The Meade 3" two-element field flattener has been designed to specifically optimize the flat-field imaging performance of the Meade Series 6000 115mm (#M6115EDT) and 130mm (#M6130EDT) ED triplet apochromatic refractors only.
All refractor telescopes have a curved field of view, with the stars at the edge of the field slightly out of focus when compared to the stars in the center of the field. The faster the focal ratio, typically the more strongly curved the field. This is typically not an issue in visual observing, where the object of interest is normally placed in the center of the circular eyepiece field where your vision is sharpest. When imaging, however (particularly with the wide rectangular field of a DSLR or large chip CCD), the out of focus star at the edge of the field are more readily visible and can detract from the image.
A field flattener such as this Meade is designed to bring the stars at the edge of the field in focus at the same time as the stars in the center of the field.
Designed to work purely as a field flattener for imaging, and not simultaneously as a focal reducer or telecompressor, the 3" Meade field flattener does not change the focal length or focal ratio of your telescope. It is not designed for visual use, having photographic T-threads only and no provision for using a star diagonal or eyepieces. Its wide 3" diameter assures that there will be no vignetting, even with the largest chip CCDs and DSLRs.
Standard 42mm x 0.75mm pitch T-2 photographic T-threads on the observer/camera side of the black anodized field flattener accept a standard T-ring for connecting a 35mm or DSLR camera to the field flattener. They also allow direct connection to many CCD camera/color filter wheel combinations.
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