Hi Olly,
I'd been looking around at different scopes to fit somewhere in the focal length I was aiming for, that would be a 'reasonable' match for the HEQ5 in terms of weight. I know I'll need to tune the mount somewhat to get the best from it for a scope of this focal length.
I'm happy with the camera I have, and also the mount (for the time being at least!)
I had considered a newt, but these generally seem to a bit more difficult to balance with the imaging train hanging off to one side. And quite heavy.
Also looked at something like a C8 edge. Longer focal length than the RC8, perhaps a similar weight though.
Another refractor would be nice. Skywatcher 120 Esprit with a focal length of 840mm gives me an arcsecond per pixel, but starting to get expensive. And the OTA is almost 10kg.
The RC8 is a longer focal length and means I'll need to bin 2x2.
But...
It's lighter and more compact, and should be easier to balance than a newt perhaps.
Cheaper and lighter than a refractor.
I got this one second hand for a good price, so if after a year or so it isn't a good fit for me, I'm sure I'll probably get most of my money back if I sell it on.
Either way it'll be fun to try something a bit different than the little ED80 (which will still be getting lot's of use).
Cheers, Matt