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Skywatcher Heritage 130P FlexTube Telescope


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Hi again, just wondering how many of you out there have this scope ? This will be the scope i have chosen for my starter. Was wondering on how good it really is from people who own iit. Have read some good reports so hopefully i wont be dissapointed. Have seen it going for 120 kwid so i feel this is a bargain.

Also will i need other eyepieces with this or will it be ok standard ?

Anything else i need will also be appreciated to make my viewing time awwwsome.

So please help guys

Ta

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The 130 Heritage is a great scope to get you going, works right out of the box: just spend a little time getting the red dot finder aligned. We saw the rings of Saturn from our front garden with this scope and were hooked. It is so easy to carry that you can take it to a dark sky site on a public footpath easily, with snacks etc in a backpack.

Easy to use, my 12 year old can find stars and planets with it, and for times when my 10" intelliscope was too much to carry (read sneaking onto a dark sky field) is a super grab and go scope.

M13 and other dso's are easily do-able with that little scope.

Have given mine away to a good home, where it will be put to good use; in a way, I wish I'd kept it.

The 25 eyepiece was okay, the 10 too, until you look through a better one, but you've got a great bit of kit coming to you; enjoy! There's a thread here with some pics of the moon that are stunning!

Chris

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I find mine a great first scope to learn the skies with...

I started with a skywatcher 130P but found it a bit too big to store assembled in our house, so sold it and came down in size a bit to the flextube...

I find it much more practical for me due to its smaller size and dob mount over a large tripod... its very portable and I have taken it on hols a few times as doesnt take up too much room in the boot, and its also easy to take it to friends/family houses...

The stock EPs suit the scope well, I have just bought a barlow and a 3.5mm EP, just waiting for the conditions to test em out...

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Will deffo order one, some good reports here which has twisted me arm lol. will bear all your input in mind and keep ya posted on how i do for a noob :)

hopefully all the cloud will disappear when i get it :)

so do better ep give you better quality or more magnification, im confused with that part ?

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...so do better ep give you better quality or more magnification, im confused with that part ?

Magnification depends on the focal length of the eyepiece used with the scope, not it's quality. Better quality eyepieces do give nicer views but I'd have a go with the ones that come with the scope before deciding what to invest in next.

Top quality eyepieces can cost more than the scope does, a lot more sometimes !.

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I brought this little scope a few months ago and must say have been very pleased with it. I brought some different EP's and a good 2x barlow which made a difference.

I personally love the dot finder, once its set up its easy to use. I ignored the set up guide that came with the scope and all i did was find a bright star in the sky (manually) then twist the nobs to line the red dot up to the star.

One thing i do (not sure if i should or not) is seperate the two base plates and polish the bottom one to help with smooth movement.

Hope you enjoy it.

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When doing the same general checks and googling after ordering mine, I found a lot of users saying about the focus wheel being very loose, and when mine arrived I found the same, and the general advice was to take it off completely and wrap some PTFE tape on the thread and put it back on, and it gives it a bit more bite..

So give that a try if you find the same...

also see my post in this thread re a diy foam shroud for the flextube part...

its a very neat looking and cheap little mod, easy to do and helps prevent some stray light entering the tube...

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I must have been lucky as my focuser fits quite well actually, I don't have a shroud for mine but then again light pollution in my area is very very low.

I can't actually think of any problems or issues with mine since I had it, its a very good telescope.

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I have to agree with everything that's been said so far, yes the focuser is a bit funky but nonetheless functional, as starter scopes go it’s a cracker; it’s simple, uncomplicated and great quality. The DIY light shroud is a great idea as would be a DIY dew shield if things start to dew up over the winter months.

Due to the aperture this scope doesn’t really excel at the deep sky objects, although I have seen both the smoke ring nebula and Andromeda through this scope from a light polluted back garden, so for it’s size it’s great.

If you want to look at the planets then you want the highest magnification that your local seeing conditions will allow, for me this is usually in the 150x to 200x range, bear in mind that the focal length of the scope is 650mm so the 25mm will give you 26x and the 10mm will give you 65x magnification.

I tried a 3.2mm TMB Designed eyepiece from here: 1.25" Eyepieces although at 203x the view was always a bit soft for the conditions that I was viewing, so I'd recommend the 4mm as this will give you 162.5x so should be within the local seeing on most nights. Maybe the 3.5mm from here: U.K. Astronomy Buy & Sell would prove good (if it’s not gone) at about 186x mag.

Good luck and hopefully the weather will pick up.

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The stock EPs suit the scope well, I have just bought a barlow and a 3.5mm EP, just waiting for the conditions to test em out...

Cool have to let me know :)

That shroud i feel does a better job so will have a look for some material whist waiting for it to arrive. Will look at the focuser to see how it feels. Thanks for your hints n tips

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well if anyone with a heritage 130 is planning on making the shield and wants to save a bit of time...

I have used a 300x600mm piece which allows for a 10-15mm overlap at the bottom onto the main body and also allows 10-15mm overlap around the circumference to fix both ends together.

Then just measure up and chop out the cutaways to fit around the redlight mount (15x15mm), EP aperture (40mm diameter hole) and main mount on the base (40x15mm), and run some self adhesive velcro strips along both ends to hold it in place when attached..

You could use that 3mm foam or if you cant find it (cos I had a job tbh) probably even some medium thickness black card....

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  • 2 months later...

I've done both and it's a super quick set up on a table with the built in base, it's also easy enough to detach the base and attach it to a Sky-Watcher SupaTrak mount although with the levelling and point North set up you need another couple of minutes to get going.

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The only reason it is sold as a table top scope is because most people prefer to stand while observing and this scope is too small to do so unless you put it on a table. I am in a wheelchair and i place the scope on the ground and use it from a seated position with no problems.

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