Atomic Dawg
newbie
Reged: 04/16/09
Posts: 3
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I have a very early Meade ETX-125EC and the secondary baffle has fallen off onto the primary mirror. The primary mirror now has glue residue on it. Also, there's some glue residue on the meniscus lens.
I called Meade and they were no help. In fact, they made it clear they wanted nothing to do with me. I asked if I could buy a new adhesive ring for the baffle and they said "no".
So, what's my best course of action? I need to attach the baffle and remove the glue residue from the meniscus lens and primary mirror. Thanks for your help!
Click on the pictures below to see a larger image. The glue residue is easier to see when viewed at 100%.
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Arthur Dent
Galactic Hitch-Hiker
Reged: 10/23/08
Posts: 1184
Loc: South Yorkshire, UK
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Welcome, Atomic, to Cloudy Nights and the ETX forum in particular.
Any "repair" is likely to be expensive - getting glue  off the primary mirror and lens doesn't even bear thinking about!
Re-coating the mirror seems to spring to mind as any action taken to remove the "gunk" from the mirror is likely (in all probablity) to damage the surface.
As far as the lens goes, is the lens UHTC coated - possibly. The coating is likely on the INNER surface (or both - I don't know) but again, any action taken to remove the "gunk" from here will probably damage the coatings.
Might be worth contacting Mike Weasner for his advice. Here's a link to his site in case you were not aware of it.
What Mike doesn't know about the ETX isn't worth knowing!
A provocative idea - is the scope covered on your house contents insurance policy? If you "accidentally" knocked the tripod over, you could end up with a new scope!
Seriously though, ANY remedial work on this is likely to be MEGA BUCKS 
Art
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If I like it, the wife says that we can't afford it!
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Meade ETX105 (a nice "Grab & Go" scope) & Celestron NexStar 6SE with Bob's Knobs.
Various EP's from 6mm to 26mm, Baader Hyperion 8-24mm Zoom, a 2x Barlow, 2" diagonal and 7Ah PowerTank.
MRF and Antares 8x50 RACI finder scope - both for the 6SE's OTA, whilst the ETX gets a plain RDF.
Canon EOS 400D DSLR (un-modded) and SPC900 webcam. Finally climbing the AP Learning Curve!
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rmollise
Post Laureate
Reged: 07/06/07
Posts: 4585
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Unless there is a huge amount of glue on the primary, don't worry about it. It won't do pea-turkey to harm your images. Glue the baffle back on, getting what you can off the corrector without causing futher damage. I'd suggest a strong glue, but one with some "give."
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Uncle Rod
Rod's New Book:
Choosing and Using a New CAT
Available now!
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Atomic Dawg
newbie
Reged: 04/16/09
Posts: 3
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Quote:
From Arthur Dent
As far as the lens goes, is the lens UHTC coated - possibly.
Thanks for the welcome! I don't think the lens has the UHTC coatings. I think these coatings came with newer scopes. I got my scope when the ETX-125EC first came out. In fact, I got the first ETX-125EC that came in at the Discovery Store near where I live. (Costa Mesa, CA)
Quote:
From rmollise
I'd suggest a strong glue, but one with some "give."
Thanks for the advice! Do you (or anyone else) suggest any particular brand/type of glue?
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sang33ta
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 07/08/08
Posts: 767
Loc: UK
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I'd try cotton bud with nail polish remover. Don't blame me if it damages the mirror though I've only used to get pen/biro off a cream leather sofa but it worked fine without damaging the cream paint 
For glue with some give I'd try a rubber adhesive like UHU.
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Hioptic 152mm f12.5 Maksutov, CG5-AGT, Meade Super Plossl Set, Casio QV-2900UX
Edited by sang33ta (04/17/09 07:56 PM)
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Bob Myler
sage
Reged: 05/18/06
Posts: 224
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Atomic Dawg, this is yet another sad reminder on the current state of Meade. If one were the owner of an early model Tele Vue Pronto - in need of factory repair - would ANYONE imagine such a flippant response coming from Al Nagler, or anyone who works for him?
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Boom
member
Reged: 01/11/08
Posts: 66
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It was a known issue of early ETX90RAs that had secondary baffles which slipped over time due to a weak glue/tape. I remember reading on Weasner's site that many people retrofitted new 3M tape to their baffles and I think Meade even provided the parts.
http://www.geocities.com/briansxx/Secondary_baffle_project.html (This user claims Meade sent him a new adhesive ring)
http://www.weasner.com/etx/techtips/baffle.html
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brianb11213
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 02/25/09
Posts: 2113
Loc: 55.215N 6.554W
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Quote:
A provocative idea - is the scope covered on your house contents insurance policy? If you "accidentally" knocked the tripod over, you could end up with a new scope!
Your insurance company might hold this advice against you when you come to make a claim. Anyway, it's fraud, plain and simple, and the insureance companies don't foot the bill - we all do, by way of higher premiums.
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Arthur Dent
Galactic Hitch-Hiker
Reged: 10/23/08
Posts: 1184
Loc: South Yorkshire, UK
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Point taken Brian - comment was only meant in jest however - hence my final sentence "Seriously though..." Also, if you look at the prices of new 125's you would be well "out-of-pocket".
I wouldn't advocate defrauding the insurance companies anyway because as you rightly say, it is the folks who pay the premiums (us) that fork out in the end.
Besides which, wouldn't your premium go up next year and also, wouldn't there be an excess to pay for accidental damage?
I seem to recall that when my son's laptop slipped off his knee and hit the power brick on the floor, wiping out the screen & cracking the case - that he ended up paying £75 I think it was, towards the replacement cost.
For the record - I am not advocating claiming for this on the insurance.
Art
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If I like it, the wife says that we can't afford it!
=======================================================
Meade ETX105 (a nice "Grab & Go" scope) & Celestron NexStar 6SE with Bob's Knobs.
Various EP's from 6mm to 26mm, Baader Hyperion 8-24mm Zoom, a 2x Barlow, 2" diagonal and 7Ah PowerTank.
MRF and Antares 8x50 RACI finder scope - both for the 6SE's OTA, whilst the ETX gets a plain RDF.
Canon EOS 400D DSLR (un-modded) and SPC900 webcam. Finally climbing the AP Learning Curve!
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Atomic Dawg
newbie
Reged: 04/16/09
Posts: 3
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For gluing the secondary baffle, what does everyone think about using 3M Scotch-Weld Epoxy Adhesive 2216. It seems to adhere to everything and is flexible. Any opinions?
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violini
member
Reged: 10/03/08
Posts: 61
Loc: Winnipeg, Canada
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The original glue ring is quite strong at temperatures below 25 Celsius. If you leave the scope in the car trunk in hot summer (30C or above), the glue would melt. It happened on one of my ETX90 RA. I glued the baffle back using regular epoxy (some people use 5 minute epoxy). The glue residue on the 2ndary mirror and lens can be lifted up using the original glue ring. Press the ring on it and lift it up, don't wipe. Go to drugstore and buy a rubber bulb for washing ear. Flush the lens with alcohol and blow dry, again don't wipe with any thing.
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Own a poor man's Questar:ETX90 RA
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jgraham
Postmaster
Reged: 12/02/04
Posts: 6763
Loc: Dayton, Ohio
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Back in my ATM days we frequenty used RTV silicone adhesive to bond glass components. RTV bonds extremely well to clean glass surfaces and remains soft enough differences in the thermal expansion of the bonded components without straining the glass or causing stress to build up in the bond that would often cause the bond to fail.
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-John
================================================
Homebuilt scopes from 4.25-16.5"
Meade LXD75-N6/SN6/SC8, DSX-90, ETX-60BB, ETX-125PE, DS-2130
Orion StarBlast, BinoViewers, Coronado PST
Rebel XT/XTi, DSI Pro (I, II, & III), DSI, LPI, Electronic Eyepiece, Phillips SPC900NC
Tasco 60mm Refractors
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TimD
scholastic sledgehammer
Reged: 02/16/05
Posts: 907
Loc: CA USA
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I keep hearing that Meade has such poor customer service. Wish they would read these posts and get a clue!
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Takahashi TSC 225
WO Megrez 102
Meade ETX 90, ETX 125
Meade LX90
Classic Orange tube C14, C90, C5+
Etc,Etc,Etc!!
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