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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Red Dot Sights (Reflex Sights) on Spotting Scopes (1 Viewer)

Hi Henning,

The part looks great and the company was great to deal with.

Please advise if I need some kind of adapter. The inside diameter is larger than my eyepiece. I think I have the same scope as you...Kowa 883 with wide angle 25x60.

Thank you very much,
Dave
 

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Hi Henning,

I looked back at your photos. I think this is the part that I'm missing. Please see the attached photos. Please advise how I can source one of these.

Thanks,
Dave
 

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Hi Dave,

I looked back at your photos. I think this is the part that I'm missing. Please see the attached photos. Please advise how I can source one of these.

The ring that holds the adapter in place is the accessory thread cover. Normally, it's installed on the scope at delivery.

It's a very slim ring that looks like a part of the scope body, and I wasn't even aware it was a removable part until someone told me about it.

When the eyepiece is installed, look at the marking "TE-11WZ" on the eyepiece. Right below it, there should be the top of the eyepiece cover ring. It's just a few mm wide and quite inconspicious ... unscrew it (with the eyepiece removed), put on the sight adapter, screw the ring down, re-install the eyepiece, and you're set.

(Should the accessory thread cover ring be missing, there would be a gap of a few mm below the "TE-11WZ", and you should see the bare accessory thread.)

Beautiful view by the way ... complements the great scope nicely! :)

Regards,

Henning
 
Cool, been a sometime user of reflex sights at night (though I now use a green laser for convenience). Didn’t know there were green version for the daytime. Looks like I’ll be getting one soon and then making up a bracket to my 66mm Astro refractor I use for birding. Great work!

Peter
 
Hi Peter,

Cool, been a sometime user of reflex sights at night (though I now use a green laser for convenience). Didn’t know there were green version for the daytime. Looks like I’ll be getting one soon and then making up a bracket to my 66mm Astro refractor I use for birding.

As you're an OpenSCAD enthusiast too, here's a module you can use to quickly create the NATO rail part of the mounting:

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2794200

I'm looking forward to see what your mount is going to look like! :)

Regards,

Henning
 
Now got a sight in order, give me a while to think and test out. I’d like to avoid screws that can get lost, but the alternative might not be robust enough to being knocked. Also want a design that minimises overhangs when FDM printed. Thanks for the link.

Peter
 
Thank you Henning. I found the part in the box.

I tried two red dots. I prefer the tube style since the red dot is easier to locate.

I ran out of elevation adjustment and still need to bring the red dot lower to match the view. I might try to shim the mount unless you have any other ideas.

Very cool product. Thank you very much for sharing.

Dave
 

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The design does not get in the way of the scope cover. I was testing out the red dot and it definitely speeds up spotting stuff. Very nice accessory! :t:
 

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Hi Dave,

Thank you Henning. I found the part in the box.

I tried two red dots. I prefer the tube style since the red dot is easier to locate.

I ran out of elevation adjustment and still need to bring the red dot lower to match the view. I might try to shim the mount unless you have any other ideas.

Very cool product. Thank you very much for sharing.

Dave

I'm glad.you like it! With regard to adjustment range, you probably need to turn the adapter a little against the scope body. Clockwise rings down the dot, counterclockwise btings it up. It will move laterally a bit too, so you need to re-adjust the sight in both directions after turning the adapter.

That's owed to the lack of an "indexing" notch or ridge on the scope... you have to hit the 9 o'clock position "by feel" pretty accurately.

Regards,

Henning
 
Hi Peter,

Now got a sight in order, give me a while to think and test out. I’d like to avoid screws that can get lost, but the alternative might not be robust enough to being knocked. Also want a design that minimises overhangs when FDM printed.

One could make the rails' outer edges slightly wedge-shapes, then slide a ring over them that would push the rails together and fix the clamp in place.

(Or simply use a re-usable cable tie for that, eliminating the screws.)

I'll admit that I'm not sure how to deal with overhangs, having only designed for laser-sintering so far. I'd think the body of my adapter would print pretty well upside down, or wouldn't it? Probably I need to get myself an FDM printer and try to figure that out :)

Regards,

Henning
 
Hi Dave,

That looks great Henning. Are you going to make one for the Kowa?

That style of adapter actually was my starting point with the Kowa. It is rock-solid but has the disadvantage of being a bit bulky and, more importantly, impossible to use in with the stay-on case.

I believe I actually posted pictures of the Kowa adapter somewhere near the start of this rather lengthy thread ... let me see ... there it is:

https://www.birdforum.net/showpost.php?p=3600737&postcount=37

It's actually the second prototype, featuring NATO rails.

The first one had an airgun-style dovetail. You can find a photograph here:

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2840381

I moved to smaller adapters mounted to the accessory thread in order to make them work with the stay-on case, and to facilitate easy removal.

Regards,

Henning
 
I have a 66mm William Optics Zenithstar apo that I normally use a 13mm Nagler in. Heavy for its weight... been thinking of moving to a lighter 80mm, but they aren’t cheap and finding one that I can put astro eyepieces in is tricky. I have a baader zoom that’s good, but that doesn’t seem to play nice with most scopes ;-(
I’ll probably mount the sight on a stalk from the focusser drawtube, there maybe a focus mount screw on top, I can try they if there is one. Probably need to be able to remove the sight for transport.

Peter
 
Hi Peter,

I have a 66mm William Optics Zenithstar apo that I normally use a 13mm Nagler in.

Ah, I see - seems that the manufacturer uses big metal rings to mount finder scopes and such, probably not the solution you'd choose if you're weight conscious!

I'm fighting my new 3D printer at the moment ... it's actually pretty good in most respects, but I already identified one low quality fitting that gave me a bit of trouble until I broke it. Life is much easier with the quality replacement :)

Regards,

Henning
 
I have a 66mm William Optics Zenithstar apo that I normally use a 13mm Nagler in. Heavy for its weight... been thinking of moving to a lighter 80mm, but they aren’t cheap and finding one that I can put astro eyepieces in is tricky. I have a baader zoom that’s good, but that doesn’t seem to play nice with most scopes ;-(
I’ll probably mount the sight on a stalk from the focusser drawtube, there maybe a focus mount screw on top, I can try they if there is one. Probably need to be able to remove the sight for transport.

Peter

Afaik, Pentax scopes accept astro eyepieces.
Their PF-80 is reported to be a decent quality scope and might be a candidate for you.
 
Hi again,

While I don't have a Swarovski scope myself, I just completed the design of a NATO rail adapter for the ATS 65:

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2989735

This was quite a fun project, as it was a collaboration with a Swarovski user who took the measurements, printed the prototypes and provided the feedback required to develop the adapter into a functional piece of equipment :)

It turned out his printer does a better job at printing overhangs than mine does: He printed the part as a single-piece print, with great results!

For my printer, I had to come up with a way to split the adapter into two major parts and one connecting "pin" of hexagonal shape. Fortunately, super glue works perfectly with PLA, so the end result was quite good too (though lacking a Swarovski scope, I haven't been able to personally test it yet).

Regards,

Henning
 
Henning,

I can’t seem to locate this adapter at the 3D sites. I think it’s brilliant! Is it available for printing or sale?

Very best,
Jerry
 

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