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Choosing a gift for sky maniak


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18 minutes ago, Peter77 said:

would be a solar filter.

Take advice on what to get - you can get some that screw onto Eye pieces, but they are considered unsafe.  Best plan would be to check any solar based purchases for safety by asking questions on SGL before spending any money.

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10 minutes ago, JOC said:

Take advice on what to get - you can get some that screw onto Eye pieces, but they are considered unsafe.  Best plan would be to check any solar based purchases for safety by asking questions on SGL before spending any money.

Rest assured, I would never buy a solarfilter that screws on the eyepiece. I didn't think that such were sold to be honest. No, what I intend is of course the kind that is fastened over the objective.

Would not want anything to shatter inside the scope because of intense heat buildup (diagonal, eyepiece) now would I!

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Throws in a link aswell:

Was recommended by an observer, regarding solar filters, that glass filters of high quality was the best. I should say though that I have no experience with the Baader solarfilm that was mentioned earlier, so might be a good option as well.

I've heard that this line of Astrozap glass filters is good. You have to know the outer diameter of the tube though so not only the aperture.

https://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/index.php/cat/c61_Solar-Filters-for-white-light.html

 

Also, if you're in the UK you might want to consider a UK retailer such as FLO because of the shipping cost. Not sure what Teleskop Express would charge for shipping to the UK?

But atleast it should give you an idea what to look for. :)

Edited by Peter77
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I bought a solar filter that looked like the one you mentioned @Domcia I was very satisfied as I was sure it was better than any I could make myself. I had to stick something to the plastic housing to make sure it fitted snugly enough that it couldn't be blown out by the wind. I was a little nervous at first and I always held the filter in my hands and looked through it at the sun before I put it on the telescope to make sure it wasn't damaged. 

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4 hours ago, Philip R said:

If you want to be safe then I would suggest investing in a Herschel Wedge, but you need to make sure it includes a built-in ND3.0 filter. Above is an image of my white-light solar setup.

I didn't think Herschel wedges could be used with Mak-Casses like the Skywatcher 90mm.  I would think the baffles or secondary spot could be damaged by the heat buildup.

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7 hours ago, Louis D said:

I didn't think Herschel wedges could be used with Mak-Casses like the Skywatcher 90mm.  I would think the baffles or secondary spot could be damaged by the heat buildup.

Thank you for your concern @Louis D - looking at the 'scope mentioned in the intro by @Domcia, it is a refractor.

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10 hours ago, Philip R said:

Thank you for your concern @Louis D - looking at the 'scope mentioned in the intro by @Domcia, it is a refractor.

Sorry, the only google hits I got in the US for Skywatcher 90mm were like the following:

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Searching deeper, I finally found the Skywatcher Evostar 90 AZ3 Telescope in the UK and Australia, but none in the US:

spacer.png

I don't think it's imported to the US because Orion USA, Meade, Celestron, Rokinon, and Levenhuk all import a similar telescope.

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A Herschel-wedge can be used with a refractor only, preferably a doublet.  Also, the focusser, including the draw-tube, and the objective-cell retaining the doublet-lens at the front of the tube, and perhaps the dew-shield even, should all be of metal.  All of the entry-level refractors coming out of China nowadays come with plastic objective-cells, and quite a few come with plastic focussers and draw-tubes.

For those who disagree, do so at the telescope's risk.

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