Eye relief saver II

[Ben the Ignorant]

My other thread about keeping eye relief to the max was getting long, and this is about another kind of eyecup, so I started a new one. In case you want to read the previous thread:

 

The remainder of the eyepieces in my set feature more sensible eyecups that don't drag the whole eyepiece's outside chassis along with them when they spin. Those of the Nirvana/TS/William type have an internal mechanism boasting good firmness, one could leave it as is. Accessing the slot seems to require a lot of dismantling, always a bit risky, so I took no chance; these are complex and not cheap optics. Contrary to those oculars I worked on before, removing the rubber didn't expose the gears:

Better let it be, the cup has a very smooth and silent motion (no gritty sound), but so firm it never spun when I didn't want it to.

 

Same for my 3.5mm, 5mm and 9mm Myriads. Lifting the cup uncovers no mechanism, and performing a takedown on an expensive 8- or 9-lenses eyepiece is not reasonable, especially since I'm not sure if these are waterproofed or not. I'm showing only one but all three are topped by the same flange-and-glue retention system:

 

The Aero/Paragon on the other hand, seemed to have an accessible gear assembly as you see on this somewhat blurry shot (sorry for that). Can it be modded, too? Is the cup super-glued? Didn't know yet but lifting the cup brought to light the same oblique slot as before:

Also apparent is how some types of rubber are dust magnets. This one is sticky and soft, those with a more polished-looking surface and harder texture don't catch dust like this. The Myriad's rubber doesn't catch dust.

 

Removing the cup uncovered a triple-slot mechanism, one would be enough but maybe this is what makes the motion so very firm and very smooth at the same time.

 

Filling just one slot with a piece of electric wire totally jammed the cup, it does not have the slightest play. Recurving the wire before sliding it in there makes the job easier.

Funny how a soft material behaves as a totally rigid one when it's not allowed to yield in any direction, and so helpful! The wire needs to have the right thickness to fill the slot without making it difficult to reinsert the cup. It didn't fully return into place immediately, a short part of its circumference made a bulge because of the wire. Pulling it up and down a few times forced the wire completely into the slot, and once the rubber has totally slided down, everything is tight. Pulling off the cup is still possible by a motion of the fingernail, maintainance or restoring the mechanism for sale is not precluded.

I could have lived without that mod, but if your Aero's cup are too loose, or if you want to never bother with a field-rectricting cup, this mod might help you.