Telrad is blurry

Hello., I bought a new Telrad and I am installing it on a Meade starfinder 12.5 When I tested it in the dark the circles appear blurry through the magnifier. I asked the wife to take a look at it and she said the same thing. Is it broken or am I nuts?

Kevin Carbonell said:

Hello., I bought a new Telrad and I am installing it on a Meade starfinder 12.5 When I tested it in the dark the circles appear blurry through the magnifier. I asked the wife to take a look at it and she said the same thing. Is it broken or am I nuts?

Hi Kevin. My Telrad gets a little blurry sometimes too. If you slide the the battery compartment lid open, you'll see the little black lightbox that holds the reticle. Sometimes the lightbox slides forward or backward out of position, causing the reticle to look out of focus. Just slide the box forward or backward while looking through the sightglass the way you would normally use it until the reticle appears to be back in focus.

The Telrad does have a lens that projects the reticle onto the sight glass, so the reticle/lightbox has to be in the right position to project the image properly, but you can get it there pretty easy. Also, if there isn't one there already, put a piece of foam between the lightbox and the battery. If the battery is sliding around loose, it can knock the lightbox out of position.

I think that on some Telrads, the lightbox is a bit loose in its hold on the sides of the case--it's a tension fit. I put a piece of paper in mine between the box and the inner wall of the case, and it seems to hold its position much better. You might give it a try.