Coronado Christmas 🎅

[Solar B]

Well tis the 25th of June 🎄 😀

Brian 

[Highburymark]

Wow - very nice Brian. Congratulations! Thoughts of creating a Coronado 60mm Solar binocular come to mind (with a PST as the ultimate solar finder..).? Sadly presume  not possible as SMII and SMIII otas so different?

[Solar B]

6 hours ago, Highburymark said:

Wow - very nice Brian. Congratulations! Thoughts of creating a Coronado 60mm Solar binocular come to mind (with a PST as the ultimate solar finder..).? Sadly presume  not possible as SMII and SMIII otas so different?

Thanks Mark ... no the SMII & SMIII are vastly different scopes ...  early days but I'm obviously testing them alongside each other , however the III does have the preferred configuration of 2 externally mounted etalons and you know how heavy that can be 😀

Brian 

[Highburymark]

Very interested to hear your comparisons Brian. Unfortunately absolutely zero to look at in ha solar at the moment - despite beautifully clear day

[Peter Drew]

I think it's only possible to make a binocular from the PST using dedicated units, it should be possible using front etalon and blocking filter sets as the spacings are not confined.  I built a PST binocular years ago, the performance was excellent, I eventually went to buy a used SM60 and took the binocular for a comparison, even the seller had to admit that the binocular gave the better view.      😀

[Solar B]

I am a huge PST fan (I own 2) and I recall that the PST binos were all the rage about 

10 yrs or so ago and have tried them and they were good but it was an instrument that 

I couldn't take seriously and you were restricted to that BF size what is better and much 

more comfortable/portable imho would be an SM60 with a binoviewer (BF10/15).

Many years ago Coronado produced a Canon IS bino with 2 SM40s / BFs integrated into 

them (for short period of time) Markus Ludes went one better and mounted a pair of

 SM60s onto a pair of Kowa Highlanders !

I have even seem an image of a CAK PST binos to.

Brian

 

 

[Peter Drew]

I agree that a single unit with a binoviewer is a better option than a Ha binocular in larger sizes, specially on the grounds of cost!.  The slight light loss incurred by binoviewers is of little consequence for solar viewing.         🙂

[tico]

For example, a binoviewer with one PST is a good option ?

Tico

[Solar B]

On 26/06/2020 at 21:38, tico said:

For example, a binoviewer with one PST is a good option ?

Tico

Yes it would , but bringing a PST to focus with a binoviewer will/could be an issue.

Brian 

[Peter Drew]

12 hours ago, Solar B said:

Yes it would , but bringing a PST to focus with a binoviewer will/could be an issue.

Brian 

I've found that a SW 2x Barlow, just the lens in its black cell, screwed on to the nosepiece of the binoviewer  allows focus.  There is an increase of image scale of course but the image is bright enough and seems to increase the apparent field of the original 5mm blocking filter to that of a 15mm blocking filter without the Barlow.  This has the benefit of a high magnification image without the appearance of looking through a straw.  I use a Barlow and 5mm blocking filter on my 150mm F10 PST mod with excellent results.    🙂 

[tico]

Peter,  the Sky Watcher 2X Barlow is 1.25" or 2" ?

Thanks

Tico.

[Peter Drew]

The 1.25".     🙂

[Rusted]

Trying to hang a binoviewer off a standard PST eyepiece receptacle might lead to an expletive laden outburst.

[Or words to that effect.] 😱

Let's be safe out there.

[Peter Drew]

My binoviewers are attached to the PST eyepiece receptacle with just the single nylon locking screw but I'm fitting it to a Coronado diagonal not the unit provided on the standard PST.  The binoviewer is always between vertical and horizontal so cant fall out and benefits from being able to smoothly twist it to suit the eye angle.  The important bit is to make sure that the nosepiece of the diagonal is firm enough to hold the weight of the binoviewer plus eyepieces, I have 4 locking screws like a 4 jaw chuck to achieve this.     🙂 

30 minutes ago, Rusted said:

Trying to hang a binoviewer off a standard PST eyepiece receptacle might lead to an expletive laden outburst.

[Or words to that effect.] 😱

Let's be safe out there.

 

[Peter Drew]

@Solar B.   I'm sure you are right Brian, I've never tried fitting a binoviewer to a PST, my comment was based on larger aperture PST mods.     🙂

[Solar B]

2 hours ago, Peter Drew said:

@Solar B.   I'm sure you are right Brian, I've never tried fitting a binoviewer to a PST, my comment was based on larger aperture PST mods.     🙂

Understood Peter 😃 both Siebert and Denkmeier did offer dedicated correctors for

PST  bino viewing ... however I have never achieved it but it would be good and I do 

think that the regular PST EP holder would be adequate "Rusted" even with the corrector 

in place 👍

Brian 

[Rusted]

1 hour ago, Solar B said:

Understood Peter 😃 both Siebert and Denkmeier did offer dedicated correctors for

PST  bino viewing ... however I have never achieved it but it would be good and I do 

think that the regular PST EP holder would be adequate "Rusted" even with the corrector 

in place 👍

Brian 

Really? I tried to use the TS GPCs with my TS binoviewer but they were undersized for 1.25"
Presumably to allow them to be inserted deeper and more easily into assorted eyepiece sockets.
As such it was impossible to safely support the binoviewers in the standard PST.
So I drilled, tapped and added further thumbscrews to the PST socket without enjoying much greater success.
Having soon modified my PST I had no further need of the PST body and its inadequate eyepiece socket.
The TS star diagonals have compression bands and are thus quite capable of supporting a binoviewer.

[MarsG76]

Very nice looking piece of gear....

[Craney]

 

Ever considered a Lunt  ?.........   no...maybe an inappropriate question.....

[Solar B]

27 minutes ago, Rusted said:

Really? I tried to use the TS GPCs with my TS binoviewer but they were undersized for 1.25"
Presumably to allow them to be inserted deeper and more easily into assorted eyepiece sockets.
As such it was impossible to safely support the binoviewers in the standard PST.
So I drilled, tapped and added further thumbscrews to the PST socket without enjoying much greater success.
Having soon modified my PST I had no further need of the PST body and its inadequate eyepiece socket.
The TS star diagonals have compression bands and are thus quite capable of supporting a binoviewer.

No fair enough Rusted your engineering prowess is undeniable .... I've only really 

tried a magi max in the holder with a bino viewer before but the images of the Denk 

and Siebert correctors in situ i've seen looked ok , I guess I'm going on the fact that 

the EP holder is housed vertically and cannot be rotated like a diagonal but 

the volume that holds the EP is ultimately the same as any 1.25" ?

Brian 

 

 

[Solar B]

10 minutes ago, Craney said:

 

Ever considered a Lunt  ?.........   no...maybe an inappropriate question.....

I've owned 3 x LS60s  .... 2 x 50mm stacks and an LS50 and didn't like any of them 

so yes I'd rather be castrated 😅

Brian