Telescope Reviews: Flocking a 5" F/5 reflector (aka polishing a *BLEEP*)

First, let me tell you what this post isn't: it is not a how-to for flocking scopes by an expert.
Rather it is a documentation of my first attempt at flocking (and for that matter first attempt at any scope modification). I thought it would be worth posting anyway, in case someone can extract something useful from my endevour.

I decided to try my hand at flocking this scope precisely because it is a cheap one. Some might argue it's a waste of time to mod an entry-level Chinese newton, and perhaps they'd be right, but my main purpose was to get some experience in modding scopes. With this instrument it wouldn't matter too much in case I, well, flocked up.

This scope has been standing unused for the past three years, me relying on binocs, the astronomy club scopes and friends' scopes in the meantime. New scopes are forthcoming so I thought my little newt would be a good candidate for some tinkering. The mirror was also a bit dusty so I decided to clean it while I was at it (something else i have not attempted before). The only thing I have done to this scope in the past is to take apart the focuser and the EQ-2 mount, remove the glue-like substance passing for grease, sandpapering off the rough edges (of which there were many) and applying some good grease. On a side note the effect on the EQ-2 mount was dramatic, huge improvement, it went from barely usable to fairly smooth. But I digress.

While I consider myself reasonably handy, I am not a mechanic or engineer. Nor do I have a personal machine shop. This project was done literally on my kitchen table and with simple tools (a couple of screwdrivers, a box-cutter and scissors). The whole thing took one afternoon, with breaks for walking the dog and making food.

The flocking material I used is a black cotton velvet that my wife bought for me in a fabric store. The clerk said it was used by studios and theatres for sucking up light and killing reflections, which sounded perfect. I have no idea how it compares to specialized scope flocking material, but it seemed right to me. I decided to use double sided tape instead of glue and got a 3M product intended for carpets. It was thin and specifically for fabric so I figured it would do nicely. The cost for the fabric was 15 Euro for on square meter and 12 Euro for the tape. The total cost of this project therefore landed on 27 Euro (about 35 USD).

I used less than half of the fabric. Before and after application I rolled it with a lint roller to remove dust and fluff. I also took my wife's suggestion to iron the fabric before application. I did not follow any specific instruction when doing this. I just read up on flocking (here and elsewhere) and then tried to apply common sense.

Ok, let's get on with stuff. The scope in question is a Sky-Watcher 130 F/5 reflector.

EDIT: holy manure, I can't believe how sensitive the naughty words-filter is Well you will get what is being polished, I'm sure.

Edited by SteveTheSwede (01/10/13 07:47 PM)