Farpoint 2" Collimation Kit — Laser + Cheshire + Carrying Case

Product Overview

The Farpoint 2″ Collimation Kit is the two-tool collimation set for Newtonian and Dobsonian reflectors with 2″ focusers. It pairs Farpoint's 650 nm laser collimator, fitted with the 1.25″/2″ combo stepped barrel, with the 2″ Cheshire collimation eyepiece, and adds the mirror centre-marking template and triangle centre spots the two tools align to.

The pair covers steps one and two of the collimation sequence: the laser aligns the secondary and brings the primary approximately into place, the Cheshire finishes the primary precisely. Farpoint quotes about five minutes for the full process once the primary carries a centre mark. Everything travels in a red carrying case with a fitted foam insert, and the tools are machined in the USA with a lifetime alignment guarantee on the laser.

Who It's For

This is a good match if your reflector has a 2″ focuser and you would rather buy the collimation set once than assemble it a piece at a time. It suits visual observing, where the laser alone gives a fast pre-session check and the Cheshire is there when the primary has drifted, and it suits imaging, where the frame corners show every residual error and the Cheshire earns its place on each setup. The combo barrel also means the laser drops straight into a 1.25″ drawtube, so a second, smaller reflector is covered by the same tool.

Key Features & Design

• 650 nm laser collimator: extra-bright red diode with a 0.76 mm beam aperture, the smallest Farpoint publishes for any collimator on the amateur astronomy market.
• 1.25″/2″ combo stepped barrel: the laser seats in either drawtube size, so one tool covers both of your reflectors.
• Eight-screw alignment system: opposing screws clamp both ends of the laser diode, rather than the three-screw arrangement used in cheaper designs.
• Single-piece machined laser body: barrel and diode housing cut from one aluminum blank, which keeps them concentric.
• 2″ Cheshire collimation eyepiece: reflective-pane design in the CATSEYE™ BlackCat style, with no crosshairs to interpret.
• No power of any kind on the Cheshire: no batteries and no electronics, so it reads the same on a cold night as a warm one.
• Mirror centre-marking template: acetate template and triangle centre spots for mirrors up to 12.5″.
• Fitted carrying case: red case with a foam insert cut for the tools.
• Made in the USA: with a lifetime alignment guarantee on the laser.

Mechanical and Optical Design

The two tools in this kit read the telescope by different physics, which is why they divide the work the way they do. The laser projects a single 0.76 mm beam down the focuser axis and reads where it lands. That makes it decisive about the secondary mirror, whose job is to sit centred under the focuser at the correct tilt, and it makes the primary check quick. Its limit is geometric: a laser reads the primary through a return path that is itself sensitive to how squarely the laser sits in the drawtube, so the last fraction of primary tilt is not where it is strongest.

The Cheshire has no beam at all. Its reflective pane throws diffuse light down the tube and presents an illuminated annulus against which the primary's centre mark is judged by eye. Because the reading is a concentricity judgement made on an extended field rather than a spot position, it resolves the primary far more finely, and it is unaffected by any residual tilt of the tool in the focuser. Running the laser first and the Cheshire second uses each instrument where its geometry is strongest.

Two details underpin the laser's own accuracy. Machining the barrel and diode housing from a single aluminum blank removes the tolerance stack that comes with a barrel pressed into a separate body, and the eight-screw mount clamps the diode at both ends with directly opposing pairs, holding it in compression so alignment survives handling and transport.

Recommended Uses

• Full collimation of a 2″-focuser Newtonian or Dobsonian: secondary with the laser, primary finished with the Cheshire.
• Pre-imaging alignment: squaring the optics before a run of long exposures, where corner coma exposes small errors.
• Setup after transport: a truss Dobsonian reassembled at a dark site reads with the laser in seconds.
• Mid-session confirmation: the laser return is visible without white light.
• First-time centre marking: the supplied template and triangle spots put the reference point on the primary that both tools use.
• Servicing a second, smaller reflector: the combo barrel steps down to 1.25″ focusers.

Compatibility and Accessory Notes

• Focuser fit: the 2″ Cheshire takes a 2″ drawtube. The laser's combo stepped barrel seats in either 2″ or 1.25″.
• 1.25″-only focusers: the Farpoint 1.25″ Collimation Kit carries the matching 1.25″ Cheshire, and we stock it.
• Telescope types: Newtonian and Dobsonian reflectors. Refractors, catadioptric and SCT designs collimate by other means.
• Primary mirror centre mark: both tools align to a mark on the primary, and the acetate template and triangle spots are supplied for mirrors up to 12.5″.
• Mirrors over 12.5″: the Farpoint LARGE centre-marking template covers 12″ to 26″ and is sold separately.
• Adding an autocollimator: the Farpoint 2″ Super Collimation Kit is the same pairing with a 2″ autocollimator added for the final iteration.
• Tell us your scope and we will confirm the fit.

Good to Know Before You Order

• The Cheshire in this kit is the 2″ version. It seats in a 2″ drawtube; a reflector with a 1.25″ focuser is served by the 1.25″ kit instead.
• The laser barrel is the combo type. It steps to fit both 2″ and 1.25″ drawtubes, which differs from the standalone 1.25″ laser.
• The primary mirror needs a centre mark for either tool to align to. The template and triangle spots are in the box, and marking a mirror is a one-time job.
• The supplied template covers mirrors up to 12.5″. Larger mirrors take the LARGE template, which we also stock.
• The kit covers steps one and two of the sequence. An autocollimator adds a third refinement stage and is sold in the Super Collimation Kit.
• The 650 nm beam is bright by design. It is meant to be read off the mirror and the focuser face rather than viewed directly.
• Farpoint's lifetime alignment guarantee applies to the laser. The Cheshire carries no alignment to hold, having no diode or electronics in it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it difficult to set up?

No. Each tool drops into the focuser like an eyepiece, and Farpoint quotes about five minutes for the full laser-then-Cheshire sequence. The one preparatory step is marking the centre of the primary mirror, and the template and triangle spots for that come in the kit — done once, the mark lasts the life of the mirror.

Will it fit my telescope?

The Cheshire suits reflectors with a 2″ focuser. The laser's combo barrel steps to fit 2″ or 1.25″. Send us the make and model and we will check which kit suits.

Why include a Cheshire when the kit already has a laser?

The laser reads the secondary decisively and puts the primary approximately right. The Cheshire judges the primary's centre mark against an illuminated field, which resolves the last of the primary tilt more finely. The pairing is the standard approach to Newtonian collimation.

Does the Cheshire need batteries?

No. It is a reflective-pane design with no electronics, so there is nothing to power or replace.

What does the 0.76 mm beam aperture change in practice?

It tightens the spot that returns off the mirror. A wider beam comes back as a larger, speckled patch that is harder to judge against the centre mark; at 0.76 mm the return is a small spot, so a slight misalignment stays visible.

How does this differ from the Super Collimation Kit?

The Super Collimation Kit adds a Farpoint 2″ autocollimator to the same laser and Cheshire, for an iterative third pass on the primary.

Bottom Line

In short: a USA-made two-tool set for 2″-focuser Newtonians and Dobsonians — a 650 nm laser with a 0.76 mm aperture and a 1.25″/2″ combo barrel, a 2″ reflective-pane Cheshire, the centre-marking template both align to, and a fitted case — covering the secondary and the primary in about five minutes.