The Baader Planetarium Click-Lock Eyepiece Clamp (# T2-08) is a precision clamping eyepiece holder that enables you to insert your eyepieces or standard 1 ¼” accessories anywhere within the ASTRO T-2 System™, or for upgrading the stock holder supplied with telescopes. The Click-Lock clamp offers a brand new approach to eyepiece holders. Once you try one, you'll never go back to simple set screw or even captive brass clamp rings again! With a gentle twist of the outer ring, two special non-marring rollers cam into contact with the eyepiece and firmly lock it into the holder. The 3-point clamp action guarantees none of the eyepiece wobble common in all single screw clamps or Takahashi lockring style holders. The lack of a protruding lock screw also eliminates one of the annoying hassles of standard holders - no more contortions trying to trying to work your nose around an inconveniently positioned screw.
The holder is precisely machined to fit your eyepieces with a minimum of slop, resulting in a close accurate fit that keeps your eyepiece properly centered on the optical axis. The long contact length of the cam rollers also makes this holder compatible with all grooved eyepiece barrels by bridging the groove. No more mismatch or hassle of unlocking from the groove. The secure grip of the cam lock makes the grooved barrels obsolete. On the front (input) side, the eyepiece clamp has an internal T-2 thread, to mate it to the other components of the T-2 system. On the output, Baader has added two additional unique and useful features. The top of the holder is actually an adjustable micro-focusing collar, with 6.5mm of travel. It allows you to precisely vary and set the overall clamp's height to allow fine adjustment of focus or height for matching other accessories. Furthermore, this ring is removable, which exposes an external T-2 thread. By coupling extension tubes, you can use the Click-Lock as an afocal projection system (using eyepieces with ODs of 37mm maximum).
Our Click-Lock Eyepiece Clamp makes a superior replacement for the stock eyepiece holders supplied with popular telescopes. Owners of Takahashi telescopes will find our Deluxe Eyepiece Clamp far superior to the stock Takahashi eyepiece holder, which is frustrating to use (and even allows eyepiece wobble which is particularly bad for guidescope use). See Telescope Adapters, below, for threaded adapters to mate to your specific telescope.
The Click-Lock Eyepiece Clamp is also a key component for a number of common Astro T-2 System configurations, such as the Precision Amici Diagonal, and as a parfocal eyepiece holder for CCD focusing with the Alan Gee Mark II Telecompressor. You may find additional uses in other T-2 system assemblies of your own making.
Details on the 1¼" ClickLock clamp (T-2 part #8)
Unscrewing the micro focus ring will reveal a T-2 male thread underneath, which can be used to mount T-2 spacers, T-rings, digital T-adapters, and digital cameras. In this way, every 1¼ "eyepiece can be changed instantly - and even be focussed! No annoying screw is in the way, and the rotation of the clamping is so short that a very slight hand movement is sufficient -an eyepiece clamp has never been easier. Heavy CCD cameras can be connected securely with just a moderate amount of tightening force!
Our T-2® system offers many more bayonet quick changer and rotators to safely secure any imaginable recording device. There are three different digital T-adapters and about 20 digital T-rings for almost all digital camera brands available!
1¼" ClickLock Highlights
- No clamping screws
- Extremely strong/secure clamping with just a slight turn (about 20 ° rotation
- No damage to the eyepiece barrels
- Clamping principle from professional engineering - like a quick-action chuck, from the tool holder of CNC milling machines
- Seven precision milled parts with complex assembly result in the most user-friendly eyepiece clamp of all time, designed in Germany!
- Low price despite the highest production costs
- Accepts all 1¼ "eyepiece types with any locking groove
- Eyepiece-side T-2 thread - transforms your eyepiece clamp into an eyepiece projection holder!
- Connections for most digital cameras optional
- Focusing thread (for use on a T-2 Zenit prism) with 5mm stroke and 0.5mm fine thread, lets you focus a SC optics directly on the eyepiece - without mirror shift.
- Resolves all adjustment problems - every 1¼ "eyepiece or measuring device (eg laser colli) is adjusted automatically parallel to the axis - even with diameter deviations.
