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seem to have posted this in the wrong section for my first post so here i go again!:

hi all.

ive been a fan of astronomy ever since i can remember, now in my early 30's and finally getting round to getting my first scope.

ive read the various info on the net and have come up with some basic criteria on what i want to see: 1. moon, mars, jupiter etc with decent detail, 2. deep space object (galaxies etc).

so far my understanding is that my primary focus is good aperture. Anything from 125mm and above for decent planetary details.

i live in a city (dublin) but have some light shielded observing areas close to where i live.

im not sure if i should go for a reflecter or refractor scope.

my understanding is a refractor is better for city viewing but a reflecter gets better value for money for aperture.

i live in an apartment so cant have a too bulky scope.

ive come up with the following two choices:

<H1 class=headline>Bresser Messier NT-203 203/1000 EXOX 2 Telescope

http://www.optical-systems.com/bresser-messier-nt203-2031000-exox-telescope-p-16678.html

or

<H1 class=headline>Bresser Messier AR-127L 127/1200 EXOS 2 Telescope

</H1></H1>Bresser Messier AR-127L 127/1200 EXOS 2 Teleskop kaufen bei Optical-Systems.com

any help in choosing between the two would be much appreciated, or if im in totally the wrong direction, send me the right way!

thanks.

d

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i would go for more aperture so would go for the top one. however bare in mind that the 8 inch will be heavier and bigger than the 5 inch.

cant tell what mount they come on (unless im being thick :rolleyes: ) but certainly a bigger mount will be heavier and more awkward to use. but dont let this put you off :)

I would be abit wary of putting a 200 on an eq3/2, but that mount is alot easier to use than an eq5.

howabout going for a cheaper skywatcher or celestron brand and using some of the spare cash for accesories like a nice ep etc? could get a 150 on an eq3/2 which would be inbetween the 2 size scopes u picked - and i had my best views of saturn yet through a 150.

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You're beginning to go for bigger scopes! An 8" reflector is not massive but it is not of inconsequential size.

Have a look at this thread with pictures of how big some common scopes are: Here

Andrew

PS - I went for my Mak because we lived in an apartment at the time!

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wuoldnt go far wrong with that celestron omni. but as awr said, maks are much more compact but I believe they are not so good for dso's, however i coudl be wrong :)

I found a 150 was pretty large, and theni got a 200. JC, the size increase was ALOT more than i thought, and the weight increased by a substantial amount too.

the 200 on the eq5 would be nice, but bare in mind the size and weight of it - IMHO, i wish i had kept hold of the 150 on the eq3/2 - whilst the 200 does give nice views, the size of the ota and the mount is a pain in the backside sometimes. Sometimes a small graba dn go scope is better, especially if as you say you live in an aparatment - my gear is stored outside on ground floor and even so, the ewather is so poor lately that after 10 minutes of setting up its cloudy so i havent had much viewing time this summer.

having said that - its easy in hindsight to say get the 150, but i caught aperture fever and I WANTED a 200 :rolleyes: , its only aterwards that i realsie how much more hassle it is. *shrugs*

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You need darker skies to get the best out of the reflector, for city viewing I would recommend the refractor, I have both and live a mile from town centre, eyepieces will go easier with the refractor, better than a fast reflector (f/5) from personal experience.

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rwilkey - i do not wish to go against an older more wiser observer, but i dont see how the different scopes differ in light pollution ? surely they will both be affaected the same amount?

But you are correct on the ep's - a slower scope will tolerate lower qualitry ep's. but is that so much of a difference to base your buy on? i would say not.

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maks are much more compact but I believe they are not so good for dso's,

True. They're not that good at diffuse objects. But I live in a city and so such objects are out of the question due to light pollution anyway. If you live under darker skies then a reflector is great (such as the 8" you mentioned) but make sure you've seen one in the flesh first.

Andrew

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I think different scopes perform better in certain skies, I am blown away every time I use the C100ED in my back garden, I am sure it performs better than my reflector. About diffuse objects, I saw M81/M82 from my back garden, now that is really something in a light polluted area, no filters used.

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I have a reasonable budget and have changed my mind 50 times already. Im still no closer to a decision. Ive come to the conclusion that its all part of the fun. Im sure i'll get there in the end.

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