Nikon 2 x 54 Binoculars - Teleconvertors TC-E2.

[tooth_dr]

After seeing a thread posted by @DaveL59 where there was a pair for sale in Oxfam, I decided that I needed a set.  A newly acquired 3d printer may have tipped me over the edge!  I picked up 2 lenses on ebay from private sellers, and genuinely these items look like there were never used, packaged with the felt bag and lens caps, the optics are totally pristine.

I found a design on Thingiverse for the holders and eyecups, but after printing I realised that the eyecups bits needed to be soft/rubber to fit over the rear of the lenses so I had to bin them.   The body design is good though, and I am grateful for the designer sharing this.  I had a look at lens, and thought I could design an eyecup that would screw onto the rear of the lens and hold the printed body securely in place without glue.  I measured the thread for the rear lens caps to be M28 x 0.75mm, and added this manually to the thread folder in Fusion 360.  I've only been using design software for 3 weeks so I'm pretty chuffed at the finished eyecup to be honest.  The body could be printed a little more refined, but I painted it in 'steel car wheel paint' so it kinda works.  The eyecups I painted in Halfords black camouflage paint which dries a nice flat matt finish.

I've had a quick look through these today and I'm impressed with the clarity right out the edge of the FOV.  Cant wait to try them out at night.  I was concerned that there may be collimation issues, but the plastic printed holder does a great job of keeping them aligned with each other.

Just thought I would share my Xmas project!  A step towards visual and away from imaging (but maybe I can print an M28 to M48 camera adapter 😇)

 

Best wishes

Adam

[DaveL59]

very nicely done Adam! 🙂

[markse68]

Nice job Adam   I was out with mine last night showing my mum a few sights and she absolutely loved them- much more than the pentax bins i’ve given her- might have to build another pair 😉

Mark

Edited December 28, 2020 by markse68

[PeterW]

I fitted mine in with double sided tape and I use the winged eyecups from the designer, work nicely, can use them hands-free if you lie on the ground.

Peter

[tooth_dr]

31 minutes ago, PeterW said:

I fitted mine in with double sided tape and I use the winged eyecups from the designer, work nicely, can use them hands-free if you lie on the ground.

Peter

I really wanted to avoid tape in case it eventually degraded and marked the bodies, and I just prefer that security from a screw fit.  I’m not an observer but I used them last night and they are fantastic.  I normally go out at night for a quick look before I open up the dome, I will be using these from now on, really enjoyable seeing more vibrant star colours, and having a quick look at the surrounding farms and towns. 

[Pixies]

I did the same and found the 3-d printed eyecups were too hard to fit.

However, I found a pair of eyecups from an old junk pair of binoculars that fitted. This also means I have some caps to keep the dust out.

 

 

[Moonhawk]

I have just bought a couple of TC-E2s (waiting for them to be delivered) and I have 3d printed the frame.  The eye cups in the OP look interesting and i'd love to try them - did you ever share them back to Thingiverse?

Edited February 17 by Moonhawk

[Moonhawk]

Continuing from above - I ended up designing my own screw in eye cups using FreeCAD.  They can be downloaded using the link below (i'm still tweaking the design - so may be subject to change, but from my trial prints - it screw fit is pretty good).

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6490064