Guest poddy Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 I just purchased 2 rolls of flocking paper from Wilkos for Dobbie and I was thinking about somewhere safe to store the primary and secondary/spider whilst they out of the tube. From other people's experience, where did you keep them? I was thinking of just getting a box with lid that's large enough for them both. Would this do? Do you cover the mirror surfaces with anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz Type-R Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 When I flocked mine (well Martyn and I flocked it) I gave the primary a clean and then just left it out on the side while it dried, the secondary was also just left on the side, as soon as we finished flocking it we put the primary and the secondary back in, so I would say unless you live in a really dusty house (or have kids, dogs, cats, parrots ETC), just leave it out on the side while you flock it. The 40-50 minutes its left out on the side will not make any difference what so ever while you flock your OTA. Also, DO NOT cover the mirror surfaces with anything, that may do more harm than good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 Flocking doesn't take long, I done my 16" dob in about 1 hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted October 29, 2015 Share Posted October 29, 2015 Interesting thread Andy. I've been wondering the same thing. I was planning to keep my mirrors in sealed tupperware for however long is necessary. I'll be doing other mods too. Fitting a new focuser, secondary edge painting, Fan upgrades, secondary dew heater fitting for starters. It won't be for a few weeks anyway till i'm walking properly again. After it's done, i'll be cleaning the primary as well. (that will be another topic for discussion !) Btw, i'm planning on getting my flocking material from here : http://www.abmshop.co.uk/self-adhesive-flock-material-8-c.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest poddy Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Looking forward to seeing you mods Rob. I plan on doing the same thing, although the focuser upgrade and Dew heaters/controller will have to wait until after Xmas. The flocking paper from Wilkos is exactly the same as the type as sold by FirstLight. It's very black indeed. I'm going to be going flocking nuts as I intend to do not only the scope, but also the focuser tube and the finder. I'm unsure as I should paint the mirror edges or not. I'm scared to get any paint on the mirror surfaces. Not even sure the best way to go about it. Is it just a case of placing the mirrors upside down on a piece of paper and carefully painting the edges, you reckon? Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Its just the secondary edge i'll be painting Andy, not the primary. Just need to be really careful. Its only a 50mm secondary, so shouldn't take long to paint. You could place it on paper. I'm not sure of the best way ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BAZ Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Keep the mirror surface upwards, so paint doesn't drip onto it....ever. I did mine with a Sharpie, much more control over what you put and where. If you have any doubt you might not be confident doing this, then don't, it really won't make that much difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 I did mine with a sharpie as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Thanks for the advice Martyn, point taken. Forgive my ignorance, but what is a 'Sharpie" ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Thanks for the advice Martyn, point taken. Forgive my ignorance, but what is a 'Sharpie" ? +Bino-viewer 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest poddy Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 Thanks for the advice guys. Think a Sharpie is the way to go for me too Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 My flocking material arrived today Andy (from ABM Flocking) http://www.abmshop.co.uk/self-adhesive-flock-material-8-c.asp I have a 5 metre roll which is 650mm wide. That should be plenty for my 280 / 1500mm tube, even if i make a pigs ear of it and have to start over. How is your Dob coming along ? Good luck with it if you've not yet started. I'll have a crack at mine over the weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest poddy Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 On 11/17/2015, 11:28:42, Bino-viewer said: My flocking material arrived today Andy (from ABM Flocking) http://www.abmshop.co.uk/self-adhesive-flock-material-8-c.asp I have a 5 metre roll which is 650mm wide. That should be plenty for my 280 / 1500mm tube, even if i make a pigs ear of it and have to start over. How is your Dob coming along ? Good luck with it if you've not yet started. I'll have a crack at mine over the weekend. I've started my flocking but haven't had chance to finish it off as of yet. Hopefully will get it finished this week whilst I'm off work. Here's a few pics of my progress so far. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7WycxiS4-nEdWEzc0ZTa2lsdGc/view?usp=sharinghttps://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7WycxiS4-nELXhld04wd3R5WEU/view?usp=sharinghttps://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7WycxiS4-nEM3NjenhudWZrUzg/view?usp=sharinghttps://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7WycxiS4-nEaGJYbzhnU1E5WTQ/view?usp=sharinghttps://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7WycxiS4-nEc0NVZlRSUW1HMWc/view?usp=sharing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 Nice work Andy. I've only flocked one scope, and it is a bit daunting when you've never done it before. I got a nice sense of achievement when I did mine, and then felt I could flock just about anything Don't forget to finish it off by flocking the inside of the focuser drawtube, it is a bit fiddly but worth doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest poddy Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 I know exactly what you mean Pete. I tried flocking the top half in one go but very quickly gave up on that idea, so decided to do it in strips. It's not perfect by any means. There are some creases in it but it shouldn't cause any real issues I hope. I intend to do the inside of the draw tube like you say, but I'm also considering doing the outside too. Minus the areas where the bearings run, of course. I'm also considering flocking the finder too. I must be mad Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 (edited) Got the odd crease in mine, but that won't make any difference. If I did it again I could probably do it better without creases. Even I didn't think about flocking the finder, but that could certainly be a good idea. Thanks for the suggestion I wouldn't bother doing the outside, you'll never find the scope in the dark . It looks great in white anyway Edited November 24, 2015 by Tweedledee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest poddy Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 I meant the outside of the focuser tube not the OTA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 I hadn't planned on flocking the inside of the focusers drawtube : a. because i'm assuming Moonlite's are designed well enough not to require it. I'll soon find out. b. i'm planning on using a wrap around type of dew shield on the end of the tube. This should keep stray light reflections at bay anyway. c. ( most importantly ) I will be inserting more than just eyepieces into the focuser. To use a binoviewer system i will need to use a OCA / GPC (to extend lightpath) which will go deep into the drawtube (and in some cases out the other end) so there will be no room down there for flocking material Nice idea though.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 1 hour ago, Bino-viewer said: I hadn't planned on flocking the inside of the focusers drawtube : a. because i'm assuming Moonlite's are designed well enough not to require it. I'll soon find out. b. i'm planning on using a wrap around type of dew shield on the end of the tube. This should keep stray light reflections at bay anyway. c. ( most importantly ) I will be inserting more than just eyepieces into the focuser. To use a binoviewer system i will need to use a OCA / GPC (to extend lightpath) which will go deep into the drawtube (and in some cases out the other end) so there will be no room down there for flocking material Nice idea though.... My new 3" focuser is threaded all the way inside the big drawtube. This helps baffle reflections and can be used to thread in a 3" coma corrector for permanent use - another ridiculously expensive item . So like your Moonlite, no point flocking it. Your idea with the extra dew shielding on the end of the tube will be brilliant to help with dew protection as well as stray light Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 I hope so Pete ! Back in 2002 i owned another OO 10" : my first proper scope in fact. This was the faster F4.7 version. I remember having secondary dewing issues back then. OO tubes (to me) are always a little short. The focuser is mounted quite close to the top of the tube, leaving the secondary a bit exposed. I have a secondary dew heater to try out. I can use any generic wrap around to go with it. These are usually darkened too. Every little helps. Btw, i'm making a trip tomorrow over to OO in Stoke to pick up the mount Quite excited ! Maybe first light tomorrow !!! Theres a full moon of course.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted November 24, 2015 Share Posted November 24, 2015 Glad you are finally getting your mount Rob Drive carefully, hope you don't need to do an emergency stop. +Bino-viewer 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest poddy Posted November 25, 2015 Share Posted November 25, 2015 Wish I could afford to replace the focuser but that's going have to be sometime in the future. Good luck with your new mount Rob. I'm a Stokie boy myself Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) More progress to report on the Newt. Removed the secondary, the primary, the 2 end trim sections and the finder bracket fitting. Cleaned the dust & other debris out of the tube. Its a long tube : 1550mm long / 280mm wide. I decided firstly to blacken the edge of the secondary using the aforementioned 'sharpie'. Easy. Looking at the secondary, it may need a clean. Bit of dust on it, and my blower bulb would not shift it. Also i noticed what looked like a 'sleek' on it. (a tiny, very fine line like scratch ) I'm not overly concerned about this at the moment. The primary looked much more dusty. The previous owner stored it on a deep pile carpet... Quite a few of what looked like carpet fibres on the mirror. Some blew off with the bulb, some stayed put. I will be cleaning the primary soon. No, not by putting it in the dishwasher. Plenty of good tutorials on YouTube to help me here. The primary, going back to the OPs question, is in sealed tupperware . Edited December 3, 2015 by Bino-viewer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Bino-viewer Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) On to the flocking. I have a 5m roll thats around 70cm wide. So i'll need 2 and a bit pieces to finish the tube. Worked out the circumference of the tube measures 87cm. Bigger than i thought. Cut the first section and asked my missus to 'assist'. Mistake. She suggested standing the tube upright, then peeled off the backing and (standing on a step) lowered the paper into the tube and attempted to sick it down. Total mess. And is this stuff sticky ? Aborted. Take 2. I take over, she goes to bed. My method is to cut off a 2 inch section of backing paper, and stick this bit down by reaching down the tube. Not easy. The secret was to lie the tube on the floor, peel off a bit of backing paper, then turn the tube, and stick the paper down bit by bit. Better, but my initial section was slightly off straight, and by the time i had gone around the circumference, i was out by a couple of inches. The perfectionist in me was not happy. I lost it a bit & ripped it out. Not happy. Take 3. Same method, but this time i ran the initial section along the tube seam to guide me. this was a big help. It went on nice and straight without a hitch. Quite pleased with it. looking at it, flocking a 1550 by 280mm tube is no easy task. You really have to get deep inside the tube, and are working blind at times. The flocking paper i've used is very good. Very fine, and there are no loose fibres. And when its stuck, it absolutely stays stuck. http://www.abmshop.co.uk/self-adhesive-flock-material-8-c.asp I then returned the secondary, and the top tube piece of trim. So far, so good. Halfway there. Edited December 3, 2015 by Bino-viewer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tweedledee Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Nice job and we'll done. It certainly is a long tube to reach into. When storing the scope after observing I use one of these over the mirror end to prevent dust and spiders etc from getting in. I also chuck in a big bag of dessicant... http://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p5106_Astrozap-Dust-Cover-for-10--Newtonian-and-Dobsonian-Telescopes.html +Bino-viewer 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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