Baader Planetarium

Da für ein Mark V Großfeld-Binokular an einem SC-Teleskop der 2“ Glaswegkorrektor 1,8x nötig ist, war ich auf der Suche nach einer Möglichkeit einen Focalreducer einzubinden um ein helleres Bild zu erhalten. Der Baader Diamond Steeltrack ermöglicht in Verbindung mit einem T-2 Zenitspiegel mit geringer optischer Länge auch einen 3,3“ Reducer zwischen Teleskop und Okularauszug zu verwenden ohne den fokussierbaren Bereich zu verlassen. Ich habe über den S58-ClickLock für den Baader Diamond Steeltrack den 2" Glaswegkorrektor 1,8x für Refraktoren und SC's angeschlossen, der dadurch vollständig im 2" BDS-SC Baader Diamond Steeltrack Okularauszug verschwindet. Hier ist auch noch genug Platz für einen 2“ Filter am Glaswegkorrektor. Mit dem Glaswegkorrektor ist ein T-2 Zenitspiegel verbunden, an dem das Mark V Großfeld-Binokular befestigt ist. Das Binokular wird sicher gehalten und lässt sich gut fokussieren.

The SteelDrive II is a solid piece of equipment. The design was very well thought out by the engineer. Installation to my NT Diamond SteelTrack focuser was a breeze. The hand controller is compact and is illuminated in red which will come in handy at night. Initially I was not able to get connected to the hand controller with my PC. My unit had a firmware issue that required a remote session with Baader and was fixed in less than 10 minutes. The SteelGo software has a nice user interface and is packed with many features that the user can customize. I am still getting familiar with it. I was able to get connected to APT and use the focuser with the ASCOM driver. The SteelDrive II was the last piece of the puzzle for me to implement fully automated imaging sessions. I look forward to imaging from the comfort of my climate controlled home during the winter and summer nights clear skies permitting.

Aufgerüstet wurde ein SC 9.25 mit Hinblick auf die Astrometrie/Photometrie. Mit dem OAZ umgeht man natürlich das bekannte Spiegelshifting und ermöglicht wirklich schweres Equimpent einzusetzen. Ich werde vermutlich nicht auf 6,5kg kommen, aber bei 3 kg hat man gute Reserven und vorallem einen sicheren Fokus im Zenit. Auch ein evtl. großer Hebel bei horizontnaher Beobachtung macht dem OAZ nichts aus. Was aus der Produktbeschreibung nicht hervorgeht, aber in der Bedienungsanleitung nachzulesen ist, sind die Gründe der Wartungsfreiheit und die Möglichkeiten der Justierung. Wenn man das gelesen hat wird einem klar, was für ein qualitativ hochwertiges und langlebiges Produkt man vor sich hat. Die Justiermöglichkeit bietet über die bereits perfekte werksseitige Justierung hinaus, dem (über)ambitionierten (Hobby)Astronomen auch noch die letzten "Hundertstel" rauszuholen. Für die visuelle Beobachtung überflüssig, für photographische Beobachtung im Highend eine Option.

Overall, I'm very pleased. I'm using this with a BDS-NT on a maksutov newtonian. The focuser itself is excellently constructed, and although it took a bit of care in fitting I'm very satisfied with it once it's on. I just received the motor and controller kit, which I intend to also use for the inbuilt dew controller. With regards to the focusing motor functionality, it's fairly quiet, very fast, and seems accurate and fits very neatly and nicely. The main reason I bought this particular unit was because, unlike almost all the others, it permits manual use of the focuser without removing the motor - very nice for switching to visual use occasionally. The movement with the focus motor attached is not difficult - it's a little notchy, and not as smooth as without the motor, but I guess that's to be expected, and it is totally usable - it's a little hard to make large movements, I found you have to turn the fine focus knob first to get it moving then simultanously apply gentle torque on the coarse focus knob if you need to make a large manual movement, but again, it's usable without the hassle of removing the motor, and that's the main thing. In terms of the dew control, I spoke to Baader about the 1 amp limit of the port. After a detailed discussion, it seems they may consider uprating that port to 2 amps in a future production run of the controller, as the circuitry could handle that. For me, 1 amp is just about sufficient for the main scope I'll be using it with, it's a shame mine didn't come with the 2 amp capacity, as I feel that would be better sized for larger scopes you might use this on, but like I said, the 1 amp capacity of the controller as it is at the time of writing this review should be sufficient for most smaller to medium sized scopes. All in all, I'd recommend this especially if you're fitting it to the Baader steeltrack as it's a perfect easy fitment with good functionality. The price, well, it's certainly not cheap - nothing else with manual override is cheaper though so whatever - I think it would certainly be nice to see the price come down, but the market will decide that and although it was a big chunk of cash I considered it worth the expense.

Le Steeldrive II d'adapte t'il sur mon Crayford BAADER mon avis dépendra de l'adaptation . Cordialement Dr Philippe KRUST

Ich habe den original OAZ gegen den 2“ BDS-NT ausgetauscht und bin absolut begeistert, wie geschmeidig dieser läuft und wie Bomben fest dieser sitzt. Vielen Dank an Baader!!

looking for an alternative to others expensive focusers on the market and a good value for money? it is time to take an interest in these Steeltrack focusers. As always with Baader, the finishing is perfect and the telescope has a great look with it. It was not so easy to install because you have to drill your tube. Even if it is thin, the drill bit can slip because the surface is not flat. Do not forget to protect your secondary mirror (for NT) from the filings. You should certainely have to redo your optical lane with the two mirrors, but this is not a hard process. Then enjoy: very smooth, really precise with micro movements, and very rigid.

Not only adds a ClickLock to 1.25" from 2" - the inner T-2 thread connects to Baader T-2 diagonals and many other products as well! Clamp a 1.25" eyepiece in the diagonal, and clamp the diagonal's 1.25" nosepiece in a 2" focuser drawtube. I use these on all my scopes and diagonals. Why settle for thumbscrews in the dark? Nothing beats ClickLock for security and ease of use.

I bought the BDS-SC to use with my C9.25 HD and I tested it on several occasions. I have to say it's an absolute joy to focus with the BDS. It runs very smoothly and allows very fine adjustments. It is big difference to the built-in focuser. The BDS allowed me to re-focus much quicker e.g. when switching to a barlow lens. I find it very convenient that it can be turned without unscrewing anything. The BDS is a very solid build and holds also long imaging trains firmly attached. Both 2" and 3.3" threads fit to the C9.25 HD with or without adapter that came with the telescope, respectively. There are minor imperfections on the inner threads assumingly from clamp attachment during electroplating. All in all I am very happy with the BDS and I think it's well worth the price.

Well made and provides a really secure fit for eyepieces and makes it easy to change eyepieces even when wearing gloves.

Vor wenigen Tagen habe ich einen 2" Diamond Steeltrack BDS-NT incl. SteelDrive erhalten und damit meinen bisherigen 2" OAZ (hochwertiger Hersteller mit Focus-Stepper) ersetzt. Der Umbau ging extrem leicht von der Hand und ich darf an dieser Stelle sagen: Was für eine tolle Qualität! Ich bin total begeistert von der Steifigkeit und der Stabilität! Es rutscht nichts durch (trotz 2,5kg-Kamerakopf incl. Korrektor, Filterrad usw.) und es wackelt und federt auch nichts. Die Kollimierung bleibt bei meinem 10"er nach einem Meridian-Flip einwandfrei erhalten! Auch das Positionieren des Auszuges mittels SteelDrive funktioniert wie aus dem Lehrbuch - ohne Backlash!! Einen herzlichen Glückwunsch an das Baader-Team für dieses extrem durchdachte Produkt!