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Size is important, so what's the smallest?

the lemming

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the lemming

the lemming

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OK chaps,

What's the smallest that I can go without wasting money that could be better spent on binoculars?

I won't choose the smallest, however I will choose something between that and a 6/8 inch dob. I know that both have the same size footprint but Little Miss Lemming will be seeing a tall object sitting in the corner of a room. And that's not good.

I don't want to go too small and spoil the experience of owning a telescope. What ever I choose will have to knock the spots of my 10*42 and 20*80 binoculars, otherwise I'm wasting my time and money.

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LukeSkywatcher

LukeSkywatcher

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OK chaps,

What's the smallest that I can go without wasting money that could be better spent on binoculars?

I won't choose the smallest, however I will choose something between that and a 6/8 inch dob. I know that both have the same size footprint but Little Miss Lemming will be seeing a tall object sitting in the corner of a room. And that's not good.

I don't want to go too small and spoil the experience of owning a telescope. What ever I choose will have to knock the spots of my 10*42 and 20*80 binoculars, otherwise I'm wasting my time and money.

You simply can not compare the view between bins and a scope. Both have their own merits.

Binocular astronomy and telescope astronomy are two very different thing.

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ollypenrice

ollypenrice

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...and I find taking things apart/unfolding them/faffing with them quite a pain, maybe because inevitably my work involves a lot of that. So picking up a Dob and putting it down outside would appeal to me! The small footprint is the key, as is the fact that it won't unfold, get in a tangle, fall over etc. Just don't let anyone stick an umbrella in it.

Olly

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vlebo

vlebo

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Have you considered something like this

First Light Optics - Helios Quantum 4 binoculars

I have the 20 x 90 and , mounted on a sturdy tripod , they are great for general viewing and for learning the skies and also easy to store and very transportable with no collimating or cooling down involved. Try the 25 x 100 if you can stretch that far coz by all accounts they give great views.

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jkwhinfrey

jkwhinfrey

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I've got a 130P, which started on an EQ2, and now finds itself on an EQ5. I don't think that upgrade takes up much more space, but when mounted its not exactly unobtrusive.

The need to open the tripod to stop it all falling over means it probably does take up more space than a much bigger Dob. EQ mounted telescopes are always going to be less compact than a Dob... I think.

Binoculars are likely to be more compact, right up to the point when they have to be tripod mounted. Then they'll take up more space, just like the EQ mounted scopes.

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jkwhinfrey

jkwhinfrey

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At f5, the 130P is quite hard to focus - no dual focuser - and it wasn't made any easier by the amount of movement on the EQ2. Maybe I'm heavy handed, but just touching the focuser would induce vibration that took a few seconds to damp. I've only recently moved to the EQ5, and it's solid as a rock :)

As for the 130P itself, the optical quality appears to be pretty high based on the star tests I've tried. It provides nice bright images and once collimated it stays that way - I should say the collimation was very good right out of the box.

It's capable of splitting the double-double in Lyra (2" separation), giving sharp views of Jupiter and Saturn - up to about 100x or so - and less sharp views at high magnification :headbang: the Moon is spectacular.

I've found many fuzzy low surface brightness DSOs, like M33 and M101. They do stay quite fuzzy from my location on the edge of a small town, and I need averted vision to see detail in the M13 Hercules globular. Wide field views of open clusters are good.

Hope that helps, and sorry if I'm wandering off topic ;)

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brantuk

brantuk

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A 150P OTA on an EQ5/CG5 mount will break down very nicely and take little or no storage space whatsoever. It'll go in a cupboard or wadrobe with no trouble, but if storage is an issue then a garage would be useful. Or put the mount/tripod in the boot and you'll only have a small tube to think about.

If your budget is ok with that combo then the 150P will show a lot more and deeper into space than the 130P, and will last a good while longer before you want a larger scope. :)

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Ags

Ags

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I would think twice before offering a stranger advice on their relationship. It's a simple question about the smallest scope that can give satisfying views.

Having said that I agree a dob would be the best visual option.

As far as looks goes, my 4SE looks nice enough in the hallway. You can't go wrong with orange.

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