codingquark

Thanks nfotis I received Bresser hunter 8x40 Binoculars the other day and spent 3-4 hours observing (it was cloudy, so actual object hunting was much less). After all the unaided activities, these binos are a refresher. It looks like I love visual, but my eyes may have astigmatism detectable at such high magnifications which I shall find out tonight (I will consider this to be a big let down TBH). I think I will spend a month with these (or two, w/e) binoculars and then decide if I want to build separate setups for visual and AP. This is going to be fun. I've planned for bortle 3 next weekend with the binoculars 😁

Thanks guys, I this has helped me clarify my thoughts a lot. The GSO distributor is out of stock for RC8 but has ES 102mm FCD100 in stock. Let's see how this goes. RC8 is supposed to be back in stock in a few months. I will take my time while I have it. I will be sure to post my decision here, and will keep posting my other adventures Thanks!

Okay, the clear consensus is to keep the rigs different. Alright then. The only question I've left is if it will be wise to do the following: Buy RC8, mount it on EQ5 GoTo mount and use it for visual. Save for NEQ6 + imaging train and start AP. If this does not make sense, I will get 10inch GSO / SW with Plossl EP collection (40, 25, 6, 2x Barlow) since it will all easily fit in my budget. I can even get the collapsible dob from SW. PS: In saying "RC8", I am aware I'll be going for narrow FOV, hence keeping ES102 FCD100 option open just in case. Mount shall remain the same - EQ5 right now and NEQ6 later.

Thanks Clarky and EntropyTango for replies! This has been the theme from my friend as well. I should just keep them separate. Hmm... 🤔 Will I really be seeing so much more than, say, the RC8 or the apo refractor that I should keep a whole separate rig for visual? If I'm willing to go through the learning curve of RC's collimation, will it serve as "occasional visual 'scope" and excellent (as good as the es apo) 'scope for AP? Again, I really appreciate the help guys. Like I said, I almost went for the ES because it felt like I could spend many many hours for years observing through eye pieces as well as DSLRs / CCDs - with 80% AP and 20% visual. But then the RC8 showed up which messed up all my equations. So far it seems to me that since I'm a beginner, the collimation will be too much for me to handle and hence I should go with a (preferably large FOV) refractor. If we assume I will get used to collimating the RC8 in a few months, what is the comparison? I should clarify that I'm not super interested in redcat because 1) it is super wide FOV 2) there is no visual at all. I realise that I will probably have to buy many other telescopes to fit various objects in frames, but I would prefer not to start with something that won't let me see anything with eyes. To counter this, both of you have already said I should get a Newtonian specifically for visual, and redcat / ES for AP. This line of thinking depends on what you guys think of RC8 I believe. Thanks!

Hello! Joined the forum only a day ago! I am a beginner at using scopes. I grew up in times where my skies were so clear that I still remember feeling "hey dad! Look at that! A bunch of stars not just one!" (which I now think to have been M13). The same skies have gone to be very polluted and now I only get to see constellations like bootes and Ursa Major. I still love observing these and following their paths over months. Some years ago, I had the chance to look at moon, Saturn and other planetary objects through an 8 inch dob that a friend's friend had got. I was so amazed looking at Saturn, I spent the whole night there. Since then, I have not had any scope. I have had binoculars, but I use them while trekking. They're cheap, I would not buy them again. In last couple of years, I started capturing insects with my phone's camera (these phones can do amazing things!) and some Moon. Two months ago I was reading "Anathem" by Stephenson and that got me to think "man, I gotta stop looking at these stars with naked eyes and get me some scope!". This seems possible because my finances have improved, and I think I can fit the hobby nicely with my interests in trekking, spending solitary hours at night by myself and fiddling the crap out of computers (I am a writer of scripts! lisp anyone?). A friend of mine got GSO 8inch dob last year, but he lives far away and I do not get to visit him only virtually. I asked him what I should do and his first answer was "get an 8 inch dob!". I started researching. I even captured some (terrible) Milky Way through my phone (no mount, no tracker nothing, but I could see many things) to get a feel of how astrophotography feels like. Over the period of a few weeks, I felt that I would rather go for a scope that I can use to learn techniques such as star hopping, identifying objects etc and use the same scope with much improved mount and capture Glorious Photos(TM). I narrowed down the choices to ES ED APO 102mm FCD100 with alt az mount to start with, or Redcat 51 with iOptron sky guider pro. I had almost purchased the ES rig (FCD100, Bresser alt az mount, 30mm + 15mm + 4mm GSO Plossl, GSO 8x50 finder) for about US$2000-2500 equivalent in my currency. Before placing the order, I called up the friend, and explained my reasoning behind the choices. He suggested I should not try to combine visual with photography. I kept pushing, so he suggested I get Redcat but I was not willing to let go of the visual bliss. So he suggested I go with GSO 8inch RC with a GoTo mount. The GSO RC8 with accessories (EQ5 mount, eye pieces etc) is coming to approximately the same price. I am very very confused. I want to have fun already! But I want to eat 2 pies at the same time with weight on photography eventually in 6 or 12 months. Should I get the APO? Or the RC? Or the dob for now and start building a whole different rig later on? I know I'm super into the hobby at least without any aid to the eyes, I'm sure I will love observing every now and then, and photography the skies all the time. You guys gotta help me! I don't know what to do! 😆 Really, please help. Thanks! Some details about my geography: Skies from backyard are about bortle 5 50km drive is bortle 2 skies I have enough cargo space in my car to carry large scope (not that I want to walk around carrying 30kg load like military troopers) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Köppen_climate_classification - BWh (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_climate#Hot_desert_climates)