Digiscope adapter for ATS/80 HD? (1 Viewer)

peter said:

I Have Just Been In Contact With Swarovski In Austria They Have Told Me The Following.
The Dca Fits Exactly To The Ats 80 And The 30x S Eyepiece.
It Will Only Fit The New Eyepiece With The "s" , And Not The Older Eyepiece Without The "s".
THIS MEANS IT FITS ALL EYEPIECES 20X,30X,45X AND 20-60 ZOOM.

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It may very well fit all eyepieces, but it surely DOES NOT fit the 20x S "exactly". It fits that eyepiece somewhat "inexactly". Here is a back view of that fit:
http://www.jayandwanda.com/swaro/dca_2_20xs_back.jpg

Note the irregular gap caused by the outside diameter of the 20xS base being significantly smaller than the inside diameter of the DCA. This tends to cause the adapter to shift when clamped on as shown in this image of the front:
http://www.jayandwanda.com/swaro/dca_2_20xs_front.jpg

Notice how the front is cocked to one side. When mounted on the scope, the DCS will rest against the base of the scope which will provide some stability, but nonetheless there is no additional support up front and the clamp is in a poor position to defend against the leverage exerted by a camera being clamped to the adapter. It is actually pretty easy to simply pull the adapter off by hand when clamped to the 20x S eyepiece. If you wrap non-adhesive tennis grip tape around the top of the 20x S eyepiece, this upper gap is filled and it stabilizes the DCA significantly. If you do this, be sure to wrap the tape so that there is a snug fit between it and the DCA.

The 20x-60x S fits well with the DCA because the top of the eyepiece fits flush with a lip at the front of the DCA, because the eyepiece is not tapered and it has support all along the DCA and eyepiece barrel, and because the clamp seems finds purchase on the eyepiece's rubber grip which has a high degree of friction.

I'm not trying to knock Swarovski or their products. But I consider the fit between the DCA and the 20x S to be rather poor. I wouldn't hike with my camera attached to the DCA and 20x S. Not without some modification at least. Maybe I got an oddball eyepiece with a narrow base? I dunno. But these two pieces, as they came to me from the manufacturer, do not fit together well. Perhaps the 30x S fits the DCA perfectly. But the 20x S certainly does not.

peter said:

Im Sorry If I Am Wrong But That Is What I Was Told By Swarvoski.
Can Anyone Suggest A Good Adaptor, I Have Been Looking At Eagle Eye But They Say You Need To Take The Rubber Off Of The Eyepiece Top To Fit The 20-60 Zoom.
I Would Also Like To Be Able To Use My 2ox,30x & 45x If Needed For Digiscoping.
Not To Bothered About Price.

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Peter -

The DCA will work with the 20x S and presumably the others. The tennis grip tape thing works quite well. I'll rewrap the eyepiece and post some photos of how that is done tonight or tomorrow. I just think people should be aware that they may need to fiddle with things a bit to get a good fit.

Jay Turberville said:

Peter -

The DCA will work with the 20x S and presumably the others. The tennis grip tape thing works quite well. I'll rewrap the eyepiece and post some photos of how that is done tonight or tomorrow. I just think people should be aware that they may need to fiddle with things a bit to get a good fit.

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THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP DO YOU HAVE TO REMOVE THE RUBBER EYEPIECE ON TOP OF THE LENSES TO USE ADAPTORS OR NOT ?.
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF EAGLE EYE ADAPTORS ?.

I have one of these and yes you do have to unscrew the twist up eyepiece.

I said earlier in this thread:

We find the SpiderTech adapter, which screws onto the camera using the 28mm filter thread, extremely useful. It just slots onto a keyed ring that is permanently attached to the scope, and does not interfere with its normal operation in any way. The zoom can be altered without difficulty while the camera is attached.

LCE in Winchester are the agents in the UK.

PS - our scope is angled

Our set-up is the Swarovski ATS80HD, with the 20-60 zoom lens. You do not have to remove the rubber eyepiece.

Apologies - I thought we were talking about the Swaro adaptor. Incidentally I think you can use the swaro adaptor with the eyecup on but you need to zoom the camera more to remove vignetting I think.

phlebas said:

The Swarovsky camera adapter does not fit the ATS-type fixed magnification eyepieces because of their tapered design. This is the case with the 45x eyepiece, and I imagine the same is true for the 30x as it is the same shape. The zoom eyepiece, which is cylindrical not tapered, is the one you must use with this adapter. I seem to remember that the Swarovsky website is unclear on this point, as it states that its adapter is for use with all eyepieces. Really nice adapter, though. Works extremely well with the zoom eyepiece.

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That's not right. The Swarovski adapter DOES fit the 30SW eyepiece, I've used it and it's superb for digiscoping.

hopefully along the same lines

Hello,

I am curious about vignetting and using Swarovski adaptors for a Canon EOS 10D or a Digital Rebel. Can anyone make recomendations or have images taken with either either camera with a swarovski 80?

Thanks

ATS Adapter Options

Thanks to Andy and the others that contributed to the discussion at and after the 3pm Birdfair Digiscoping class on Saturday 21st at Rutland Water. The tips on the focus and metering settings in particular have really improved my results and probably saved me hours of trial, error and frustration with the user manual. I am struggling enough with recognising the birds in my new found interest, so appreciate all the help I can get on the digiscoping front!

For information I did purchase a Focus DA-1 adapter for use with my Coolpix 4500 and Swaro 65 (with 20-60s zoom) scope, but returned it on the Monday as I found it to difficult to get on and off the scope. It took the salesman at the Birdfair several minutes to remove it when I first tried it! We both hoped it would bed in with use and the liberal application of silicone lubricant, sadly that was not the case. To be fair all the other cameras/adapters at the display on demonstration worked well on a standard 20x eyepiece so it may just be the combination with this eyepiece? I did try another sample at the shop but it was by contrast to loose a fit for me to trust with a decent camera on the end. It is a nice design and if you find good match to your camera/scope combination it’s a nice light weight option, although it is not designed for portrait format pictures, although you could loosen the grub screws and rotate the adaptor plate (1 only supplied).

I have now opted for the Swaro adapter that I note is marked on the box as a DCA Zoom so I assume they may vary from model to model? It is a 2 piece option and you need to remove the eye relief cup to initially fit the retaining ring onto the scope, but that can then be left in place (and you can still use the stay on case eyepiece protection cover). You then refit the eye relief fitting and slide on the adaptor and camera in a quick and easy way, if you use the adaptor security screws it is also a very secure if you need to move the tripod without taking off the camera. (Please note I use the scope with a Manfrotto tripod so the set up is not dependant on the tripod screw fitting for security). It is easy to swivel to portrait mode and slide on and off for confirmation of focus, birdwatching etc. I also find taking the camera on and off the scope does not interfere with the tripod head position and introduce the need for re-alignment etc. The eyepiece zoom can also still be used with the adaptor in place by rotating the securing ring. The package also came with adaptor rings (28,37,43,52mm) for other cameras that some people may find useful.
So my conclusion is that I may think the Swaro is by comparison an ugly, bulky 2 bit (excuse the pun) alternative BUT IT WORKS WELL even, I suspect, in the cold and dark so I improve the odds on getting a good picture!