revelation versus skywatcher 10" Dobsonian

[roadrunner]

hi

i have skywatcher 200p dob that i love and use a lot.

i am fortuante in having a weekend retreat in the countryside and am looking to purchase a second Dob to keep down there.

i have been looking at the Skywatcher 250p or the Revelation 10" Dobs. does anyone have experience of either to inform my decision?

both are just within my budget though the Revelation is a bit cheaper

thanks

don

[catburglar]

I had the 10 inch Skywatcher flextube a few years back. Optically it was great, but a few tweaks required with the mechanics to get it working well. The motions weren't particularly smooth and it was difficult to match azimuth and altitude. The version I had included only a single speed crayford, so it was a bit tricky getting sharp focus at high mag. The flextube action became quit stiff although the collimation was generally pretty stable over multiple uses. My main reason for changing was to get a tracking mount for observing planets- never really did get on with the nudge nudge of planetary observing at 200x+

[Calculon]

Got the Revelation 10" myself fairly recently as a first scope. Very happy with it, if you have specific questions I'd be happy to try and answer them. Only downside I can think of any relevabce at all was that some of the pre-drilled holes in the mount walls weren't especially well measured out - didn't require redrilling or anything like that though! Could perhaps argue that the finder scope isn't up to much but frankly I have no experience of others and it does the job it's supposed to perfectly well.

Should say that I had the same choice to make myself and frankly I saw no reason to go with the Skywatcher even though both were well within my budget.

[niallk]

I got the 250px solid tube as my 1st scope and think is a great performer and excellent value. 5 years on, it's like I'm still unlocking its potential - with a bit of experience and accessories. With just normal care, it is still as new - no issues with base etc: always set up on grass. I've seen loads, and definitely got me hooked!

Can't comment on Revelation dob- best of luck with the choice!

[russ.will]

I'd suggest the Rev, if only because it's an F5, so less demanding on EPs at the edge of field and has the nice machined alt bearings that can help with balancing loads. The base is also a little less cumbersome.

Russell

[roadrunner]

very helpful folks, thanks

calculon what eps do you use and did the problem with the pre-drilled holes affect the set up?

my SW200p is a fantastic scope and i find the finder scope of it ok for me.

i am looking a bigger aperture for DSOs mainly

d

[Paul73]

Firstly, if it is DSO that float your boat. Could you stretch to a 12"? A 2" gain may not give you the big gains in brightness that would make the outlay feel like money well spent.

If 10" floats your boat. I love my SW250p Flex Tube Dob. I am happy to spend a bit more on eyepieces as the money becomes available. So F4.7 vs F5 doesn't really matter for me.

HOWEVER. I have never looked through or used any other telescopes so for all I know.......

Paul

[Calculon]

very helpful folks, thanks

calculon what eps do you use and did the problem with the pre-drilled holes affect the set up?

my SW200p is a fantastic scope and i find the finder scope of it ok for me.

i am looking a bigger aperture for DSOs mainly

d

Comes with 1.25" 8mm Plossl and 2" 30mm 'Superview', have since purchased a 6mm Ortho to go along with those (haven't had it for long enough to justify buying more EPs, as much as I want to!). Happy with the two that came with it, have had some lovely views of Jupiter with the 8mm. 30mm is great for star hopping or looking at the larger nebulas etc. Unfortunately haven't really had sufficient seeing to use the 6mm properly. Don't have any point of comparison but I can't fault the EPs, though you may well have much better gear already! I certainly won't be replacing them anytime soon.

No, as I said there was no major issue with the holes, just had to wrestle with the handle a bit to get it lined up properly. We're talking a few mm off where they should have been at most, bit of extra effort and there's no lasting issues etc. 

[garryblueboy]

I had the 250 flex tube goto and optically found it really good only problem I had was I previously owned the 300 non goto and there was a difference .

[FenlandPaul]

Hi Don, I'd agree with Paul73's comment above re could you stretch to a 12"? I'm in love with my recently acquired Revelation 12 dob - wonderful scope for the money. They crop up now and again on the used market, but the new price is very reasonable. The additional aperture will give you a noticeable difference on DSOs than your 8" (I made a similar jump and the difference is marked).

All the best with whatever you choose.

Paul

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[spike95609]

I've just bought the 250px solid tube as my first scope and have been very pleased with it. The worries I had about F/4.7 left me slightly bemused as I used the supplied EPs to start with, and yes I could see errors but nothing at all that bothered me so I'd imagine only relatively minor expense on EPs is necessary. The focuser is a negative point on the 250px - you'll be familiar with it on the 200p. I believe the ones on the Revelation are better. And if you can stretch to a 12", the Revs are much cheaper; £550 vs £700 for the SW on Telescope House.

[roadrunner]

Thanks FenlandPaul.

May look at the 12"Rev, though my budget is a bit tight. What EPs do you use?

Don