Review – Baader Clicklock Clamp
Baader Clicklock Clamp – does what it’s meant to, unlike the factory screw eyepiece ‘clamp’ on the Skywatcher series of telescopes. The ClickLock Clamp is a moderately priced aftermarket accessory for multiple scopes on the market.
The clamp is a black metal finish that has a rubber grip and a handle to help lock and unlock the clamp. |
This isn’t a new product, but it deserves a review. The one I use is the ClickLock M54 clamp which replaces the factory fitted eyepiece clamp on most scopes from skywatcher (although this one is for the 72ed and any which have the M54 thread)
The weight of this is 0.13kg (130grams), so fairly light. The optical length is about 30mm. This does add length to your imaging train, but it still leaves about 5mm if using the OVl field flattener when using the Skywatcher 72ed pro. Its sole purpose is to clamp on your eyepieces, or more importantly your cameras so they won’t fall out during the evening! And it does this very well. |
Why Change, Why BUY?
This Product ranges from about £70-80 from UK suppliers. In the grand scheme of things of AP, it’s not overly expensive but in itself, it’s a big chunk of change to spend out on something which is already supplied by the scope manufacturer, so why get this item? Simple. To protect your equipment from the focuser tube to the camera. A simple lens will be fine with the basic 2 thread bolts which are supplied with the scope. But a camera, field flattener, extension tubes and filter drawer or filter wheel add some serious weight and strain to the supplied thread bolts. Over time these will work loose and put your equipment in danger (As I found out myself) |
In nutshell, this is a required buy, either this type or similar. If you have a camera train with multiple accessories, it adds weight to the back end of the scope.
The Baader ClickLock is a serious contender and one which will keep your equipment where it’s meant to be – in the scope! Very highly recommended. |