I have just removed 55mm from my new Tak tube !! and.......

[iPeace]

Meanwhile...Steve, our resident OP, has a beautiful new Tak and an unexpectedly ideal way to bino-view with it!

Looking forward to reports once the mounting bits are sorted.

[F15Rules]

1 hour ago, iPeace said:

Meanwhile...Steve, our resident OP, has a beautiful new Tak and an unexpectedly ideal way to bino-view with it!

Looking forward to reports once the mounting bits are sorted.

Too right!

Steve, you do know you will have to post an objective comparison between Andromeda (5" F15 D&G USA achromat for the un-initiated?) and your new Tak?

Of course, I'm thinking here image quality, contrast, sharpness etc, not an unfair comparison of a 5" glass against a 4"..

Have you come up with a name for the Tak yet?..perhaps, given the title of this thread, "Tireon"?

Enjoy your first light and can we have photos of her mounted and ready to go please when your "fitting device" has arrived ??.

Dave

[Saganite]

1 hour ago, F15Rules said:

Too right!

Steve, you do know you will have to post an objective comparison between Andromeda (5" F15 D&G USA achromat for the un-initiated?) and your new Tak?

Of course, I'm thinking here image quality, contrast, sharpness etc, not an unfair comparison of a 5" glass against a 4"..

Have you come up with a name for the Tak yet?..perhaps, given the title of this thread, "Tireon"?

Enjoy your first light and can we have photos of her mounted and ready to go please when your "fitting device" has arrived ??.

Dave

I will do my best, but as the previous owner of my beautiful 5" f15 and now  a Takahashi FS128 you know that it is going to be a tall order, as you have said that the D&G gives virtually nothing to the FS128 in terms of sharpness and contrast, and image quality, and the big 5" will easily take 100x per inch of aperture.

Like most refractor owners, I feel something special about a 4" , how could I not ,when for a good part of my life I longed for a good 3" thanks to Sir Patrick , but always felt that financially it was beyond my reach.That a top quality 4" is now mine is very special, and for me , will not be in competition with my 5". The comparison though will be interesting.

Edited June 4, 2018 by Saganite

[Saganite]

2 hours ago, iPeace said:

Meanwhile...Steve, our resident OP, has a beautiful new Tak and an unexpectedly ideal way to bino-view with it!

Looking forward to reports once the mounting bits are sorted.

Thank you for the mention Mike. I thought it a good idea to present my new Takahashi 4" in a different way, but never expected the thread to take the course that it did.

Unfortunately, my initial euphoria has been a little crushed because I seem to need much more in- focus than I have and yet there is nothing else I can remove.Focusing on objects just 30 feet away is all I can do, beyond that , I cannot bring anything to focus, so I will wait until the scope is properly mounted and then try objects in the sky.

[iPeace]

5 minutes ago, Saganite said:

Unfortunately, my initial euphoria has been a little crushed because I seem to need much more in- focus than I have and yet there is nothing else I can remove.Focusing on objects just 30 feet away is all I can do, beyond that , I cannot bring anything to focus, so I will wait until the scope is properly mounted and then try objects in the sky. 

I'm sure you'll get it sorted in due course, Steve. All the more interesting.

[Alan White]

I am surprised based on the number of Tak owners here on SGL that no one else has had the same issue Steve.
As you say get it mounted (treads lightly hoping it does not set things going again) and see how it goes.
Good luck with it and keep us all informed.

 

[Stu]

10 hours ago, Saganite said:

Thank you for the mention Mike. I thought it a good idea to present my new Takahashi 4" in a different way, but never expected the thread to take the course that it did.

Unfortunately, my initial euphoria has been a little crushed because I seem to need much more in- focus than I have and yet there is nothing else I can remove.Focusing on objects just 30 feet away is all I can do, beyond that , I cannot bring anything to focus, so I will wait until the scope is properly mounted and then try objects in the sky.

That’s a shame Steve. Can you post images of the setup so we can try to help? As far as I’m aware it should be perfectly possible to reach focus without barlows or GPCs. I can do it but use a Feathertouch although I believe the Tak focuser is capable of the same. It may be that a T2 diagonal will help, and with certain binoviewers you can attach directly to the diagonal, again saving optical path length.

[Saganite]

1 hour ago, Alan White said:

I am surprised based on the number of Tak owners here on SGL that no one else has had the same issue Steve.
As you say get it mounted (treads lightly hoping it does not set things going again) and see how it goes.
Good luck with it and keep us all informed.

 

Cheers Alan,

 

It is probably me being a bit dim !

[Saganite]

52 minutes ago, Stu said:

That’s a shame Steve. Can you post images of the setup so we can try to help? As far as I’m aware it should be perfectly possible to reach focus without barlows or GPCs. I can do it but use a Feathertouch although I believe the Tak focuser is capable of the same. It may be that a T2 diagonal will help, and with certain binoviewers you can attach directly to the diagonal, again saving optical path length.

Hi Stu,

Since I posted my set set up at the start of the thread I have removed an additional sleeve, so that , as you can see the 2" adapter fits straight into the focuser now. I don't know if it is possible to put a shallower fitting on the T2 prism, but even if it were, I think the bino nosepiece would hit the prism. At the moment, I can only think that I need to change to the 1.25" Tak prism.

Unless I am being extremely dumb, and missing something. 

All help would be welcome.

[Stu]

1 hour ago, Saganite said:

Hi Stu,

Since I posted my set set up at the start of the thread I have removed an additional sleeve, so that , as you can see the 2" adapter fits straight into the focuser now. I don't know if it is possible to put a shallower fitting on the T2 prism, but even if it were, I think the bino nosepiece would hit the prism. At the moment, I can only think that I need to change to the 1.25" Tak prism.

Unless I am being extremely dumb, and missing something. 

All help would be welcome.

Thanks Steve. So with this setup, no GPCs or barlows, you can’t reach focus at infinity? Will it work with a GPC?

Which brand are the binoviewers, Denk? Can you get a T2 adaptor to fit them directly to the Prism?

[Stu]

There may be some useful info in this thread if you haven’t seen it already...

 

[Saganite]

Hi Stu,

Neither of my OCS's enable focus to be reached, which is a bit odd as Denkmeier's are supposed to.

However, I set the telescope up, removed the 2" adaptor, and held the bino and diagonal assembly against the threads of the focuser. This allowed me to reach focus on trees at about 200m, and that is far as I can see with the scope resting on the breakfast bar, but that is a step in the right direction. By measuring the gap between the diagonal and the focuser, the 2" adaptor would need to be reduced by 9mm. I think there is just enough 'meat' on the adaptor for me to do this and still be able to re drill and tap the clamp screws. I now will have to wait for the clamshell to be able to focus on infinity, to ascertain how much more would need to be removed and depending upon that result, whether or not it is feasible.

I will investigate the possibility of an adaptor to connect the bino directly, because eliminating the clicklock on the T2 would save more than enough in focus.

[mikeDnight]

This is my solution! I can get a tad more in-focus by using a SW low profile 2" to 1.25" adapter. However, I have to admit I'm much more prone to use higher powers and a Barlow with my Tak and binoviewer. I'm pretty happy with mono views of star fields and nebulae.

 

 

[Stu]

That looks neat Mike. I have to agree, widefield views may be over-rated in binoviewers, they are much better suited to mid and higher power views where they can counteract floaters very effectively.

EDIT What is strange is that Steve is struggling to reach focus even with an OCS. I will have a look at my setup, hopefully tonight to see how it differs

[F15Rules]

Hi Steve & all,

I wonder if this might help Steve? If you search for a recent thread of mine on Cloudy Nights, title below, and found in the refractors forum (sorry, I can't cut and paste the thread link on my android while in Malta!)..

"Tak FS128 and binoviewers - a question"

I was very kindly offered help from a CN member who advised I would need the following parts, see photos below, plus a Baader T2 prism.

He then very kindly sent me the prism and the ultrashort eyepiece clamp as a gift!

I haven't bought the first item as yet #2558230, as I want to try the setup with my x1.6 Barlow nosepiece first, but I can say that the back focus available has increased noticeably this way, ie using the Ultrashort clamp.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a clear sky to test on before I came away on holiday so don't know how much actual back focus I will be left with using the above Baader part.

Steve, does your Denk BV accept a T2 thread at the scope end? If so, you could thread it directly onto a Baader T2 prism and save focus there?

If it does have a T2 thread, I can loan you a Baader T2 1.25" prism to try out before committing to a purchase ?...

Dave

 

[Stargazer McCabe]

@Saganite Should you wish to try all of the 3 items mentioned in Dave's post above drop me a PM. The prism is the standard, T2 32mm rather than the BBHS version, but it does the job...

I'm close to Baldock in Hertfordshire, and have all 3 bits so you can try before you buy...

I also have mounting hardware here awaiting the impending arrival of my FC-100 DF...

Edited June 5, 2018 by Stargazer McCabe

[Saganite]

Stu, Mike, Dave, and stargazer McCabe,

I really appreciate your efforts to assist, and particularly of interest are the adapters in Dave's post, so I have sent a PM to Stargazer McCabe, who lives just a twenty minute drive away along the A1, to avail myself of his generous offer. 

Stu,

I am confident that the OCS's with my bino will work with a bit more study.I can't help thinking that I have probably removed too  many sleeves for them to do so, and so a bit of experiment is in order, but only after I have achieved use at native focus, that for me is paramount.

With a bit of luck, the Clamshell may well arrive tomorrow, I have been informed. 

 

[Stu]

Good luck Steve, hope you get sorted.

If it helps, this is my setup which works natively, helped by the direct T2 connection between Binoviewer and T2 BBHS mirror diagonal (could be any T2 diagonal or prism)

[Saganite]

Something very similar is what I think is needed , Thanks Stu.

[Saganite]

15 hours ago, F15Rules said:

Hi Steve & all,

I wonder if this might help Steve? If you search for a recent thread of mine on Cloudy Nights, title below, and found in the refractors forum (sorry, I can't cut and paste the thread link on my android while in Malta!)..

"Tak FS128 and binoviewers - a question"

I was very kindly offered help from a CN member who advised I would need the following parts, see photos below, plus a Baader T2 prism.

He then very kindly sent me the prism and the ultrashort eyepiece clamp as a gift!

I haven't bought the first item as yet #2558230, as I want to try the setup with my x1.6 Barlow nosepiece first, but I can say that the back focus available has increased noticeably this way, ie using the Ultrashort clamp.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a clear sky to test on before I came away on holiday so don't know how much actual back focus I will be left with using the above Baader part.

Steve, does your Denk BV accept a T2 thread at the scope end? If so, you could thread it directly onto a Baader T2 prism and save focus there?

If it does have a T2 thread, I can loan you a Baader T2 1.25" prism to try out before committing to a purchase ?...

Dave

 

Hi Dave,

These seemed to be the perfect answer, but I have realized that they will not work for me , as the thread on the focuser tube of the FC100DC is M56.

However, I have just ordered from FLO, the Baader Ultrashort 1.25"-T2 clamp, which with a light path of 11mm should save me about 15mm over the T2 clicklock that is currently fitted to the prism diagonal.

That, I hope will sort the problem, if not, I have the hacksaw ready ! 

[Stu]

6 minutes ago, Saganite said:

That, I hope will sort the problem, if not, I have the hacksaw ready ! 

I suspect that one of the few things missing from @Peter Drew ‘s CV is taking his hacksaw to a Tak, so be careful!!  

[Peter Drew]

A Sky90 came close but it was so short already that another way had to be found. Top cuts so far have been a Vixen 4" Flourite and a 7" Astrophysics.

[Stargazer McCabe]

42 minutes ago, Saganite said:

However, I have just ordered from FLO, the Baader Ultrashort 1.25"-T2 clamp, which with a light path of 11mm should save me about 15mm over the T2 clicklock that is currently fitted to the prism diagonal.

Steve, Just musing out loud here, but do be very careful that any nose-piece inserted into this doesn't touch your prism. I'm not saying it will. It is just that I have seen @iPeace and @John make mention of using spacers when cyclops viewing to avoid eyepieces being inserted too far in conventional holders. Let alone "ultra short" ones... 

The Baader Quick Change adapter and a Bayonet Fitting as Stu showed would avoid any risk of the nose-piece being inserted too far if the Denk's nose-piece can be exchanged for the bayonet..?

Edited June 6, 2018 by Stargazer McCabe

[Saganite]

33 minutes ago, Stargazer McCabe said:

Steve, Just musing out loud here, but do be very careful that any nose-piece inserted into this doesn't touch your prism. I'm not saying it will. It is just that I have seen @iPeace and @John make mention of using spacers when cyclops viewing to avoid eyepieces being inserted too far in conventional holders. Let alone "ultra short" ones... 

The Baader Quick Change adapter and a Bayonet Fitting as Stu showed would avoid any risk of the nose-piece being inserted too far if the Denk's nose-piece can be exchanged for the bayonet..?

Cheers Simon, but I have thought of this, which is what the hacksaw is for. The nosepiece on the Denk will take a little trimming, as will the Tak 2" adapter.

All millimetres in the right direction.

You surely didn't think it was the Tak Tube did you ?   

Edited June 6, 2018 by Saganite

[Stargazer McCabe]

2 minutes ago, Saganite said:

The nosepiece on the Denk will take a little trimming.

I take it the nosepiece can't be removed for these to be utilised Steve ?

https://www.baader-planetarium.com/en/baader-(tcr)-hardened-steel-t-2-changering-(t-2-part-07).html

https://www.baader-planetarium.com/en/baader-t-2-quick-changer-with-zeiss-micro-bayonet-(t-2-part-06).html