ETX TECHNICAL TIPS Last updated: 11 March 2004

Inexpensive Illuminated Finderscope

Date: 3/9/04, 19:02
From: F&M Goodman (goodmanf@highstream.net)
I am a great fan of your website and cannot find enough words to express
my gratitude for the wealth of information within it. I figure it's
about time I add my two cents to hopefully aid others.

After much searching, I finally purchased an inexpensive(less than $30
with shipping)finderscope with an illuminated reticle,from Pyramyd Air.
It is made by GAMO and is the model 4X20 Parallax IR. Below is the site
address (with numerous scopes)to the appropriate page.

This scope is made for air rifles and typically mounts via two 3/8inch
dovetail brackets. The photo I attached here shows how I modified the
mounting to attach the scope to my ETX90(RA). Here are my steps:

1. First I fashioned a mounting plate of 1/8inch thick aluminum,
3-1/2inches long by 1/2inch wide.

2. I filed the  edges to fit the finderscope brackets(1/2inch bevelled
to 3/8inch).

3. I then inserted the plate into the brackets(forgive me if this is too
obvious). by loosening the small dovetail screws, sliding the plate in
and then tightening the screws.

4. To mount the assembly onto the OTA I used double stick foam tape
underneath the aluminum plate. Then I attached the entire assembly to
the OTA with long plastic tie straps(used for bundling electronic
cables. It took two 14-1/2 to 15 inch straps to tightly secure the
aluminum plate.

NOTE-pre-align the tape to the OTA and then align the finderscope
assembly, as close as possible, to the long axis of the OTA. The two
parallax adjustments, on the finderscope, will ease final sighting.

The scope has several adjustments, as shown on my photo, to aid
alignment and focusing. The instructions that came with the scope are
minimal and some experimentation is needed to get a feel for what they
accomplish. I set the front(distance) adjustment to infinity. The
illumination On/Off switch has a very small range of motion but works
well.

Overall I am delighted with the results, for such a low price. The
optics are sufficient for finding dimmer objects and the illumination is
a great aid to maintaining the object in the center of the field.

http://www.pyramydair.com/cgi-bin/show.pl?group_id=26&cmd_accessories=1

I hope the attached photos are clear enough to be helpful. Thanks again
for such a superb site and for all your dedicated efforts.

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