DSLR adaptation to Nikon AZ100 38mm Photoport

[Pau]

Background:
I got the AZ-TP DSC 0.6x monocular phototube for my slowly growing AZ100M macro/micro frankescope

Its photoport inner diameter is 38mm and the only option shown at Nikon literature is with 1X C-mount adapter 11mm FN for small sensor Digital Sight Series cameras.

The tube lens is placed at the bottom of the otherwise empty tube, just at the mounting dovetail level. I roughly measured is focal length to be 150mm and this matches pretty well with the magnification I’m getting if I place a 10X eyepiece at the zoom parfocal position focus point:
(objective magnification X zoom magnification number X 10 X 0.6)

Tested with a Sigma LSA 200mm diopter as tube lens in place of the original I get magnification around 1.3X higher but there is severe vignette until 2X zoom position and corner degradation until 4X.
Without the zoom body with the objective attached to the SLA it does not vignette but there is a lot of corner degradation.

When the system is focused at its official 100mm parfocal distance the zoom is parfocal through its full 1X-8X range and the image is projected approximately at 32mm over the end of the phototube, not enough clearance for a Canon DSLR bundled with a teleconverter.

A (discontinued) Nikon 1 series camera could work with its 1” sensor but I want to use my Canon 7D APSc (*)

Because the good image circle is pretty small, in particular at low zoom settings, a 2.5X projective eyepiece seems to match well: 2.5 x 0.6 = 1.5X
The microscope visual eyepieces have a FN 22mm and work at 1X; 22 x 1.5 = 33mm, sufficient for 26.82mm Canon APSC diagonal but still wider subject field than with the 2/3" sensor camera and 0.6X tube alone.

This is why I want to set it up with a Nikon projective eyepiece 2.5X PLI, (although I think that CF PL have the same dimensions) so, lacking experience with that Nikon stuff, I need some data and advice for buying or custom making the adapters

Questions:
- What’s the right position of Nikon PLI projectives? Or, what’s the position of the primary image respect to the projective? (DIN eyepieces for example have it 10mm lower than the eyepiece shoulder)
- What’s the distance between the PLI shoulder and the projected image on to the sensor?
- If I follow the off the shelf parts approach, which are the Nikon parts needed? (in principle one tube to hold the projective over the AZ100 phototube and another tube to connect the former one to the camera with the adequate bayonet adapter) (**)
There are third party adapters, any good?

(*) A LMScope DSLR photo adapter can be used but they are very expensive (and I think that original Nikon optics can be better), see fig 1, pg. 3
Ogliore and Jilly: Gigapixel optical microscopy for meteorite characterization. Planetary Science 2013 2:3.
Unfortunately I can’t contact the authors because the contact email address is now nonexistent

(**) At http://www.microbehunter.com/microscopy ... b9c#p70164
Scarodactyl recommended for Eclipse microscopes a called a "V-T" tube and custom M42 adapters, is this what I need?

Thanks for your attention!

[Scarodactyl]

Yeah, you just need a 38mm eyepiece adapter and a 42mm-bottomed spacer. Nikon uses an ISO type standard which wild/leitz also used before the Leica merger. I have an extra Nikon 38mm to 42mm with 30mm eyepiece holder adapter on hand if you need one (they made 30mm and 23mm 2.5x plis, not sire if there is any functional difference). For the 42mm adapter to m42 and use spacers, you can buy one or get a 3d print, or find a third party one, or get a Nikon afx assembly and strip out the shutter and adapt your camera onto the mount, or find an original nikon dslr adapter (scarce).

It's kind of funny that this doesn't use a Nikon compound head, since the objectives from the original m400/z series it is closely based on actually do work with nikon heads. Aparently az100 objectives work well on z series zoom bodies. Leica z6es are also a lot cheaper used than az100s (and have what look like better specs to me), so you might want to keep an eye out. The last two I was watching just sold alas.

[Pau]

Excellent! thanks for the info.

So, the 38mm Photoport is fully standardized and even a Leica adapter will place the projective at the same position, is it?

The 2.5x PLI I'm waiting is 23.2 with a 30mm adapter on it so both adapter models will fit.

To mount the camera over the V-T tube, do I need a smooth 42mm tube or a M42 thread will fit?

(PM to be sent briefly)

ADMIN NOTE: At this point I've split the thread with the interesting posts of Duke and others to a new one: Lomo 1.7X projective photoeyepiece https://www.photomacrography.net/forum/ ... 25&t=42470

[Ichthyophthirius]

Background:
I got the AZ-TP DSC 0.6x monocular phototube for my slowly growing AZ100M macro/micro frankescope

Its photoport inner diameter is 38mm and the only option shown at Nikon literature is with 1X C-mount adapter 11mm FN for small sensor Digital Sight Series cameras.

The tube lens is placed at the bottom of the otherwise empty tube, just at the mounting dovetail level. I roughly measured is focal length to be 150mm and this matches pretty well with the magnification I’m getting if I place a 10X eyepiece at the zoom parfocal position focus point:
(objective magnification X zoom magnification number X 10 X 0.6)

Hi Pau,

I don't have this macroscope so I find it difficult to follow the description. Do you have an image?

If there is a 1x C-mount available, have you thought about the Nikon MDC lens? It's a (10x??) eyepiece that can be attached to a C-mount. Then you put the APS-C DSLR on top with a 40 mm (??) camera lens. Afocal is an easy solution if the intermediate image is difficult to access. https://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/im ... osetup.jpg

Regards, Ichty

[dolmadis]

If there is a 1x C-mount available, have you thought about the Nikon MDC lens? It's a (10x??) eyepiece that can be attached to a C-mount. Then you put the APS-C DSLR on top with a 40 mm (??) camera lens. Afocal is an easy solution if the intermediate image is difficult to access. https://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/im ... osetup.jpg Regards, Ichty

So the bottom thread is C mount and the top thread?

Thanks

John

[Pau]

Hi Ichthy,
Yes, as you likely remember I'm used to afocal. The Nikon MDC photoeyepiece is usually pretty expensive (I lost a good opportunity months ago ) and I the PLI 2.5 projective seems very adequate and I found one at a fair price. Thanks for the suggestion.

Here you have images of the tube:

In place of the C-mount adapter I plan to put the V-T tube with the 2.5 PLI inside and a M42 adapter for the camera

[Ichthyophthirius]

So the bottom thread is C mount and the top thread?

Hi John,

I would have to dig it out but as it fits on the Nikon Coolpix filter thread, it is probably M28x0.75 (same as the Leitz Periplan 10x/18 eyepiece).

Regards, Ichty

[Ichthyophthirius]

Hi Pau,

That looks interesting. If the monotube is 0.6x, that will hopefully result in a nice final magnification for your APS-C camera.

The CFI projective will likely work similarly to DIN projectives. It's unlikely that Nikon changed this when moving from CF PL to CFI projectives. The intermediate image should be at -10 mm inside the projective and at +17.526 mm above where the C-mount would be. The final image will likely be around 150 mm above the projective. It should be realively easy to work out using a piece of paper as projection screens.

Regards, Ichty

[Pau]

Ichty,

Thanks for the info, I never found the data of the Nikon projectives image planes positions. -10mm and 150mm sounds good

[viktor j nilsson]

Ichty,

Thanks for the info, I never found the data of the Nikon projectives image planes positions. -10mm and 150mm sounds good

I have asked about this earlier in the Nikon microscope user group on Facebook, and Azuma Kosall, who knows his stuff and usually have access to documentation in japanese that I haven't been able to find online, has informed me that the primary image is indeed located -10mm from the shoulder, and the image plane is located 202.5mm above the shoulder of both the CF PL and PLI eyepieces.


The CF PL 2.5x is 42mm from shoulder to top (source: viewtopic.php?t=11547&start=15) so the distance from top part of the eyepiece to sensor should probably be 160.5mm.

[Pau]

Viktor,
Thank you for the info, will post my measurements when the parts arrive.

[Pau]

In some Nikon SMZ stereos pdfs I've found the camera adapter I need but only named "F mount adapter" without a model number/designation useful to find it. Clearly it couples into the 42mm V-T tube I already have ordered.

If I can't find it likely it will be substituted with a custom adapter based in M42 tubes but would be very useful to know its dimensions, in particular the length marked in the second picture

If anyone have this adapter, knows its part number/designation or its measurement, please let it me know.

[Pau]

I've received the parts, mounted and preliminary tested the whole setup.

I've coupled the camera with a bellows and this has allowed me to find the parfocal point. Finding it has taken me lots of attempts but now it's done:
The distance from the V-T end to the sensor is 164mm (120mm up to the Canon EOS bayonet), so the distance from the PLI 2.5x shoulder would be 197mm to the sensor, close enough to 200mm, I think.

I plan to test and post more details in an undetermined near future, for now a dirty phone picture with my notes:

A) AZ-TP DSC 0.6x phototube
B) V-T with PLI 2.5 inside
C) DIN 42 tube-M42x1 3D printed adapter
D) 10mm Ext. M42 tube
E) Bellows (94mm extended)
F) 10mm Ext. M42 tube
G) M42 to Canon EF

Thanks all for your help