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Filter wheels

Astromania 2 in five-position filter wheel (FW2M5)

A manual filter wheel holding five standard 2 in filters in an aluminum housing, with a 2 in adapter for the focuser and a light-tight interior. The Amazon.com listing warns that the focuser needs 22.5 mm (0.89 in) of extra inward travel. About $85 from a third-party seller.

Astromania five-position 2 inch filter wheel

Astromania 2 in five-position filter wheel (FW2M5)

A manual filter wheel holding five standard 2 in filters in an aluminum housing, with a 2 in adapter for the focuser and a light-tight interior. The Amazon.com listing warns that the focuser needs 22.5 mm (0.89 in) of extra inward travel. About $85 from a third-party seller.

Positions
Five, numbered 1 to 5, for any standard 2 in filter
Housing
Aluminum, described as stiff enough for heavy cameras, without flexure or tilt
Light sealing
Interior stated as light-tight, for imaging without reflections or stray light
Telescope side
2 in adapter supplied for the focuser
Camera side threads
Not stated on the Amazon.com listing; Astromania's European listings name T-2 and M48
Inward focus needed
22.5 mm (0.89 in) from the normal focus position, per the Amazon.com listing; the French and German listings say 20 mm
Weight
594 g (1.3 lb), in Amazon's product details
Storage
The box doubles as a storage case
Power and software
None: a manual wheel
Amazon reference
B0140UA9F6
EAN
6970019290355
  • Publishes the inward focus it consumes, the figure that decides whether it works at all
  • Light-tight aluminum housing, stated stiff enough for a heavy camera
  • 22.5 mm (0.89 in) of inward focus is more than some refractors can give

Best for: A Newtonian or Dobsonian imaging train with enough inward focus, where filters change often during a session.

≈ $85
Check price on Amazon

Specifications

Positions
Five, numbered 1 to 5, for any standard 2 in filter
Housing
Aluminum, described as stiff enough for heavy cameras, without flexure or tilt
Light sealing
Interior stated as light-tight, for imaging without reflections or stray light
Telescope side
2 in adapter supplied for the focuser
Camera side threads
Not stated on the Amazon.com listing; Astromania's European listings name T-2 and M48
Inward focus needed
22.5 mm (0.89 in) from the normal focus position, per the Amazon.com listing; the French and German listings say 20 mm
Weight
594 g (1.3 lb), in Amazon's product details
Storage
The box doubles as a storage case
Power and software
None: a manual wheel
Amazon reference
B0140UA9F6
EAN
6970019290355

On the listing

A manual filter wheel with five numbered positions, each taking a standard 2 in filter, in an aluminum housing the maker describes as stiff enough for a heavy camera without flexure or tilt. The interior is stated as light-tight, a 2 in adapter is supplied for the focuser, and the box doubles as a storage case. Amazon’s product details give 594 g (1.3 lb). It was selling for $84.97 from a third-party seller on November 7, 2026.

The figure that decides compatibility

The listing warns that your focuser will need 22.5 mm (0.89 in) of inward travel from its normal focus position to make up for the wheel’s thickness. The French and German listings of the same reference say 20 mm. Either way, a wheel occupies space in the light path, and if the focuser cannot move in that far, nothing comes to focus. Check your own focuser first: it is the most common reason a filter wheel ends up unused.

Why a wheel

Five filters stay mounted, protected from dust and from being dropped in the dark, and a filter change takes a second. That matters for planetary imaging with a color sequence, or for switching between a moon filter and a nebula filter in one session.

The threads

The US listing does not state the camera-side threads. Astromania’s European listings name T-2 and M48, which would cover a camera on a T-ring and a camera with an M48 nose. Confirm with the seller if your train depends on it.

Short build, and who needs it

The maker points to its short construction for Newtonian and Dobsonian telescopes, which have little room behind the focuser. A camera such as the SVBONY planetary camera on this site, behind this wheel, is a typical planetary train.

What we would check

Your focuser’s inward travel, the thread your camera adapter needs, and the weight your focuser can hold with the camera and five filters on it.

Prices quoted in this text were read on November 7, 2026. The live price is at the top of the page.

What gets asked before buying

Why does the inward focus figure matter so much?

Because a filter wheel sits in the light path and adds thickness. If the focuser cannot travel 22.5 mm (0.89 in) further in than its usual position, the image will not come to focus. Check your focuser's travel before ordering; the French and German listings give 20 mm.

Is five 2 in filters practical?

That is the point of a wheel. Changing a filter in the dark means unscrewing one and threading another over the telescope; turning a numbered wheel does it in a second and drops nothing.

What threads does it have on the camera side?

The Amazon.com listing does not say. Astromania's European listings for the same reference name T-2, the M42 × 0.75 thread most camera adapters use, and M48. Check the adapter your camera needs before ordering.

Does it suit a Newtonian?

The listing names Newtonian and Dobsonian telescopes as the reason for its short build, since they have little room behind the focuser. Whether yours reaches focus still depends on its inward travel.

What barrel it suits

More filter wheels

  • Briny River M42 to M48 anodized aluminum step-up ring

    Briny River M42 to M48 step-up ring (390-EG)

    A step-up ring converting the T-2 thread to M48, so that 2 in filters and M48 accessories can be fitted to T-2 components.

    Slot count and filter size
    M42 × 0.75 male — the T-2 thread · M48 × 0.75 female — the 2 in filter thread
    Optical path length
    The listing gives none
    Manual or motorized operation
    A thread adapter — no optics, and not a filter wheel
    Light sealing
    Aluminum alloy, anodized
    Power
    Not published by the maker.
    Software support
    Not published by the maker.
    Amazon reference
    DE B0FM49SGJH · US B0FM48JF46 · GB B0FM48JF46 · FR B0FM48JF46 · IT B0FM48JF46 · ES B0FM48JF46
    EAN
    4895264934644
    • Both threads are named precisely with pitch, which is what an adapter listing must do
    • Anodized aluminum resists the corrosion that ruins a thread left damp
    • No length figure, and every adapter consumes back focus

    Best for: Putting an M48 filter or accessory onto a T-2 threaded component

    Check price on Amazon

The rest of this rack

  • SVBONY 1.25 inch CLS light pollution filter

    SVBONY CLS 1.25 in (FUSF9155A)

    SVBONY's 1.25-inch CLS broadband filter: 90% transmission at the H-beta, OIII, H-alpha and SII nebula lines and 0.1% at the sodium and mercury lines of artificial lighting, with ion-assisted coatings.

    Blocked wavelengths and published curve
    Off-band 0.1% at sodium 589 nm and mercury 435 and 578 nm · pass-band 90% at H-beta 486, OIII 496 and 500, H-alpha 656, SII 672 nm
    LED and sodium behavior
    Sodium and mercury lines blocked, stated · LED behavior not stated
    Visual or photographic design
    Broadband, stated suitable for color CCD cameras and unmodified DSLRs
    Color cast
    Not published by the maker.
    Thread size
    1.25 in
    Focal ratio limits
    Not published · central wavelength stated stable with temperature
    Amazon reference
    B079BWD595
    EAN
    0609378745577
    • Pass-band and off-band transmissions published at named lines
    • Ion-assisted deposition coating, stated durable
    • Little effect on white LED light pollution

    Best for: Imaging or observing emission nebulae from a town, with a color camera or by eye

    ≈ $32
    Check price on Amazon
  • Almencla 0.965 inch telescope filter with a metal rim

    Almencla 0.965 in Moon filter

    A 0.965-inch filter for older telescopes, in an aluminum alloy rim, whose listing describes it as a Moon filter, a nebula filter and a set of four, with no transmission figure.

    Transmission percentage
    Not published by the maker.
    Neutral or tinted dimming
    Not published by the maker.
    Fixed or variable design
    Fixed · described both as a Moon filter and as a nebula filter
    Thread size
    0.965 in (24.5 mm)
    Glass flatness
    Not published · glass lens in a metal rim
    Cell depth
    Not published · 6 g
    Amazon reference
    B07VQKLGZ8
    EAN
    0614089427032
    • Fits 0.965 in eyepieces, which few filters do
    • Metal rim
    • Described as both a Moon filter and a nebula filter

    Best for: An older telescope with 0.965 in eyepieces, where almost nothing else fits

    ≈ $20
    Check price on Amazon
  • Celestron 94107 variable polarizing moon filter

    Celestron Variable Polarizing Moon Filter (94107)

    Celestron's Variable Moon Filter: a two-element polarizing filter for 1.25-inch eyepieces whose transmission adjusts from 1 to 40 percent by rotating its lower ring.

    Transmission percentage
    Adjustable from 1% to 40%, stated
    Neutral or tinted dimming
    Polarizing, neutral
    Fixed or variable design
    Variable: rotate the lower ring
    Thread size
    1.25 in, threads onto any Celestron 1.25 in eyepiece
    Glass flatness
    Not published by the maker.
    Cell depth
    Not published · Amazon's item data gives 16 g
    Amazon reference
    B07N99RW5K
    EAN
    0050234941075
    • Transmission adjustable from 1 to 40%
    • Works on the Moon, Venus and bright double stars
    • Two elements are thicker than a single filter

    Best for: The Moon across its whole cycle, where a fixed filter is right at only one phase

    ≈ $43
    Check price on Amazon

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