Astro-Tech 125mm Finder/Photoguide Ring Set For Use On Losmandy-Style "D-Plate" Dovetail, Green Rings Black Base

This product is discontinued.  This is here for informational purposes only.

This Astro-Tech 125mm guidescope ring set mounts a refractor up to 115mm o.d. on an optional Losmandy-style "D-plate" dovetail that has been piggybacked on your main scope so that the small refractor can be used as a finderscope, photoguide, or astrograph . . .

So I had some parts laying around and decided to make a mashup set of rings.  These function as they should, but they have a different colored base.

This anodized Astro-Tech 125mm finderscope/photoguide ring set allows you to mount a 100mm to 115mm refractor optical tube on an optional Losmandy D-series dovetail plate that has been installed piggyback on a larger telescope. The set lets you use the small refractor as a high power/variable power finderscope for your larger telescope; as a photoguide scope for long exposure deep sky photography; or as a wide field astrograph that is guided through the main scope.

The Astro-Tech 125mm ring set consists of two 125mm i.d. rings mounted on Astro-Tech #ATDAB Losmandy-style "D-plate" adapters. A single hand-tighten knob clamps each Astro-Tech #ATDAB adapter firmly in place on your Losmandy-style dovetail, but allows the rings to be quickly repositioned along the dovetail so you can balance your smaller scope fore and aft as needed with no tools required. A three-legged lever on each adapter's knob shaft lets you tighten the knob securely when wearing gloves or mittens. The levers also make it easier to loosen the clamps should cold weather cause the metal to contract and the adapter to bind on the dovetail.

There are three hand-tighten adjustment screws with non-marring Delrin tips in each ring. These allow you to collimate the small refractor with the main scope optics when it is used as a finderscope, or to aim the refractor off-axis to locate an appropriate guide star or photographic target when it is used as a photoguide or astrograph.

The rings have a nominal 125mm (4.92") internal diameter and will hold small refractor optical tubes with an o.d. of 100mm to 115mm. This size range allows the small refractor to be collimated with the main scope (if the refractor is being used as a finderscope), while still allowing for a reasonable amount of off-axis aiming to find a guide star (if the refractor is being used as a photoguide). The larger the o.d. of your small refractor, however, the less off-axis aiming capability you will have for guiding.

The ring set has a total weight of 2.4 lbs. Each ring weighs 19.2 ounces, including its attached #ATDA adapter. The height from the top of the main scope's dovetail plate (not the top of the #ATDA adapter) to the center of the rings is 3.2" (81mm). The rings and adapters are anodized black for good looks and durability.

Short (7.9") Astro-Tech Losmandy-style "D-plate" dovetails are available in forest green (#ATDUPS) and black (#ATDUPSB). Long (13") Astro-Tech Losmandy-style "D-plate" dovetails are available in forest green (#ATDUP) and black (#ATDUPB). The black versions will let you color-coordinate this ring set with your dovetail.

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