

You can use animal feed bucket covers. This one is for 20" buckets but you can get all sorts of sizes / colours on e.bay:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bucket-Cover-for-horses-feed-water-Jumbo-buckets-/370437887861?pt=UK_Horse_Wear_Equipment&var=&hash=item563fd19775

Some are made of plastic but most are cloth. I got a black one a while back for an 8" dob.

But..they seem similar the stock one...?

[Dude_with_the_tube]

once you get the shroud,you will not need 2 cups.i keep my shroud on all the time and tube collapses with it and as such only 1 plastic cover will be required.no issues so far with dust or particles landing on primary.

[emadmoussa]

once you get the shroud,you will not need 2 cups.i keep my shroud on all the time and tube collapses with it and as such only 1 plastic cover will be required.no issues so far with dust or particles landing on primary.

I actually received the black foam mat today...I don't think it'll be a good option. Only good if you don't have a choice. I'll get the shroud once back in stock.

[John]

But..they seem similar the stock one...?

I'm sorry emad. I didn't read your original post thoroughly enough and thought you were looking for another soft one 

That will teach me to post in too much of a hurry !

[emadmoussa]

I'm sorry emad. I didn't read your original post thoroughly enough and thought you were looking for another soft one 

That will teach me to post in too much of a hurry !

No worries I thought it was the case.

[Daniel-K]

unfortunate this is were they have you by the B****'S you really do need a light shroud. lucky for me my friend is an absolute wizard with a sawing machine and fabric and knocked me up a shroud the with a similar design to the astrozap one and made from rip stop material . and for the sum of £20 heres a pic. oh and i use the blue shoe covers see nurses wearing in hospitals to cover my secondary.

[emadmoussa]

I was actually thinking about using a microfiber pouch to cover the secondary....

[scarp15]

There is the astrozap elasticated and breathable dust cover, not cheap though, available through Teleskop Express. I purchased two of these to replace the hard plastic lids that came with my OOUK scope, which kept falling off. The astrozap seals the tube nice and tight so no chance of dust getting in and is easy to stash away when the scope is in use.

When I had a 300p flextube I quite liked the secondary nylon elastic dust cover combined with the hard plastic drum lid that fitted tight onto the primary.

The camping roll mat you could of course make into a dew shield, just use stitch on type 'hook and loop' and an adhesive (carpet type) spray.  

[Avocette]

Somewhere on SGL there's a thread about a member who bought the Flextube 300p OTA-only at a knock down price because it didn't have a matching mount and was missing some other accessories. I recall that two (white) plastic caps were found (maybe from emulsion paint tubs) which fitted well. Seems like you may have to improvise!

With my own Flextube 300p I've toyed with the idea of removing the rubber buffers between the primary tub and the secondary hoop so that the castings can touch each other instead of being separated by the 50mm gap, and using the single tube cap at the top of the whole assembly. I noted that Ade Ashford did something similar with his Flextube 300p after he reviewed it.

I have some Tesa brand white neoprene P section draught sealer which I planned to use on one edge to make a proper dust seal.

My only hesitation is that I suppose the rubber buffers were provided for a purpose, although I have so far not suffered the accident of letting the secondary hoop fall.

[emadmoussa]

There is the astrozap elasticated and breathable dust cover, not cheap though, available through Teleskop Express. I purchased two of these to replace the hard plastic lids that came with my OOUK scope, which kept falling off. The astrozap seals the tube nice and tight so no chance of dust getting in and is easy to stash away when the scope is in use.

When I had a 300p flextube I quite liked the secondary nylon elastic dust cover combined with the hard plastic drum lid that fitted tight onto the primary.

The camping roll mat you could of course make into a dew shield, just use stitch on type 'hook and loop' and an adhesive (carpet type) spray.  

Yep - I can use the mat as dew shieds for all my scopes..

[emadmoussa]

Somewhere on SGL there's a thread about a member who bought the Flextube 300p OTA-only at a knock down price because it didn't have a matching mount and was missing some other accessories. I recall that two (white) plastic caps were found (maybe from emulsion paint tubs) which fitted well. Seems like you may have to improvise!

With my own Flextube 300p I've toyed with the idea of removing the rubber buffers between the primary tub and the secondary hoop so that the castings can touch each other instead of being separated by the 50mm gap, and using the single tube cap at the top of the whole assembly. I noted that Ade Ashford did something similar with his Flextube 300p after he reviewed it.

I have some Tesa brand white neoprene P section draught sealer which I planned to use on one edge to make a proper dust seal.

My only hesitation is that I suppose the rubber buffers were provided for a purpose, although I have so far not suffered the accident of letting the secondary hoop fall.

Can you imagine the crash if the upper part slipped down if it weren't for the rubber buffer zone?! I think the direct impact might cause the secondary mirror to shatter...

[Avocette]

Well - I could imagine it if the spring balls that support the Flextube in the fully open position before you tighten up the toggle screws had been removed for some reason. Otherwise they do a good job of easing the secondary down towards the primary. By the way does your scope have the mysterious second set of detent holes in the truss rods ten or so cm from the ends?

[emadmoussa]

Well - I could imagine it if the spring balls that support the Flextube in the fully open position before you tighten up the toggle screws had been removed for some reason. Otherwise they do a good job of easing the secondary down towards the primary. By the way does your scope have the mysterious second set of detent holes in the truss rods ten or so cm from the ends?

Now since you mentioned it, I had a look. And sure thing...yes, there are holes in there.

[Avocette]

Speculation has it that these extra holes allow you to accurately shorten the primary mirror to focuser distance to match the extra optical path length of a binoviewer.

[mitchelln]

Now since you mentioned it, I had a look. And sure thing...yes, there are holes in there.

I was going to ask the exact same question! They definitely bring binoviewers into focus. Whether that is by design or lucky accident is anyone's guess

[JamesF]

Might be worth asking a few astro suppliers if they have one lying about at all.  Otherwise perhaps the lid from a food storage container of a suitable size might work?

I used two lids from some 10l paint cans for my 10" flextube, with a 3mm ply disc glued to the bottom and a handle on the top.

James