cajen2

No problem, but you're opening a can of worms here, as everybody will have an opinion, not necessarily the same as mine! 😆 Fir me, the strengths of the various types of scope (assuming a good quality model) are as follows: Reflectors. Best value for money scopes, especially dob mounted. They can hoist in a lot of light as aperture per £ is great. Accordingly, they're great for the fainter deep sky objects, though of course they'll do the other stuff well too. The portability problems we've discussed. Refractors. For me, by far the sharpest and clearest images if they have good quality glass. Cheaper ones can suffer from colour fringing around bright objects. Great on stars, star clusters and double/multiple stars, though planets can look great too. Often have wonderful contrast. Maksutovs/SCTs. If you want a scope that will give you sizeable views of planets, you want one of these. They have long focal lengths, meaning it's possible to have high magnifications if the seeing allows. They suffer from dewing up and cooling down problems. The field of view can also be very narrow. These are all generalisations of course, so not always true. You can see that no one type of scope is perfect for everything, so it's a matter of priorities.

I'm in a good position to pass on a bit of experience here. I have a Heritage 150p, plus a Starfield 102 refractor and until last year, had a StellaLyra 8" dob. The 8" is NOT what I'd call easily portable, especially if you'd be carrying it up and down stairs. You'd have to split the scope and its mount, and both are pretty heavy, so two trips required. You can buy an Oklop bag for the 8" which makes it easier by having the strap over your shoulder, but it isn't so much the weight as its sheer awkwardness. I'd leave the idea of a large dob until you're totally settled. The Heritage overcomes a lot of these problems. It's easy enough to pick up the scope on its mount and carry it in one hand. For carriage on public transport it's simple, particularly if you get a carry bag for the scope itself. The only downsides are the focuser, which takes a bit of getting used to, and the fact you need something stable to mount it on. I use a three-legged stool, which works well but is something else to carry. IMO, your best bet for now is a smallish but good quality refractor using a lightweight mount and tripod. With carry bags, all that's easy on a bus or in a taxi. A 100mm class frac like mine is perhaps a little too long and expensive for you currently, but an 80mm one would be ideal and is capable of giving you excellent views. I'm sure the assembled crowd on here will give you recommendations, as I never try to recommend something I haven't used myself.

Thanks for the write up, SUM. Your conclusions on the Svbony zoom chime with mine: as good as a quality fixed f/l EP (I too use 5mm Pentax XW, plus a 4.5 and 6.5mm Morpheus) but only for sharpness and clarity. I do miss the much wider FOV that the Morphs in particular give me. I was idly considering getting a 127 Mak (as you do 😉) but it sounds like it won't give me much more than my Starfield 102ED except perhaps in magnification headroom. So you've saved me £££, good man!

I use Baader Clicklocks and a Tak diagonal with a twist lock. Most of my EPs are the Morpheus range, which have 'safety kerfs'. All this means I just don't get hangups.

Nice review Paul and it's good to see some opinions from a non-APer! If I got one, I'd use it exactly in the way you describe. Also, very good pix, especially for your first time out!

It would help if we had some idea of your budget. Good though the Starguiders are, they can be improved on with a cash injection. For me, the Baader Morpheus range is wonderful value for money, being better than or as good as a lot of more expensive options. If you buy cheaper EPs, there's a danger you"ll start casting covetous eyes on more expensive ones, so why not short cut the process? 😉

I have the Svbony zoom too and despite my original reservations, love it. It gives sharp, clear views where you really need clarity: at the short end of focal lengths. Its FOV isn't wonderful and you really need to get close to it as the eye relief is short, but for its price, it's amazing.

I have the Starfield 102 and use the GTiX version, which has a higher max payload. It copes just fine.

Yes, it helps if it's used with something wider field to get the target within the finder view. A red dot finder will often get you close enough.

Ok, yes, but you know what I mean! 😆

Yes, I had one on my SL 8" dob. It was fine as far as it went but all such finders seem to suffer a lack of stability, with two thumbscrews and a fixed one. They all seem to go out of alignment if you look at them funny....I haven't used the SW one but I'm sure it's the same.

Nice job, Z! I think with the RACI, the RDF will be fine but I know others are addicted to Telrads.... Suck it and see. Fine focus is so good to have....😉

Nice work, MC.

The 8 is a good one too; possibly the best in the range.

Nice one, Justyn - see you there.

Booked from Thursday to Monday - pitch 5. I will be going to the Royal Oak for dinner - I'll book that a little nearer the time. Looking forward to seeing everyone. Cheers, Clive

Out briefly just now, with Jupiter right next to the moon. As MD says, the moon's glow seems to be reflecting off some haze, making Jupiter very difficult to focus on and see detail. I want to view Sigma Orionis and Struve 761 but the bloody street light next to my garden is blocking them. I need to wait an hour or two.

Hi, G, and yes, I did know the EP is adjustable. I need to experiment more on getting the right height. As I say, I'm more used to the Morpheus range, which is very forgiving on eye placement.

Just come in for a warm after an hour's session. Similar targets to everyone else: the Moon, Jupiter, M42, etc. I'm trying different EPs and Barlows in combination to push my Starfield 102 to its limits. I don't know if anyone else finds this, but my new Delos 8mm, fine EP though it is, is much more difficult to get eye position on than my Morpheus range. This seems to get worse if I try to Barlow it. I had an idea and tried my Morpheus 6.5mm with my Baader 2.25x Barlow on Jupiter. I thought it would be far too much at 247x but the Starfield came up trumps and gave me excellent views, despite the seeing, which was average at best. This is the first time I've been able to compare the SF with the 8" dob I had last winter on my favourite doubles in Orion, so I tried it on Alnitak, which is usually slightly challenging. Through the SF, it was a doddle to split, so happy bunny! 👍

I have a sheepskin bomber jacket similar to the one my father wore at 14,000 ft in a Lancaster. Cold doesn't exist in the UK that can penetrate that....in fact I have to take it off above about 1° as it's too warm! 🤣 Of course, my problem lies with the rest of my body. By the time I've put on JCB socks, a woolly hat, leather gloves, etc I've gone right off the whole idea! 😜

Bit late, but for anyone else looking, the Widescreen Centre sell the APM versions.

I got mine from Amazon too. I find it an excellent, sharp EP as long as its limitations don't put you off. That is a very small eye relief (which I dislike and am not used to) and a tiny FOV (similar). For the price, I can put up with those problems, especially since its 3mil setting constitutes my max native mag.

I have a Starfield 102 ED F/7 on mine and it seems to handle it fine. Having said that, I now use it on a Sightron manual mount instead as it's a lost less faffing about. It has slo-mo controls so I don't really miss the AZGTIX.

Nice one! Must try that with my Starfield 102 ED.

+1 for the Starguiders - they're a great EP for the price, though the field of view isn't jaw dropping. Also consider one of the StellaLyra UFF or LER/WA 68° range - a bit more expensive but decent for the price.