banjaxed

Astroboot have not been dealing for a while if I am not mistaken.

That must have taken some thought 👍

Hi Pete, welcome to SGL.

Hi Bill, welcome to SGL.

You could try talking to SWMBO or not 😲😀

Hi Sam, A lot of members here (including me) would recommend either the 150mm or 200mm dobsonian as they are a proven scope with stunning views and without being difficult to use. I still have mine and use it frequently. IMO I think it would be better to wait until you have more experience before buying a go to scope as they can be a bit frustrating. Best of luck with your choice.

Hi Sam, welcome to SGL.

Hi Andy, welcome back to SGL. The most important asset in astronomy is patience 😀

Hi and welcome to SGL.

You are very privileged to get clear skies when you received your scope, it’s usually very cloudy for at least a fortnight 😀. Glad you are enjoying your first experience, hope you get many more years of pleasure with your new hobby.

I am sure you have now realised what a friendly and knowledgeable site this is, so please don’t hesitate to ask about anything you are not sure about because someone will help. As it has been stated here many times, we all started with no knowledge about astronomy. Clear skies.

My first suggestion would be to download the free Stellarium app as once you fill in your location you will be able to see right away what is in your skies. Your scope is not a bad starter and the AZ mount is a good choice imo. Most members (including me ) recommend the Skywatcher 8” Dob as a starter scope as it is easy to use. This was my first scope and I still have it and use it just as much as my ST 120 refractor. PS welcome to SGL.

I have the AZ5 mounted on the 3/8” stainless steel tripod which theoretically takes up to 9kg but in my opinion your OTA would be a challenge. Far easier to make or source a Dob base.

Hi and welcome to SGL.

Hi and welcome to SGL.

Hi and welcome to SGL.

Hi neighbor, welcome to SGL.

Hi and welcome to SGL.

Hi Danny, welcome to SGL.

Hi Neil, welcome to SGL.

I agree with the Skywatcher 200P, I wouldn’t part with mine. They do come up fairly often on the well known auction site and if they are near enough to check over then you would be ok. Good luck.

Hi MiladyB, welcome to SGL.

You must be one in a million, things like that don’t happen to us mere mortal folk.

I have the Skywatcher AZ5 mounted on the 3/8” stainless steel tripod and it is very stable.

Hi and welcome to SGL.