What are dovetail bars?
BBC Sky at Night Magazine's Scope Doctor Steve Richards answers your astronomy ailments.
What are dovetail bars?
Steve says: "Dovetail bars attach to your telescope either directly or via tube rings, and to your mount via a clamp, making it quick to install and remove the telescope.
Dovetail bars are so called because their cross-section has the appearance of a dove’s tail, and it is this tapered profle that makes them safe and secure in use.
There are two main variants: the traditional ‘Vixen style’ with a width of approximately 1.75 inches, as seen in the image of the Altair Starwave ASCENT 102ED F7 refractor above, and the heavier duty ‘Losmandy style’ with a width of approximately 3 inches, though the latter has an overhanging ‘table’ of 4 inches in width.
It is common these days for mounts to have dovetail clamps that will accommodate both dovetail sizes."
Email Steve your astronomy queries to contactus@skyatnightmagazine.com and they could be answered in a future issue of BBC Sky at Night Magazine.
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