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That cheap solar filter I bought off Amazon ruined 3 nights of data

I wasted $35 on a no-name solar filter for my 8" dob and the images came out all blotchy and uneven. Had to toss every single frame from those sessions. Anyone else had luck with a specific budget brand that actually works for white light?
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2 Comments
tylerr29
tylerr291mo ago
Honestly I heard some of those cheap ones are just tinted mylar and not real solar film.
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henry101
henry1011mo ago
Bought one of those cheap filters myself last year and ended up with images that looked like someone smeared Vaseline on the lens, totally useless for anything serious. @tylerr29 you're probably right about the tinted mylar thing, I peeled a corner off mine and it was just some shiny plastic wrap taped together. Learned my lesson the hard way and now I just bite the bullet and get the Baader film, it sucks paying more but you don't waste nights like that. Got a roll of it from a guy on CloudyNights classifieds for cheap once, worked way better than the Amazon junk. Still kicking myself for those three lost nights though, that's a lot of clear skies wasted.
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