The first thing you’ll notice is that these filters are produced for us in Germany by Astronomik. Tele Vue and Astronomik are two relatively small companies that adhere to the same philosophy. Do it better, or don’t do it at all; the products, customer, and night sky deserve it.
David Nagler and Gerd Neumann had crossed paths at astronomy shows for years. Both have had their frustrations with the filter business. From passband to thread tolerances, the filter industry seems like the “wild west” of astronomical products. We had been looking to develop a long-term supplier of state-of-the-art, custom filters and approached Astronomik with the idea of reintroducing Tele Vue’s line of premium quality Bandmate filters; guaranteed to perform and fit, with uniformity beyond any competitive brand. Gerd and Eric of Astronomik were excited with the idea of a partnership with Tele Vue. “When we started into Amateur-Astronomy, Tele Vue already was a legendary brand known for its outstanding quality of their telescopes and eyepieces. Today we are proud to team up with them to share our knowledge and experience in filter design and production and bring the best filters possible to all astronomers worldwide.”