Flat black paint isn't very flat at angles of low incidence, especially on a fairly smooth surface. I've acquired some black photographic paper - I'm not sure if flocked is the proper description - but this type of paper is far less likely to shed than cheaper flocked paper such as you might find at department stores. I haven't used it on my telescope tube yet because I plan to build a new one, anyway. I've also looked at black velvetine and black felt at fabric stores. The velvetine is nice, but too "shiny"; the felt sheds worse than flocked paper. I've never heard of the process you described, but it sounds good. I wonder if you might also use finely shredded foam rubber? -----Original Message----- From: Richard Tenney [mailto:retenney@yahoo.com] Sent: Tuesday, March 25, 2003 3:38 PM To: Utah-Astronomy Subject: [Utah-astronomy] Tube blackening question There's been a fair amount of discussion on the Criterion Dynascope list I'm on lately regarding the best ways to blacken the inside tube of a newtonian. What seems to be the preferred method in this group anyway is to coat the inside of the tube with glue, then apply crushed walnut shells (avialable apparently at Petsmart) and spray paint with Krylon flat black. Many on the list discourage the use of flocked paper. What do the experts on this list think of this? Does such a procedure really make a noticeable difference over a simple coat of flat black paint on the inside of the tube sans the shells? Rich __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop! http://platinum.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Utah-Astronomy mailing list Utah-Astronomy@mailman.xmission.com http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/utah-astronomy