tim kent
member
Reged: 03/05/06
Posts: 32
Loc: Northumberland UK
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Daryl,
Simple job to drill and tap for good quality 5mm allen screws, NOT Chinese c**p!
Only mod inside the back casing was to lightly file the mirror bracket as that just fouled the bottom screw but other than that plenty of room.
My intention is to now drill holes to correspond with the allen screw heads to reduce the number of times I need to remove the back case to collimate. Obviously collimation is done at the factory before the casing is assembled (or glued together in your Celestrons case)
Like we've said before scopes should come with warning "If you want into this unit don't expect the manufacturer to have made it easy" 
Regards...Tim
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If only I had bought a bigger one!
Skywatcher 200
MCT 130 Motormax
Got it now
Meade LX90 10"
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marty
sage
Reged: 02/14/06
Posts: 284
Loc: Colorado, USA
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Tim, thanks for the pictures! You confirmed what I suspected in that the Konus 130 is identical to the Celestron C130, inside and out. I noticed you thought the casing was glued in the Celestron, but it isn't. Just a ring of glue around the rear lens retaining ring in the case of my scope, otherwise, the same three screws hold the rear casing on. The Celestrons do seem to have an extremely, impossibly tight fitting focus knob, with the Celestron trademark on the rear of it, which makes it a nightmare to remove. It looks like this is the only difference between the scopes, other than the paint and logo. You have really "taken the ball and run with it" in regards to this scope. When you are done, I know all of us would like to see how everything worked out at the rear of the scope, in relation to the new holes in the rear casing/housing if possible. Thanks again for the pics...
marty 
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darylf96
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/28/04
Posts: 1432
Loc: Danville, California
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Well, Tim, when you are done you will have a scope as it should have been from the factory, with a means for collimation. In my opinion, no scope should be manufactured that cannot be collimated by the user. It is such a basic necessity and so critical, especially for scopes designed to be operated at high magnification.
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Intes Micro MN66 - Meade 10" SCT
Orion EON 120mm ED f7.5 Apo
Skywatcher 150mm f8 Achro
G-11, CG5A-GT Mounts
DM-6 With Sky Commander DSC
Astro-Tech AT80 Refractor f6.9 APO
Stellarvue 20x85 binos - Unimount
Kunming United Optics 7x50 binocs
Canon Rebel XT, Canon 20D, Canon 7D, Canon SXi
SBIG ST-8XE
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marty
sage
Reged: 02/14/06
Posts: 284
Loc: Colorado, USA
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Exactly Daryl! You hit the mark, I mean scope, aah, you hit the nail on the head! The Celestron and Konus CEOs and managers + engineers should be forced to read this excruciatingly long thread several times, front to back, and see if they can learn something from the consumers' point of view. In the case of the Celestron, perhaps the scope would not have gotten such a bad reputation right off the bat. I betcha they have taken a loss on the scope, simply because they failed to consider some simple changes that would have let the scope be taken seriously by the astronomical community, IMO. Cloudy Nights should be required reading for all manufacturers. Those that do, seem to be doing OK. The ones that don't, suffer for it, and make the same mistakes over and over again, IMO. I'm not trying to bash the manufacturers as much as I'm trying to offer constructive criticism for future reference. These 130 scopes have a lot to offer, after a lot of hammering, drilling, punching, kicking, tweaking, etc...
marty 
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darylf96
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/28/04
Posts: 1432
Loc: Danville, California
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I have 2 SCT visual back adapters that work great, but I have to use 2 inch SCT diagonlas. I wanted an adapter so I can also use 1.25 diagonals. Someone on this thread directed me to Mercury Systems online. I bought the visual back from them and received it yesterday. Well, it is not the correct threads for the C130. It fits other popular Maks. It is so nicely made, though, that I thought I might get an adapter made so I can use it on the C130. However, when I tried to slip a 1.25 diagonal in it, it would not fit! The inside diameter of the adapter is too small. I received an email that mine was the first shipped, thanking me for my purchase and requesting me to email them with any comments or gripes that I might have. So I shot off an email warning them not to ship any they have made without checking them out. Hope they have not shipped a bunch of them.
--------------------
Intes Micro MN66 - Meade 10" SCT
Orion EON 120mm ED f7.5 Apo
Skywatcher 150mm f8 Achro
G-11, CG5A-GT Mounts
DM-6 With Sky Commander DSC
Astro-Tech AT80 Refractor f6.9 APO
Stellarvue 20x85 binos - Unimount
Kunming United Optics 7x50 binocs
Canon Rebel XT, Canon 20D, Canon 7D, Canon SXi
SBIG ST-8XE
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marty
sage
Reged: 02/14/06
Posts: 284
Loc: Colorado, USA
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Thanks for the info, and for sending them an email, Daryl. I also placed an order with Mercury Systems. I think its the same item, and I just sent an email asking about the situation. With my luck, the thing probably shipped already. I can feel the bile rising in my stomach, and I feel a migraine headache coming on. Doesn't anything go smoothly with these scopes? I'll let you know if they respond. I haven't heard from them for a couple of weeks.
p.s. Do you happen to know the part # or catalog # of the item you ordered??? I originally ordered a #MAK102 visual back for 102-130 Chinese Maks ($32), then I changed it to a #MAK/SCT visual back thread adapter ($24.95).
marty 
Edited by marty (03/10/06 04:57 AM)
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darylf96
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/28/04
Posts: 1432
Loc: Danville, California
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Marty:
It is the $32 Mak 102 compression ring adapter that I bought, so you will not have my problem. Here is the item I bought, which looks great but, unless they have caught the error, has an inside diameter just a bit smaller than a 1.25 inch diagonal or EP.
http://www.finefocuser.com/mak102.html
I think that the adapter you purchased is not for a C130 or C90 visual back. It is larger in diameter, and fits Synta, Orion and other Chinese made Maks. It is a size somewhere between the C130 treads and SCT threads. The adapter you need is the Large Accessory Adapter for C90 and C130. I will find the site I bought it from and get it to you.
Here is where I got SCT thread adapter. It is under ETX accessories. The item is "large accessory ring" $24.95.
http://www.scopetronix.com/
While I was checking out this site, I ordered a Meade 1.25" visual back that threads to the above adapter. This allows direct use of 1.25" diagonals, etc. It is under the LX scope accessories. Also ordered an ETX T-adapter that fits on the stock threads of the C130 (the ETX threads are the same). This will work better than the Celestron C90 T adapter, which moves the camera pretty far back from the scope and always seems to have some play in it, no matter how well you tighten down the sleeve to the threads on the scope. This is true when used on the C130, because the threads do not protrude enough for the adapter to be locked down tight, so it still wants to rotate. The ETX T adapter does not have a tube between the T adapter and the fitting to the scope - it is a ring that threads right onto the scope and the T adapter threads directly to the adapter. Should work much better for prime focus photo work.
--------------------
Intes Micro MN66 - Meade 10" SCT
Orion EON 120mm ED f7.5 Apo
Skywatcher 150mm f8 Achro
G-11, CG5A-GT Mounts
DM-6 With Sky Commander DSC
Astro-Tech AT80 Refractor f6.9 APO
Stellarvue 20x85 binos - Unimount
Kunming United Optics 7x50 binocs
Canon Rebel XT, Canon 20D, Canon 7D, Canon SXi
SBIG ST-8XE
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Gendo
Post Laureate
Reged: 12/12/05
Posts: 4350
Loc: Rexburg, ID
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Marty and Daryl,
I completely agree that being able to collimate these scopes is necessary, as it is with any good telescope. I don't buy into that myth that these telescopes have to be collimated with some special test bench and computer because the focal point must be at an exact place. When you think about it the focal point changes depending on your object's distance from you, so that argument rings hollow. As long as the meniscus lens/secondary mirror doesn't appear to be off center or angle, it really isn't that difficult to adjust the primary mirror. It just takes a while from having to repeatedly take the plastic cover off and on in order to adjust those collimation screws/nuts.
I'm definately thinking about following Tim's plan eventually so collimation is easier.
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Justin
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darylf96
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/28/04
Posts: 1432
Loc: Danville, California
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Gendo:
Yes, If I get into this cope to remove the glass seal to the rear visual back (I don't care about the glass sealing the upper visual adapter, since I don't use it anyway), I will see just how much I'm willing to take on regarding swaping the collimation screws for longer ones and drilling holes for external adjustments. It would be a vast improvement on this scope. I really don't have much in the way tools for this sort of work. I build computers, which takes a couple of screw drivers. Anyway, we will see how our good friend Tim fares in his project. He can be our mentor.
--------------------
Intes Micro MN66 - Meade 10" SCT
Orion EON 120mm ED f7.5 Apo
Skywatcher 150mm f8 Achro
G-11, CG5A-GT Mounts
DM-6 With Sky Commander DSC
Astro-Tech AT80 Refractor f6.9 APO
Stellarvue 20x85 binos - Unimount
Kunming United Optics 7x50 binocs
Canon Rebel XT, Canon 20D, Canon 7D, Canon SXi
SBIG ST-8XE
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darylf96
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/28/04
Posts: 1432
Loc: Danville, California
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Guys:
Here is the adapter I bought from Mercury Systems. It is the wrong thread size (my fault), but worse, the inside diamater is too small for 1.25 accessories. It is useless. I can't believe they would ship this item without checking to see how a diagonal or ep would fit in it. I just hope that they have not shipped out hundreds of these adapters.
--------------------
Intes Micro MN66 - Meade 10" SCT
Orion EON 120mm ED f7.5 Apo
Skywatcher 150mm f8 Achro
G-11, CG5A-GT Mounts
DM-6 With Sky Commander DSC
Astro-Tech AT80 Refractor f6.9 APO
Stellarvue 20x85 binos - Unimount
Kunming United Optics 7x50 binocs
Canon Rebel XT, Canon 20D, Canon 7D, Canon SXi
SBIG ST-8XE
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marty
sage
Reged: 02/14/06
Posts: 284
Loc: Colorado, USA
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Thanks for the info Daryl. I sent an email to Mercury Systems asking for clarification about the adapters, and their thread compatability with the Celestron C130 / Konus 130 5" Maks. They are taking this situation seriously. I wonder if the factory in China used the same sized threads throughout their production run? I think these C130 Maks are as irritating to the after market manufacturers as they are to us. I also think my C130 is going to be spending a lot of time in the closet, until this gets straightened out.
p.s. I just got an email from Joseph @ Mercury Systems, it says that your adapter was the first one off the production line, and they haven't shipped out any others yet. He is double checking them as we speak, and that the tolerances are pretty tight.
marty 
Edited by marty (03/11/06 05:16 AM)
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darylf96
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/28/04
Posts: 1432
Loc: Danville, California
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Marty:
Not just a tolerance issue. A hammer would not help. The opening in the adapter is just short of 1.25". I am sure that the adapter you ordered is the same diameter and will not fit your scope. It looks like Mercury Sys. does not have any accessories for the C130. I have solved the problem with the SCT ring and an SCT 1.25" adapter. Accomplishes the same thing and looks good.
--------------------
Intes Micro MN66 - Meade 10" SCT
Orion EON 120mm ED f7.5 Apo
Skywatcher 150mm f8 Achro
G-11, CG5A-GT Mounts
DM-6 With Sky Commander DSC
Astro-Tech AT80 Refractor f6.9 APO
Stellarvue 20x85 binos - Unimount
Kunming United Optics 7x50 binocs
Canon Rebel XT, Canon 20D, Canon 7D, Canon SXi
SBIG ST-8XE
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marty
sage
Reged: 02/14/06
Posts: 284
Loc: Colorado, USA
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Thanks for the info Daryl. I guess I can put my hammer away. I was getting it warmed up to work on the C130 again...
marty 
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tim kent
member
Reged: 03/05/06
Posts: 32
Loc: Northumberland UK
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Hello all again,
Drilling and screwing completed, I have roughly collimated from the rear getting the baffles in line and it looks fairly good from the front.
I was hoping by now to have finished but no clear sky now for about two weeks, so it sits there all ready to go but.... 
Here is a photo of back case on and with long allen key in one of the drilled holes and the other two indicated by my beautiful assistant(  ).
IMO this isn't the be all and end all of modifications, but it will at least minimize the removal of the case during collimation.
Regards.....Tim
--------------------
If only I had bought a bigger one!
Skywatcher 200
MCT 130 Motormax
Got it now
Meade LX90 10"
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tim kent
member
Reged: 03/05/06
Posts: 32
Loc: Northumberland UK
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Weather closing in on us here....nothing to what you must get but bought us to a standstill here....no chance of sky watching tonight or collimating 
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If only I had bought a bigger one!
Skywatcher 200
MCT 130 Motormax
Got it now
Meade LX90 10"
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Starman1
Vendor (EyepiecesEtc.com)
Reged: 06/24/03
Posts: 17639
Loc: Los Angeles
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Quote:
I have 2 SCT visual back adapters that work great, but I have to use 2 inch SCT diagonlas. I wanted an adapter so I can also use 1.25 diagonals. Someone on this thread directed me to Mercury Systems online. I bought the visual back from them and received it yesterday. Well, it is not the correct threads for the C130. It fits other popular Maks. It is so nicely made, though, that I thought I might get an adapter made so I can use it on the C130. However, when I tried to slip a 1.25 diagonal in it, it would not fit! The inside diameter of the adapter is too small. I received an email that mine was the first shipped, thanking me for my purchase and requesting me to email them with any comments or gripes that I might have. So I shot off an email warning them not to ship any they have made without checking them out. Hope they have not shipped a bunch of them.
Well, Scope City has a rear-cell photo adapter that threads on the 130mm Konus Mak's rear cell (made by Parks) that has a 1-1/4" I.D. and has been tapped and threaded for a setscrew to hold a 1-1/4" accessory as well as camera accessories. It is known as a "Modified Camera Adapter", and it also fits a C90. If you call Scope City to find the adapter, refer to it as a Modified adapter and they will know what you need.
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Don Pensack
www.EyepiecesEtc.com
12.5" Teeter/Zambuto, 5" Maksutov
Sustaining Lifetime IDA member
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marty
sage
Reged: 02/14/06
Posts: 284
Loc: Colorado, USA
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Thanks for the info Don, this gives us another source for C130 parts. I just got an email from Joseph at Mercury Systems, he is busy modifying and double checking his adapters (on a Sunday!) to make sure they fit the Celestron and Konus 130. He seems to be conscientious about making sure everything is alright. I'll post more info when I get it. Hopefully Daryl can exchange his parts or find a new home for them.
Tim, thanks for the pictures, it gives us an idea of where to drill the holes in the rear casing, and how it looks upon completion. I was wondering, did you use a drill press to re-tap and drill your holes, or did you use a hand drill?
p.s. I didn't know you could get that much snow in the UK!
Thats what it looks like here in the Colorado mountains right now!
marty 
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darylf96
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/28/04
Posts: 1432
Loc: Danville, California
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Don:
Thanks for the info. This is what I thoght I was getting from Mercury Systems. But I will be sending the adapter back. Since I have SCT ring and have ordered the 1.25" adapter for it, I should be fine. Actually, I think it was a thread of yours that led me to order a JMI NCF Mini 1.25" focuser, which I shold be receiving soon. This should enhance the scope siginficantly.
Tim: That is a nice job you did making your scope collimatable. You will need to find a little plug for the holes. Looks like a worthwhile project.
--------------------
Intes Micro MN66 - Meade 10" SCT
Orion EON 120mm ED f7.5 Apo
Skywatcher 150mm f8 Achro
G-11, CG5A-GT Mounts
DM-6 With Sky Commander DSC
Astro-Tech AT80 Refractor f6.9 APO
Stellarvue 20x85 binos - Unimount
Kunming United Optics 7x50 binocs
Canon Rebel XT, Canon 20D, Canon 7D, Canon SXi
SBIG ST-8XE
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tim kent
member
Reged: 03/05/06
Posts: 32
Loc: Northumberland UK
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Marty,
The way to get the drilled holes in the right place is when you have the back plate off, screw it onto the the plastic casing and the with a long screwdriver or something very hot, mark the plastic casing from the inside where the screw holes are located, then remove the casing and with a sharp drill bit do the business. Sharpness is the key as the plastic will tear if the drill bit is dull.
Obviously a drill press is the best way for drilling but with care a hand drill will do just as well.
Daryl,
3 small rubber grometts will finish off the job there.....should we ever get to see the stars again
Regards.....Tim
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If only I had bought a bigger one!
Skywatcher 200
MCT 130 Motormax
Got it now
Meade LX90 10"
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GalacticDream
member
Reged: 05/07/05
Posts: 47
Loc: Victoria BC, Canada
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alright... I went and shattered some useless glass in my konus 130 tonight. and noticed that when I went to reattatch the stock 45 degree to the rear port that the threads wouldn't tighten up at all! even with some tape I can't get them to tighten up... but it's on there, anyways. i'm having a hard time figuring out which parts you guys are using to allow the use of aftermarket 90 dielectric diagonals from the rear port. it seems there's one, two, or three ways to go about it... maybe even four! which one comes reccomended?
cheers, modding scopes is kinda fun!
Blake
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part of the Modified Konus Mak club!
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