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What Telescope to buy around the £120ish mark

Merton69

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Merton69

Merton69

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Please can somebody steer me in the right direction to ask about what is the best telescope to buy for around £120ish?

I would love to purchase a telescope that will bring me the night sky a little closer so me and my two young daughters (5 & 7) can share together.

Unfortunately being unemployed right now, I don't have the budget to blow on an excellent telescope.

I have been told that the Celestron telescopes are decent and the choice is between the 130 and the 114EQ. Looking at some reviews the 114 comes out tops!

Thanks to the welcome members, they have suggested that a Dobsonian TS would be a better purchase so what does everyone suggest please?

Thanks in advance! ;)

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damnut

damnut

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Hi merton69,

This is a diifficult one, but I would suggest a pair of 10x50 binos and a copy of turn left at orion.

If you really want to buy a new scope then there is the 130p heritage dob for c£130. I would still wait save a bit and buy the scope you want. You can still see lots with binos!.

Cheers

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dag123

dag123

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Hi,

I have the Celestron AstroMaster 130 EQ and I am glad I went for the larger size.

I am very happy with this scope and would recommend it. The main complaint is the red-dot-finder which is not very accurate with the eye-pieces that come with the scope. You can either replace it or like me, get something like a 32mm EP that shows more of the sky and will make it much easier to locate your targets.

I have never used a dob, so cannot compare.

dag123

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heathenwoods

heathenwoods

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I've got a similar budget (and interested 4,5 and 9 year olds) and will probably have to wait until after the Yule festivities to make a purchase. I've also just passed the 1 month/50 post waiting period to access the For Sale section and I am itching to be in a position to buy. What I've found is that if you have transport then there are some real bargains to be had in there so your choices become a little broader.

Having said all that, after a really good look round and reading all the feedback I could find, it seems as if the Heritage 130P with a dew shield over the open section is a very good choice too. Good luck with your search ;)

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Merton69

Merton69

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On amazon.co.uk there are a few Celestrons that appear to be starter examples:-

Celestron Astromaster 130EQ £170

Celestron Astromaster 114EQ £140

Celestron Astromaster 90EQ £175

Celestron Powerseeker 675 Reflector £180

What are the variations and which would be best please?

Thanks,

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Merton69

Merton69

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From previous investigations, I was as good as done on selecting the Celestron 114EQ as it had great reviews with no major flaws but remembering I am a complete novice so any misguidings in reviews, I would just not see them!

Which would be the best between the C114EQ and the H130P please?

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crazyjedi

crazyjedi

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I'd deffinately agree that you should save for as long as your patience holds and buy the biggest scope you can afford. A dob considermounted scope is a great idea cuz it keeps the cost down and keeps the set up quick and easy. All the advice so far is excellent. I'm going to second (or third) you should certainly consider the 130 dob:rolleyes:

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John

John

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First Light Optical do the same scope for £135.00. The "free" Barlow is worth £7.99 (Scope N Skies price). A good barlow (the TAL 2x) costs £35 so I'm not sure the "free" barlow is worth having to be honest.

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LukeSkywatcher

LukeSkywatcher

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First Light Optical do the same scope for £135.00. The "free" Barlow is worth £7.99 (Scope N Skies price). A good barlow (the TAL 2x) costs £35 so I'm not sure the "free" barlow is worth having to be honest.

Yeah but good luck finding a Tal for sale. For the moment though with the 10mm,20mm ep's that come with the scope...a barlow is not needed.

20mm+2x barlow = 10mm

10mm+2x barlow = 5mm (the weather conditions in this part of the world rarely allow for such high magnification especially on smaller scopes).

But the 2x comes with the scope so if you go for the scope then you can always pass on the barlow if you want (or anyone else wants it.....which i doubt)

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Madhatter

Madhatter

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If i remeber rightly the Celestron 114 has a spherical mirror? you dont want that. Id have to recomment the heritage 130p , the dobsonian mount is far better suited to little ones, as is the red dot sight (or at least that one is effective -i use one) an EQ mount is not ideal for what you want to be honest.

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RikM

RikM

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My 7 year old was given a Celestron 114 and it is okay for viewing the moon but not so easy to use. So difficult for him in fact that he now doesn't bother and just uses my 250PX dob whenever possible.

The Heritage 130P Dob is miles better in build quality, ease of use, optical performance, storage...everything.

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Merton69

Merton69

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Yep!....I think the Heritage 130 is taken over from the C114EQ.

The YouTube vid really has shown how versatile it can be especially that my two littl'uns will be joining in!

It does look sturdy where as the Celestron's appear to have issues with the mount....plus we don't have a lot of space for storage!

A shop in Bristol (local) is doing the 130 for £130 + VAT = £156.00

Online Scopesnskies are doing it for £144, FREE P&P with FREE Barlow!

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Madhatter

Madhatter

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Honestly id advise going with FLO , £135, im not sure on postage but it wont be much if anything. The service is second to none, scopes and skys can be fine..but they can also be problematic at times also.

The barlow will only be worth a few quid, so to be honest you are better of with FLOs service.

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