Darn it - scope fell !!!!!!

[alan potts]

John,

Sorry to hear this I know exactly how you feel, it happened to me some time back. Strangely with much the same  damage though my eyepiece was not so lucky.

Alan.

[John]

It's reassuring that I'm not the only one to have done something like this - thanks for the posts of support

Thnking back on it, it was changing scopes in a hurry that was my undoing. I don't usually have dew issues but my ED120 had eventually dewed over after a few hours outside and the comet had just hove into view so I replaced the ED120 with the 102 Vixen to have a quick look at the comet before turning in. 

I've ordered a TV eyecup extension which should cover up the damage to the 32mm plossl and the scope is now up and running again with just some damage to the paint on the dewshield to show for it's adventures.

I've got the 12" dob out cooling now and that won't fall off it's mount !

[Stu]

It is easily done John. I managed to catch the Vixen as it slid through the dovetail the other night. I observe on grass though so much less risky!!

Good news on the 32mm

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[alan potts]

John

The thing now is you will find yourself tightening it up so tight and then checking it about ten times every two minutes to see it is OK  With me it was such a shock and it all seemed to happen in slow motion, not that I managed to catch the dam thing you understand.

I think I am loosing interest anyhow, the sky is clear and I have said no not tonight, but it is minus 9 at the moment and going down to minus 16 tonight. Can I be forgiven?

Alan.

[Beulah]

Alan,

It's too cold out there to go out!

I have hiked before in minus 20 centigrade temps before (During a cold snap in Britain a few years back) but you HAVE to keep moving.....

[Moonshane]

I think you'll really like the eyecup extender John. It makes a great eyepiece even better imho.

[Stu]

I think you'll really like the eyecup extender John. It makes a great eyepiece even better imho.

I agree Shane, a very good little contraption :-)

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[spaceboy]

While I'm gutted to hear the news John I'm kinda glad also. I know you have some damage but you also got to look on the positive side too. 5' is some way to fall and the fact that the objective is still in one piece and only minor cosmetic and repairable damage I'd be counting my blessings.

Your not the first and you will no doubt not be the last to have  a mishap in mounting a scope. I know I came close last night but reading similar threads in the past I got myself in the habit of double check and check again to make sure, which on this occasion paid off. As others have said though it pays also to regularly check everything stays tight as the cold can shrink stuff just enough that gravity can take hold.

[Astro_Baby]

It must be scary - never had it happen (yet !).  Something I have noticed though is that even with an ADM clamp on the mount sometimes after an hour or so you can feel some slack creeping in when its very cold.  Probably thermal contraction but I always periodically keep rechecking the tension on stuff like that to make sure its all firm and tight.

Closest call I had was a Rumak scope on test dropping out of the saddle while I was testing something indoors.  No1 son did a rugby dive across the room and managed to grab the scope as it fell free.  Wish I could have had that on a video cos he was like Neo in the Matrix - just dived across me and grabbed the scope as it fell in mid air. Problem was the scopes dovetail was slightly too thin for the ADM to get a good grip on it - it seemd ok when locked on but in fact was very slightly loose - loose enough to let go eventually.

[orley]

Sorry to hear about your scope. It's not nice when it happens.

Take a look at this:

http://www.peak2valleyinstruments.co.uk/page_3175728.html

I had a play with a prototype, was as rock solid as they come. The dovetail snaps in and locks in place with absolutely no chance of slippage. Made in the UK too.

[John]

Thanks for the link orley.

Yes I've seen the P2V system - it might be an excellent idea for my 6" F/12 refractor. I think it's too much for the Vixen 102 through - the scope only weighs around 7 lbs.

[Vince1963]

That's not good John i had a similar thing happen scope was secure But EP fell out of diagonal   

[Macavity]

As a quick fix (Stop Skywatcher bars sliding out?) put the (sometimes added) "mystery bolts" into the "mystery holes". 

OK, it seems they are there to correct for "cone errors" (qv). Maybe so... But "Not a lot of people know that"? 

[moriniboy]

A simple idea would be to use a long zip tie through the dovetail and around the clamp, just need to cut off at the end of the night.

[moriniboy]

Just tried the cable tie method out with a 3.5kg Vixen on a TAL tripod.

As you can get 100 ties of eBay for less than £2 posted I'm going to adopt this method in future when using my heavier scopes.

Before

After with full weight of scope and clamp released

[Physopto]

Beware cable ties are notorious for snapping in cold weather. I used them for all sorts of things when at sea. But! cold weather causes them to become brittle when least expected. The idea is good but maybe the nylon type woven straps used on camping gear may be preferable. I use an aluminium  clamp permanently fitted on the dovetail (just where the cable tie is shown) to set the stop/balance position. This allows easy positioning each time. I always cradle the scope horizontally in my arms and do up or release the dovetail clamp with my hands in that position, so I can see what is happening. I can also feel the release of the dovetail clamp to the dovetail. You can feel it lock off or start to rock as it loosens off. Unfortunately would take two to do a larger diameter scope. Mine is a WO 132.

Derek

[swamp thing]

Only just seen this. 

What a shocker John, Glad its not as bad as it could have been.

[John]

Thanks again for the supportive posts and suggestions folks - very much appreciated and it's great to be part of a community like this

A quick update on the TV 32mm plossl, which took the brint of the fall. On Shanes suggestion I ordered a Tele Vue Eyecup Extender. They are not cheap considering there are no optical elements in them but they are really well made and finished to the usual extremely high TV standards. In short, it's worked perfectly. The 32mm plossl looks like new again with no signs of it's adventures visible with the extender fitted. The extender includes a new rubber eyecup so the damaged original has been consigned to my "spares" box. I got a new 2" TV dust cap with the extender so I now have a spare to go on the 2" barrel extension on my 13mm Ethos. The 8mm extension to the 32mm plossl eye cup is very welcome because the eye relief of the eyepiece is just a bit too long for the standard eyecup position and a little "hovering" was required which I prefer not to do if possible. The full FoV is visible with the extended eyecup in the up position but I can always roll it down if required for a more immersive view.

So a good outcome on this particular issue despite a little expense

[RichM63]

Phew, when this thread title popped up in Recent Topics, I thought, 'what, not again!!!).

Good to hear that you have a positive outcome.

[Dude_with_the_tube]

only just saw this post and initially i thought, that it was your 6" istar what fell off the mount! gosh! Doesnt really matter what scope it is as it is still a shocker.Thankfully you have managed to walk away with little damage John and I am glad all worked out fine for you mate and i am sorry to hear that something like that actually happened.Will be a good lesson for all of us to check everything before we turn our back to our precious instruments!

Clear skies.

[DaveS]

Having read this thread I now take extra care when mounting my rig, and try to pull it off the mount after doing uo the screws. If it doesn't budge in any direction I then feel safe to leave it, but perhaps some sort of lock might be worth investigating.

[philj]

Only just found this thread. Ouch John, I know from experience the shock of hearing a scope hit the floor. Glad youve got things sorted.

I had a 6" OO astrograph fall through a WO saddle plate. I tightened the clamp up solid, turned around, then crash, the scope had slipped out of the saddle. Turns out my saddle had been machined too close and would not clamp solidly onto a cge dovetail. Luckily all was well, OO scope was built like a tank, just needed recollimating and after discussing the clamp with wo I ended up milling some meat off the clamp. But I am still wary of fitting scopes and always double check security

[Moonshane]

only just saw this post and initially i thought, that it was your 6" istar what fell off the mount! gosh! Doesnt really matter what scope it is as it is still a shocker.Thankfully you have managed to walk away with little damage John and I am glad all worked out fine for you mate and i am sorry to hear that something like that actually happened.Will be a good lesson for all of us to check everything before we turn our back to our precious instruments!

Clear skies.

Had it been that scope Gaidis, we'd have felt the vibrations across Europe. 

[AndyH]

Jeez !!

Thought I'd replied to this thread earlier, but no.

Horrible thing to happen, John. Damage is damage, but thank the gods nothing REALLY bad occurred.

My Klev once slipped from 3ft to my toes. It hurt. It hurt real bad. Scope laughed and mocked.

Andy.

[John]

Thanks again folks

The worst case scenario would have been the Istar with the 31mm Nagler in the diagonal. That might have caused a small shift in my local tectonic plate as well as some air pollution and localised climate warming from blue language used

A Kevtzov on the toes from 3 ft would hurt Andy

The Russians know how to do "tough" though .....