Help for Husband

[JayneRickard]

My husband would like a telescope for Christmas as he would like to start star gazing and recording planets.

I have been looking online but I have no idea what telescope or kit would be best for him.

I don't want to break the bank but would like to get him something that will do the job.

Can anyone please advise me on some of the best ones out there.

Kind Regards

Jayne

[Jim Steele]

Hi Jayne and welcome to SGL.

The best choice strongly depends on your budget but most people would reccomend a dobsonian reflector as you can get most 'bang for your buck' optically and they are incredibly simple to use.

Site sponsers, FLO have a few suggestions for various budgets, please see the link below http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes.html

Best of luck and clear skies

Ben

[Astrosurf]

I second the Dobsonians. Planets are small so you'll need as much aperture as you can afford. The stock eyepieces that will come with the scope aren't usually very good. Budget in a couple of good eyepieces to see more detail.

Alexxx

[rwilkey]

Hi Jayne, and welcome to SGL, probably the best ever starter scope is the Sky Watcher Skyliner 200P Dobsonian, lots of aperture (light gathering power) for a reasonable cost here: http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-skyliner-200p-dobsonian.html

[Chris]

Hi Jayne, we can help but really need a budget to base suggestions on.

Best Wishes

[JamesF]

Depends what you mean by "recording planets", too.  That could be far from straightforward with a manual dobsonian scope.

James

[JayneRickard]

Thank you everyone. I have just had a look at the Skywatcher Skyliner 200P Dobsonian and all of its reviews and it looks perfect for someone who is just starting out but also wants a good quality product. I will let you all know how he gets on )

[steppenwolf]

Excellent choice, Jayne, I am sure he will be thrilled.

[Chris]

The 200p Dodsonian is a great all rounder for observing planets and deep sky objects like clusters and galaxies, I've owned one in the past. Just make sure you're aware of how big it is. There are much bigger scopes out there but newcomers sometimes get an initial shock when the boxes arrive on the doorstep. Before long though they appear small and aperture fever sets in

[rwilkey]

Well done Jayne for making such an excellent choice, he will get many hours of pleasure from that.

[triton1]

+1 for the above

[Sirius Starwatcher]

A good choice of scope Hope you man gets plenty of enjoyment from the hobby.

[daiwelly]

excellent choice for observing +1

[buzzlightyear]

He is a lucky fella me thinks.

[LukeSkywatcher]

recording planets

Do you mean with a video cam or DSLR or just visual?