gso tube support

Low end GSO -or for that matter any cheap- Newtonian Reflectors with guide telescope? It CAN be done.

So that collimation holds, the tube and its optics need proper support. On a 203 f5, this means:

• Six 1.6mm wire springs to support the floating part of the primary mirror cell. 3 replacements and three passive using the white knob screws as retainers.
• Remove the mirror clips.
• Seal the mirror to the cell using neutral silicone sealant, generous blobs to coincide with the gso cork. Leave the mirror to settle under its own weight on a horizontal surface, that a blob of the same sealant under the same ambience returns to its original form when distorted. Only then refit.
• Set the tube rings 50cm apart on a Losmandy dovetail plate.
• Tie the top of the rings with rigid aluminium box section. Mount the guide telescope directly to this top rail using a Vixen clamp as a minimum.
• Place spacers between the black knobs and the fixed part of the cell (its outer part) that the screw cannot foul the glass of the mirror when turned fully clockwise.
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