RJC

Welcome from one newbie to another

My last 2 years in London/Kent were in Beckenham so not too far from you there. Moving back to Cornwall was also like heaven after a decade of London. I miss it at times but I don’t think I could go back now. SW was great at the time but we got priced out so ended up buying in Streatham Hill, not quite as nice @Mr H in Yorkshire A small Dales town sounds nice, I’m a Yorkshireman at heart, I lived in West Yorkshire until I was 9 before moving to Cornwall. The Dales is my favourite place to holiday in the UK! We go most years.

Sounds great! Thanks for the info on your new kit. (Some of which you will see below)... So, I ended up getting a really good deal on a package that was opened but never used. The guy said he bought it on a whim 6 months ago and literally hadn't taken it outside. I now have: - Evolux 82ED scope - 45deg and 90deg 2" Star Diagonals, (I know exactly what you mean about the 45deg as I had the same with my ST120) - Sky Surfer III finderscope - Baader Hyperion 8mm, 13mm and 24mm EPs Really happy with everything! What part of London are you in? I was in SW for 10 years or so but moved back to Cornwall a couple of years ago. Cheers!

@LondonNeil it'd be great to hear about your EPs. What did you get? How are you finding them? Since this post, I have ended up with new equipment altogether, none of which mentioned in my OP ha!

Thanks All, great advice and insights. I'll have a think about which direction to go.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'd roughly calculated the weight of everything and it should fall within the 6KG payload limit, I know you ideally don't want to get too close to that. @Elp I would like to image DSOs, not interested in planetary/lunar particularly. I ideally want to keep the rig as light weight as possible so I can take it on holidays around the UK etc. and also get from my house to some nearby dark sky sites. I should also point out, I already have the Evolux 82, hence that scope is in the list.

Hi, I'm just exploring a possible entry into some astro photography. My initial idea is the below for a starter rig. It would be great to hear from more experienced APs to see if this makes sense. - Star Adventurer 2i Pro or GTI? - Some sort of carbon fiber tripod legs - Evolux 82 ED - ZWO mini guidescope - ZWO ASI120mm Mini guide camera - ZWO ASIair Mini - ZWO ASI183MC Any input would be great! Thanks

@Second Time Around This case looks great, what brand is it? Where did you get it from? Thanks!

Thanks for all the feedback! @LaurenceT I would be very interested in your AZ5 but I can't access the buy/sell page just yet due to being a new member. Hopefully it's still there when I get access.

This finderscope looks great, thanks for sharing. I had the 9x50 but I really didn’t get on with the straight through design. I’m tall so when observing objects which were high in the sky, it was a nightmare. The 90deg diagonal should help that!

Thanks all for the great advice in this thread. I’m also new and going to try for a few of these myself!

Hi, I have recently picked up an Evolux 82ED that came with an EQ3-2 mount. I’m looking for a light weight but capable AZ mount and tripod. The issues I’m having is when you compare AZ4 and AZ5, one has slow motion controls but aluminium legs, the other has no slow motion controls but the better SS legs. I’m also potentially looking at the AZ Pronto. Any suggestions would be great. Thanks

Hello, The postman has been and delivered some Astro goodies. (I actually went and collected it but hey ho)… I’m very new to astronomy and recently bought a StarTravel 120 with an EQ1 mount which turned out to have some issues so I sold it on (at a loss) to somebody who was basically going to take it apart and use various bits for various other things, anyway, that’s a different story. Here is what I’ve ended up with, (pictures below), I’m mainly interested in visual for now but would like to keep the door open for some photography down the line. Have I made a good purchase?

Great feedback / advice and indeed therapy. Thanks, everyone!

I am new to Astronomy and on one hand I am really enjoying looking into it, on the other hand I am overwhelmed, frustrated and confused; a shell of a man. OK, that's an exaggeration... Having bought the StarTravel 120 and enjoying it, I unfortunately continued reading/watching/researching reviews online and I'm a bit annoyed I didn't go with the 127 Mak, (plus others but let's keep this about the StarTravel vs. Mak). It seems no single scope will do everything, (well at least). A StarTravel that is typically better for low power deep sky vs. a Mak that is typically better for lunar/planetary. My question is simple: Which wins? A.) StarTravel 120 on planets B.) SkyMax 127 on DSO Thanks!

I'm new to this and never thought about recording what I have observed, great idea! Especially the equipment used etc. It will be great to look back at some point. Great post, thanks!

I was also between the Heritage 130p and 150p and got neither, kind of regret that too. I'm very new to this and I already basically want every telescope ever made - it really is a rabbit hole. Good luck!

@seven_legs Good to know, which eyepieces did you have the most success with for your ST120? I'm doing some research now but having a hard time deciding. Especially as I've had so many different recommendations! Thanks

Thanks so much! I’ll start my online shopping

Thanks @Second Time Around for the help with this. I can confirm the Barlow that I have is able to do 2x and 1.5x magnification. I actually bought it for that reason after seeing a review online about that feature. I have also been wondering which diagonal to go for so this is a great help also!

Hi All, apologies for the lack of information. Scope: Sky-Watcher StarTravel 120 Ideally observing a bit of everything I don’t wear glasses Barlow is SVbony 2x Thanks

Hi All, I am trying to plan a budget friendly way of upgrading stock eyepieces with a decent range that will allow me to cover most bases to get started. How does this sound for a 3 EP collection to go with my standard stock 10mm and 25mm EPs? (I also have a 2x Barlow) 1) StellaLyra SuperView 15mm £39 2) SVbony 7-21mm zoom £50 3) Astro Essentials Super Plossl 32mm £29 If there is something better that I’m missing in this price range, please let me know

Good luck with the resurrection! DFW is a great part of the world, I used to be around Dallas a lot with work but not so much nowadays.

Thanks all! I have plenty to go at here I have just, 2 minutes ago, received my Barlow lens so hopefully I can put it to good use when the rest of my kit arrives. I have a nice and relatively dark South facing garden so I have been observing some of these planets and constellations over the past couple of weeks through my binoculars so I’m excited to get in a little closer! the weather is looking pretty good for the next week or so in the SW where I’m based, so fingers crossed I can get out there as soon as everything arrives.

This is great, thanks so much! I’ll try to pick up a copy of Turn Left at Orion too as this has been recommended to me previously. can’t wait to get started!