Dew shields

[meddyliol]

I have been reading a lot about the need for a dew shield on Skymax Maks. They seem quite expensive though, are they really necessary? and if so, could one be made at home?

Cheers

Brian  

[swamp thing]

You'll certainly need one on a mak

You can make one easy enough out of a camper mat bought for a few pounds from a camping shop.

[meddyliol]

Thanks, I already have one of those. What does a dew shield look like? How Big? Where does it go etc?

Sorry for being so stupid but I am trying to save money.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

A dew shield is really just a tube, as can be seen below. I was given the Celestron one for my birthday years back but would have settled for a home-brew one (like the big finder on this C8)

A typical length is roughly twice the aperture of the scope (so about 40cm on my C8). Much longer becomes cumbersome, much shorter ineffective.

[meddyliol]

Thank you for that  

[Frenchgow]

Certainly agree about a dew shield for a mak ,my SW 150 pro mak ,until i made a dew shield from a camping mat used to frustrate the hell out of me ,the nights viewing would be ruined very quickly,i also found that a heater strip around the front was also a great help,good luck Gow

[SteveB72]

A dew shield really helps. I made the one in the photo from some rigid plastic I had in the garage and although it is quite long I have since had no more problems.

The pink leopard patern onesie is also recommended by my daughter if you like that sort of thing.[emoji1]

[NGC 1502]

Some of the ready made dewshields are way too short.   You can save money and make a better DIY version from the previously mentioned camping mat foam.

It's often recommended to make it 2.5 or 3 times as long or even more, as the telescope aperture.   I like the one in post # 7.

Regards, Ed.

[SteveB72]

The black rigid plastic is from a plastic loader for putting leaves in a black bin liner. You can pick them up from a garden centre for about £10, they are big enough to make at least 4 if you don't get it right first time.