2 replies to this topic

[Jay_Reynolds_Freeman]

I have a Skywatcher SkyMax 180 Maksutov-Cassegrain, recently bought new. I need some tube rings for it. Does anyone know of a commercial supplier of tube rings that actually fit this telescope?

 

I am asking because there seems to be a conflict between the published specifications for the instrument -- which list a tube diameter of 8.625 inches -- and the actual diameter of the tube itself, which I measure at a hair less than 8-3/8 inches -- it might be 212 mm plus paint. (I suspect the issue is that the published dimension is the maximum diameter over the corrector-housing and mirror-housing fittings of the tube, which have a slightly larger diameter than the tube itself. Or perhaps there is a different model whose diameter is given.)

 

I know that Parallax offers 8.625-inch tube rings, which are asserted to fit the SkyMax 180, but that dimension seems too large. Agena and Astronomics list nothing appropriate, and I can't find anything suitable on AliExpress. Rouz lists some (and they are very expensive) but does not give exact dimensions.

 

Does anyone know for sure of a commercial source of tube rings that actually fit?

 

 

Clear sky ...

[philipdo]

Rouz Astro in Canada makes rings for the Skymax 180. Orion Optics in the UK also.

 

CS, Philip

Edited by philipdo, 16 April 2025 - 05:35 AM.

[Phil49]

Hello,

 

I've been searching for a while too, but alas, no alternative except Rouz Astro...

 

You can find the exact kit on his site, looking for rings first :

 

- https://rouzastro.co...ngs-all-sizes/ 

 

Select "Skywatcher, Skymax 180, Orion 180mm Mak...",  for 235 euros or the equivalent in US dollars.

 

Then, you have to buy the new 14 inch dovetail + screws, and you should pay someting around :400 USD with shipping included for the whole kit...

 

No other manufacturer provides something as qualitative.

 

TS Express just proposes a pair of PLA rings, at about or a litte bit more than Rouz, but to be honest I don't really trust them over time with PLA...

 

Orionoptics in England proposes a pair too, but at about the same price as Rouz but no photo is available...

 

They re about the same kind as Rouz's, as I've seen them in a Youtube video from a guy explaining how to collimate Maks but the whole kit is at about the same price as Rouz's...

 

Buying the pair of rings + the 14 inch dovetail, I will rest the Skymax with its vixen dovetail on the losmandy and then put the Skymax tube in the rings.

 

Rouz told me that theoritically, we have enough room to do that with the new extra long 14 inch dovetail and rings basis is tall enough to let the vixen rest on the losmandy, heigth wise.

 

I'm waiting a little bit as 400 USD is quite a sum, and as I leave in France, I'll have to add extra taxes and French additional postal fees on top of that (not Trump ones but French ones...)...

 

Philippe