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Which Telescope?

George!

Which telescope?  

23 members have voted

  1. 1. Which telescope?

    • Skywatcher Skyliner 200p
      11
    • Skywatcher Flextube 200p Auto
      1
    • Skywatcher Flextube 200p Goto
      7
    • Skywatcher Explorer 200p EQ5
      4

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John

John

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Ok I've voted for the Skyliner 200P because I like simplicity. Optically the top 3 are identical and the last one is F/5. F/6 is a better all rounder for visual I reckon, easier on eyepieces and a little easier to keep in good collimation.

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Cornelius Varley

Cornelius Varley

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What do you mean: Which Telescope? They are all the same. Every one is 200P so exactly what is the choice/poll?

The are not all the same. The Skyliner 200 and the Flextube 200 have a focal length of 1200mm compared to the Explorer's 1000mm.

The question is what will be the primary use of the telescope. If it is general observing and no photography go for one of the dobsonians. If you are planning on some DSO photography choose the Explorer on a HEQ5.

Peter

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Ad Astra

Ad Astra

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Hello George,

FWIW, I've been recommending the same starter scope to folks for 25 years - a 150mm dob - and I put my money where my mouth is; I have 12 of them in service on 3 campuses!

I teach about 200 people a year introductory observational astronomy which focuses upon learning the sky, reading a star chart, setting up and using a scope and bins, and how to recognize what you are looking at once you've done everything else right.

The 150mm dob is our workhorse telescope. We have EQ mounted refractors, and 4 SCT's, but everyone begins on the good old 6" dob. Here's why:

1. Easy to use and set up. No alignment issues, lightweight, no batteries, cables, gears or levers.

2. Great optics - great price. You are paying for (and getting!) great views for your hard earned cash, not spending like crazy on features you may or may not use.

3. Great views! With a 150mm, you can see literally thousands of targets - more than enough to keep you at it for a lifetime. No, it doesn't cure aperture fever, but it will allow you to learn the hobby with out exhausting your wallet.

4. Easy to transport. The average 12-year old can easily set it up in the back garden, and this size scope is easy to toss in the boot and take along for a night or weekend away from the city. Many bigger scopes are not nearly as forgiving.

5. Rugged as a tank. Some of my scopes are into their 13th year of service. I hand them over to teenagers (who don't own them) and they cart them half a kilometer to the football pitch, set 'em up in the dark, and tote them back again - 40-50 nights a year! You can't tell the 13 year old units apart from the newest ones in daylight or darkness.

If you want a 200mm, that's dandy - I won't say no. But consider that you can easily get so much scope that it is hard to set up, tote out to the garden, and fit in your auto. You can also easily be seduced into buying computer controlled wizardry which really isn't an astronomer in a box, no matter how much the adverts tell you it is. The more complex a scope is, generally the more know-how and experience it takes to make it work properly.

I hope that helps a bit, if you have more questions, you are certainly welcome to PM me. :)

Dan

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