John

Will this be the only scope you have ?

Personally I would go for a 2 inch diagonal then you have the option of 2 inch eyepieces / filters etc, if and when you want to move that way. The views of big DSO's such as the Veil Nebula and M31 with my 102mm F/6.5 Vixen and 2 inch eyepieces are some of the highlights of observing for me. Then you can bung in a really short FL eyepiece and get 200x plus on the moon, planets, double stars. Versatility

Nice report Nik ! Unfortunately I had lost the clear sky before Orion hove into view here. You are right though, that magnificent constellation is packed full of delights. You can easily spend a whole session there When you get some steady observing conditions try 32 Orionis with your big Mac and then to really push things, 52 Orionis on the other side of the constellation closer to Betelgeuse. You 180 should be able to do both under good conditions. 52 is around a 1 arc second split so very seeing dependent.

Hate to be different but sub-100mm scopes have never really satisfied me. I've owned a number of good quality 70mm, 80mm and 90mm refractors but for me the smallest aperture that I find provides lasting interest is 100mm. I'm sure the Stellamyra 80mm is a superb example of that aperture though. I've owned a Vixen ED102mm F/6.5 for many years now and found it an excellent and versatile scope so faced with the choice you give, the 102mm F/7 would be what I would go for. It would be a strange world if we all agreed wouldn't it

Me too Mark. Cloudy here again now

Yes, I agree that colour tints are easier to see in a more condensed target. Uranus looked distinctly green / grey disk when I observed it just now. That was with a 100mm refractor at 300x.

When I used my UHC filter on Messier 42 with the 12 inch dob a week or so ago I thought that the green tint was enhanced around the "fishes mouth" area and possibly even very subtle pink added here and there to the "wings" but I'm a little wary of what I think I'm seeing, colour-wise, with a filter in place

Hmmmm - this might not last much longer ! Hazy cloud on it's way in I think. Did manage to add Theta Aurigae and Castor to the double star tally before putting the scope under cover while I have supper. We will see what gives later as to whether any more is possible Never mind if not, after a bit of an observing drought, even 30 minutes at the eyepiece seems to lift the spirits

After over a week of heavily clouded nighttime skies, I've been surprised by a clear start to this evening ! In the interests of getting out there fast I've put the Tak FC100-DL out. The seeing is actually quite decent. Mars, though just a 9 arc second disk now, is showing the long northwards projecting snout of the Syrtis Major and the adjacent Mare Tyrrhenum extending to the south west. No sign of the south polar cap. The northern polar limb seems pale and hazy. The phase is 89% illuminated - noticeably gibbous. Uranus, grey / greenish disk quite crisp at 300x. Not in the least like a star at that magnification Alpha Piscium, "Alrisha", the 1.8 arc second double, nicely split. Gamma Cephi, a 2 arc second but more uneven brightness pair also well shown. This one seems to rejoice under the name of "Kaffaljidhma" So all going quite nicely at the moment and I seem to be able to remember, more or less, how to do it after the cloud-enforced break from observing Have fun, if you are out

No problems that I can see. A few specks of dust but that is normal.

As above, Stellarium will show you "whats up" from your location at a particular time and date. Also keep an eye on the observing sections on this forum and see what others with similar equipment are looking at https://stargazerslounge.com/forum/7-observing/

Hi and welcome to the forum. The 2 eyepieces supplied with the scope are OK in a fairly long focal length scope like the one you have purchased. I think it has a focal length of 900mm and a focal ratio of F/11 ?. Even the stock Kellner eyepieces will do OK in the scope so I would hold on and get some experience with the scope before plunging into the world of eyepiece upgrades. I think the scope comes with a 2x barlow lens as well ?. That will be a low cost unit but again might be OK to give you the equivalent of a 12.5mm eyepiece and a 5mm eyepiece so you will have 4 magnifications to play with: 36x 72x, 90x and 180x. Not perfect but enough to get a feel for things. It's worth pausing for breath and getting that 1st hand experience otherwise, before you know it, you can easly spend as much as the scope has cost or even more on a new eyepiece set ! Observing from a balcony or rooftop in a light polluted area will mean concentrating on the brighter targets such as the moon, planets, double stars and brighter star clusters rather than galaxies and nebulae. The scope you have chosen is good for that balance of targets.

The eyepieces that I use with my Tak FC100-DL are a mix of Tele Vue Delos and Pentax XW's. I'm very happy with their performance. These scopes can handle surprisingly high magnifications really well so don't forget shorter focal length eyepieces !

Nice report Doug ! Where are you getting this clear sky from ? I've had pretty much 100% cloud cover here for the past week or more. I'm starting to get astro-withdrawal symptoms Still, it's nice to be reminded that there are still some stars up there if the pesky grey blanket shifts one day !

I believe some planetary observers use a similar technique to help discern subtle planetary detail and tones.

As astro_al says, it is worth checking to see which colour will be supplied. Otherwise you could try a wanted advert on the UK Astro Buy & Sell website.

The objective lens looks immaculate like the rest of the scope. You can buy the finder brackets, finders and other stuff separately: https://www.firstlightoptics.com/takahashi-other-accessories/tak_tka00562.html https://www.firstlightoptics.com/takahashi-other-accessories/tak_tka00551.html

That looks superb in every way

The thought of those lucky enough to be able to observe with a 20 inch scope under really dark skies makes me go a tinge of green as well

Great landings too ! They must be very chuffed with that

Nice launch so far - thanks for the heads up

Personally I think going down the 2 inch visual back / 2 inch diagonal / 2 inch eyepiece route is the best way to get the wider views from an SCT. The slight snag is that for the price of the diagonal and 2 inch eyepieces (and 2 inch filters) you could probably buy a nice rich field 200mm F/5 newtonian optical tube

I can see faint tints of colour in some nebulae with my 12 inch aperture dobsonian. Some of the planetary nebulae show a distinct tint (eg: the Blue Snowball NGC 7662) and touches of green in the Orion nebula. But these are few and far between. Most nebulosity is in shades of grey to my 60 year old eye.

Those are not that good to be honest with you. This is somewhat better: https://www.firstlightoptics.com/ovl-eyepieces/hyperflex-72mm-215mm-eyepiece.html

I use fixed focal length eyepieces most often with my 12 inch dob. I do have a couple of zooms but those tend to get more use in my refractors. With the big dob I love very wide angle eyepieces and zooms, with the exception of the immensely expensive Leica ASPH zoom, don't give very wide views at lower powers.