Lozscott1971

I have in fact just purchased the 130p flextube for £142 inc delivery so I now have that £150approx budget so any further input on how to spend it would be lovely.

Thanks happy-kat, I'm hopeful that in South Africa that the sky should be wonderfully clear. What make etc of eyepieces do you use please? If I buy the 130p flextube (which I think is my only option) then I will have about £150 for extras so any recommendation as to how best spend this would be nice. Best regards

Excellent info there CraigT82 and thank you! A lot there to digest and the eyepiece advice I will look into. To be honest the cheaper the scope, and spend a bit on a decent set of eyepieces, so that if the scope is damaged in transit then so be it and I could easily just replace the scope at that price for my next tour and still retain the eyepieces.

Thanks for the response happy-cat and apologies people as I neglected to make it clear that the Heritage 130p FLEXTUBE was telescope that I was looking at. On reading some reviews I was in the hope that it would be acceptable (if not ideal) to place it on the many knee high flat rocks in the area that I stay. I thoroughly realise that photography will be a no-no and as such I am willing to sacrifice that for better optics.

Would the Heritage 130p flextube @ https://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-heritage-130p-flextube.html Overall maximum height: 46cm (collapsed), 69.5cm (extended) be an option ? Available at flo for £134. As my budget ideally is about £300 allowing me to upgrade on optics ?

Hi Joe:- do you mean the heritage 130p and if so am I asking the impossible to get a decent portable that is able to be taken on a plane ? Again my clothes I am able to take on as hand luggage (7kg allowance) so I could use a large case to put the scope in cargo (high risk) and I would rather it be the other way round.

Keltoi :- just got your new post and thank you. I think that I am starting to go out of my ideal price range with the suggestions made as it will be getting towards the £500 bracket. I know I want the earth but don't want to pay for it !! Any large amount of money will be spent on my permanent home scope in the future if I enjoy my travel telescope. Again great feedback though!

Keltoi :- the wifi would only be in order to operate the gps phone system. I wasn't meaning that I would piggyback my phone of it ! 😀 I have heard of the plossle's and they do appear to be good. Again much appreciation for the valuable input. Happy-kat :- that is a very plausible idea and something that I will look into. Not sure I understand the 15-16mm gap thing though ! Any more feedback on this would be wonderful. Also if I went down the 130p route would this sit on a table or likewise without the need for a tripod etc ? Craig T82 :- a very valid point that you make !! Any suggestions on the best way forward ie scope and/or eyepiece requirements please. A superb group of people on here !!!!

Many thanks for the swift response and sound advice Keltoi. I had looked at this model and was attracted by the wi-fi goto capabilities. Is it true that it provides it's own signal as I will NOT be able to use my own data due to the exorbitant roaming prices. Also at it's price range (doable) would it require any extras or would it provide similar capabilities as a 130mm ? Yes, I would love to be able to take photos but realised very quickly that this would not be possible with the 130p and as such was willing to sacrifice this option until I got a "at home telescope ". If I did decided on astrophotography then for now I would only be using my Galaxy Note 10 plus smartphone. Again many thanks for your response.

Hi there people, Firstly can I say what a joy it has been reading and learning from some great posts by your community. My question (as a complete newbie) has probably been asked and answered many times before but some posts are quite old so I hope that you don't mind me re-asking in case there are more upto date answers. Ok, I am looking at purchasing the SkyWatcher heritage 130p as I want a portable telescope to take to South Africa with me and after reading the forums it seems like a good option. I will be there for a few months including being next to the Kruger National Park where light pollution will be at an absolute minimum so I am hoping for good results . I have read that a 150mm would obviously be preferable but is there one that is portable ?? I carry very little luggage so I can accommodate a reasonable size perhaps upto around 10 kilos or so if such a scope exists and would fit into a case that can go into cargo or would this be a no-no ? If there are any options please can someone advise. If I do end up with the 130p then I will have a budget of upto £150 to get any additional equipment (ie :- eyepieces) that may be required or would I be better of spending £300(approx) on a different scope with little to no budget for extras ? My intention initially and perhaps ultimately with a travel-scope would be observing the planets only and would obviously like as much planetary detail as feasibly possible but I certainly don't expect Hubble like images ! I have intentions of purchasing a larger scope at a later date for home use so it really is just about a portable telescope at this stage. Can I say many thanks already in anticipation of some quality feedback from you lovely people !! Laurence