RJC

Hi All, So my first telescope is arriving on Tuesday. After a last minute pivot due to finding a second hand telescope with some extras at a really good price, I am now getting the SW StarTravel 120. I figure that it will be good to get me started and allow me to have a go at most things to see what I enjoy most before maybe investing in something better down the line. With this in mind, I wonder if anyone could help with a top 10 list of things that I should start with when it comes to observing. As a beginner, some of the easier things to locate would be great as I will have a fully manual set up, I.e. no goto equipment. I'm thinking moon, brighter planets, globular star clusters, galaxies, nebulae etc. Thanks in advance!

Thanks all, great advice!

Hi All, is there any difference in quality between a 6mm BST StarGuider, or a 12mm BST SG with a SG 2x Barlow? Thanks

Thanks all! really appreciate the support. I think I have decided on the Heritage as a starting point with the addition of a BST StarGuider 8mm eyepiece and possibly a Barlow. I’ll let you know how I get on. Very much looking forward to being able to access the buy/sell area. Not sure if replies count or if it is down to new thread posts… Hopefully I’ll get there soon. Thanks again for all of the advice! Rob

@dweller25 Wow, this could be the one. Thanks

Thanks All! Again, some great information here. So much choice and as mentioned, everything has pros and cons. Decisions decisions..... In terms of budget, I am in two minds: The first is to buy something cheap, maybe around £200 to get me going and accept that I will want/need to upgrade the equipment in some time as I develop. The second train of thought is that I should buy something substantial and robust/diverse enough that it will last for a decent amount of time before feeling the need to upgrade, or at least pick up something else to accompany my first purchase. Again, any advice on this would be much appreciated. I'd be interested to hear from some of you who have been in this position and learn from your experiences. Thanks!

Thanks @dweller25 & @doublevodka! I'm already learning a lot. These telescopes look great, I guess the one question would be... How does the portability compare between say the Evostar 102 and one of these 8" Dobsonians? I guess I will be moving it around fairly often, I live close to the coast and there are some nearby beaches with vast areas of sky so I think these seem like a good place to observe. Up to now, it has been out of my windows / back garden with some binoculars.

Firstly, hello everyone and Happy New Year to all! This is my first post and I am new to the world of telescopes so please bear with me. (Please forgive the long post too)... I have been fascinated by the night sky for most of my life so I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to look to invest in some equipment. The three scopes I have narrowed it down to are all by Sky-Watcher. Evostar 90 EQ2, Evostar 102 EQ3, and Startravel 102 EQ1. My main interest initially is going to be observing the moon/planets, but I know I will also want to move onto other aspects of astronomy too, including pretty much everything! Some questions which would be great to have some help with: 1) Would it make sense to go for the ST102 as this is good for wide field stuff, but can also get decent views of moon/planets with a 6mm eyepiece with a Barlow for example? 2) Is a newbie like me going to notice a massive difference between the Evostar 90 and Evostar 102 in terms of aperture? (Just how much brighter will the 102 be?) 3) The Evostar 102 seems to be a better package all round, I.e. it comes with a 2" star diagonal as oppose to a 1.25" that comes with the 90. It also has the EQ3 mount and a few other upgrades. 4) How much difference is there between the EQ1, EQ2 and EQ3 mounts? Thanks so much in advance! Rob