Right Angle viewer for Polar scope for telescope mount

pdentrem

Active User
H-M Supporter Gold Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2011
Messages
3,451
Anybody who has used a GEM - German Equatorial Mount, has complained about the straight through polar scope. It can be a knee and back breaker for many users. One basicly is sitting or kneeling on the ground with your neck bent at an crazy angle to look through the eyepiece.

On another site, a chap posted a site where there is a add on viewer that take cares of this. It is using a Right Angle viewer like what one sees on good SLRs. Well the light went one when I saw that, I have two of those. One is an Oylmpus and the other an off brand Karl Gener. I converted the Karl, less bucks involved. I made up an adapter that replaces the mounting system that originally attaches the piece to the viewfinder of the camera with a slip on piece that goes over the eyepiece end of the polar scope. Here are a few pictures showing the modification.

The mounting ring is held on with a simple nut with a large flange. It is the smaller black piece in the pictures. The mounting disk slips off and my new elongated one goes in it's place. I have not installed a setscrew as of yet, it does not actually need one as the fit to the scope is pretty good.
Pierre

backbreaker.jpg installed.jpg the basic parts.jpg adapter viewer.jpg
 
Back
Top