Rings...............

[FlashDrive]

2 X Rings ( 1 Set ) 162mm ( inside dia' ) to suit Intes MN56 .... or something that is very close to that.

The set I have on the MN56 is ' cast ' as a 1 piece unit ( can't separate them ) ..... I want 2 individual rings.

Closest I can find is 6.5 and 6.3 inches.....

Col...:)

[LewisM]

Buy 6.5 and add one extra layer of felt. Easy peasy lemon squeezy

[Wavytone]

Buy 6.5 and add packing. Beware though that Parallax rings are also cast, very thick, very ugly and quite heavy - try to find some that are milled out of plate instead.

A good alternative to felt is balsawood - head to Bunnings. At a guess you'll probably need a sheet of 1.5mm balsa, but many other thicknesses are available, and its easily laminated (eg 2 x 1.0 mm to make 2.0mm). Cut into strips perpendicular to the grain (so they bend easily) and glue these in place with some glue. Use rubber bands to hold them in place for a day or so while the glue bonds properly. Its also easily sanded or sliced with a craft knife so if the rings are a tad tight, remove some of the balsa.

I have used this before in rings, and it is firm so it won't crush, yet soft it won't scratch the paint, and like felt you can easily slide the OTA to adjust balance.

If the rings have felt, leave it in place and again head to Bunnings, you'll need a large store not the small suburban ones. Look for a pack of velcro electrical cable ties - these are typically a flatpack of 6 multicoloured narrow strips maybe 150 long. The point is these are quite narrow, about 1-2mm thick, have one side that will grip felt, and the other side is the usual soft velcro. Black velcro double-sided tape would also do, but it's wide so you'll probably want to cut it to size - which is not easy.

I also have some 1.5mm cork strips left over from a model railway but cork tends to be quite "grippy".

[FlashDrive]

hmmmm, that's a reasonable course of action ...may just go that way...!!




I do like the ' wood ' style of ring setup .... seen a few on CN...Classy Looks. Thanks for the idea on this solution ...will consider this also.

Col...:)

[LewisM]

Be careful with wood - you get dew, they leach tannins and stain the tube. I wouldn’t. I’ve seen cork stick to objects and ruin paint. Felt can too.

[FlashDrive]

OK Mate ...:)

[Wilso]

Try Peter Tan he has a large selection on his web site!

[FlashDrive]

Thanks Wilso :)

[LewisM]

I just noticed the 6.3's you are looking at are Parallax...ick...errrr, his felt is SOOOOOOOOOOOOO thick, adding anything I think could introduce instability honestly.

You could ask him to mill them to size, and to use thinner felt than he usually uses.

Or Peter Tan.

What's wrong with the Intes cradle anyway? If you need to mount something else, there are other ways than using seperate rings etc. Think outside the box :)

[FlashDrive]

There are no ' threaded ' holes in the top of the rings ... and further more the ring ' assembly ' is fixed at around 5" inches apart.....I want separate rings so I can spread them further apart and fit a dove tail on top to mount a ' Telrad ' ....I don't want to ' stick ' the TR to the Scope using the ' double sided tape ' which is supplied.

I was not going to buy Parallax Rings .... yes, they are too thick and chunky...the pic was posted as an indication of what I could only find.

Col... anyway ....Bump.

[UniPol]

I have a pair of 6.5" Parallax rings if you are still interested Col.

[5ash]

The rings on the celestron power seeker 127 are 162 mm. I have one ring only and just measured it.
Regards philip



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