The TS-Optics 1.25″ Ronchi Eyepiece Features

• A high quality grating in a 1.25″ nose piece
• On a plano-parallel glass substrate, 10 lines per mm are etched in. This leads to a high testing precision.
• Ease to interpret – if the stripes are straight and parallel, everything is okay (see picture on the left)
• By interpreting deviations, the optical errors can be determined
• Also ideal to find the focal plane

Just put it into the 1.25″ receptacle of your telescope and point at a star of medium magnitude. Best is the pole star as no tracking is need in this case. Then, you will se a stripe pattern.

The closer you are to focus, the less stripes are visible and the more sensitive is the test. Three to five stripes are optimal.

By interpreting the stripe pattern, you can classify optical aberrations and the overall quality.

In combination with the star test, you can make much more useful statements about an optical system an an interferometric test can do.

Advantages and characteristics of the Ronchi eyepice:

♦ Precise aluminium body with 1.25″ diameter – no tilting
♦ Fine optically polished glass substrate with precise grating for high test precision
♦ The grating side of the glass is exactly on the same level as the hard stop of the 1.25″ barrel. So the focal plane of the telescope can be measured exactly.
♦ 10 lines per millimetre allow a test precision close to a optical bench

How do I use the Ronchi eyepiece?

Operating is easy. Just put it into the focuser as any other 1.25″ eyepiece. Aim at a star of medium magnitude and center it. A comfortable star especially for Dobsonians and other telescopes without tracking motor is the pole star as it does not move and has the correct brightness.

Turn the focus wheel until 3-5 stripes are visible. Then, examine the stripe pattern.

♦ Lines straight and parallel: Everything is OK
♦ Curved lines: Hint to spherical aberration
♦ V-shaped pattern: Decollimation or Astigmatism
♦ Lines with “hills” or “valleys”: Hint for a zone error

Illustrated manual

There is a manual with sample images, you can download the PDF here.