Aperture Fever. Is there a cure?

[E621Keith]

Someone on this forum once said

"The best way to deal with a temptation is to yield to it"

The cure for aperture fever, is to buy a even bigger telescope.

There is a 20inch dob on ebay atm

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Huge-20-Inch-F4-Dobsonian-Telescope-Deep-Sky-Watchers-Delight-/190610470462?pt=UK_Photography_Telescopes&hash=item2c6144f63e#ht_500wt_946

Edited December 5, 2011 by E621Keith

[haitch]

Someone on this forum once said

"The best way to deal with a temptation is to yield to it"

The cure for aperture fever, is to buy a even bigger telescope.

There is a 20inch dob on ebay atm

Huge 20 Inch F4 Dobsonian Telescope - Deep Sky Watchers Delight!!! | eBay

Oh no you've started me off again. I thought I was cured.

[Damo636]

Thankfully a cure has been discovered! http://www.webstertelescopes.com/C32_D18.jpg

A snip at only $27,000 for the C32

[ixalon]

Cured by 32" and want to relapse? Take a look at Orion USA 50" Monster Dobsonian - Telescopes UK: Telescopes & Telescope Accessories in your only London shop

Yours for only $123,000!

Edited December 5, 2011 by ixalon

[Moonshane]

Wonder if you can get large Dobs on the NHS?

no, I think you'll find that Katie Price et al had to pay privately.

[Moonshane]

my cure is 1) financial 2) the door issue and 3) hating ladder observing. as such I feel my current 16" f4 solid tube is perfect. I have used a 22" f5 and although a fantastic scope much too big for my circumstances. if I ever sold everything (literally all my astro stuff) I might be able to afford a 20" truss but I'd sooner have a bit less aperture and my TV eyepieces thanks!

[E621Keith]

Cured by 32" and want to relapse? Take a look at Orion USA 50" Monster Dobsonian - Telescopes UK: Telescopes & Telescope Accessories in your only London shop

Yours for only $123,000!

plus £200 for a tall ladder. Better not have vertigo

[ScottR]

I am just waiting on a warp engine. Come on hurry up I have places to go.

[PreludeToADream]

Cured by 32" and want to relapse? Take a look at Orion USA 50" Monster Dobsonian - Telescopes UK: Telescopes & Telescope Accessories in your only London shop

Yours for only $123,000!

Very tempted to call and inquire about these 'scopes. xD

[umadog]

The difference between a 16" and a 20" is only about as great as that between a 10" and a 12". As you say, best off keeping your eyepieces and the 16"!

[ismangil]

Even if you avoid the Aperture Fever, look out for the following:

- Imaging Syndrome, also called Mount Madness where you will beg borrow or steal for 10,000 upwards dollar mount.

- Lens Disease in the refractor world, where you go for doublet triplet quadruplets

- Widefield Wobble, where the initial TV and the mention 100 degree view will make your skip a beat.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

There is no cure for Aperture Fever. Even professionals have to admit that. They build the Keck, VLT, etc, and immediately wonder how much more they might see with even bigger scopes. Same in radio: WSRT < VLA < LOFAR < SKA. It is a never-ending story of wanting to look beyond the next horizon. It might as well be called exploration fever.

I am still happy with my C8, and bought a smaller scope (80mm F/6 triplet) this year as wide-field and potentially imaging scope. I am contemplating what to do about a bigger scope. Go for a trust-tube dob (looking through Olly's 20" was quite a treat), or going for a much more compact C11 (or an Orion UK OMC 300, or perhaps a C14 (see, it's happening again ).

[bish]

I was hoping that everybody on SGL would club together and buy me a 20" dob so at least one of us would be cured. That would surely make you all feel a bit better??

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

I was hoping that everybody on SGL would club together and buy me a 20" dob so at least one of us would be cured. That would surely make you all feel a bit better??

I am happy to volunteer to be cured

[saturn4me]

When you're thinking of buying Hubble then you may have reached the point of no return!

[haitch]

Such poor terminology... it's being in remission, not cured

[dweller25]

Aperture fever stops when you do your back in !

[smudgeball]

I thought the old wives saying was

"feed a cold, STARVE a fever" ?

So you've all got it wrong.

Have nothing to eat for the next week and give me all your scopes for safe keeping

Cured

Neil

[spaceboy]

I'm currently suffering "going out of my mind syndrome" brought on by aperture fever.

I doubt there is any real cure as once one becomes to the aperture they have there will always be a recurrence of wanting more. I decided my methadone would be imaging and this is now starting to look like it has it's own set of pit falls to craving.

It just the nature of the hobby. I have a theory that the seeing has a lot to do with it. There are nights when the seeing and transparency couldn't be better and the time flies by. As the morning sun breaks the horizon and you realize you spent the last 9 hrs observing and you couldn't wish for better kit. A month later you find the skies finally clear and you look to get another amazing nights observing in. Only this time you struggle to make out half the stars in clusters and nebula's just don't seem as bright and after checking collimation for the 5th time you realize that your wife is snug in bed and your freezing your never's off looking at washed out skies. Giving up you go to bed pondering on the fact that your kit stinks and you need that 20" you seen listed in the classifieds.

The trick is don't look through a bigger scope, that way you haven't a clue what your missing. Wish someone would have told me that

[saturn4me]

I thought the old wives saying was

"feed a cold, STARVE a fever" ?

So you've all got it wrong.

Have nothing to eat for the next week and give me all your scopes for safe keeping

Cured

Neil

Nice try!!

[smudgeball]

I'd give em back...honest

[swamp thing]

The trick is don't look through a bigger scope, that way you haven't a clue what your missing. Wish someone would have told me that

Or find an observing buddy with a huge scope.

That way you get to look regularly and it's free.

Regards Steve

[spaceboy]

I like your thinking Steve.

[bish]

I'm currently suffering "going out of my mind syndrome" brought on by aperture fever.

It just the nature of the hobby. I have a theory that the seeing has a lot to do with it. There are nights when the seeing and transparency couldn't be better and the time flies by. As the morning sun breaks the horizon and you realize you spent the last 9 hrs observing and you couldn't wish for better kit. A month later you find the skies finally clear and you look to get another amazing nights observing in. Only this time you struggle to make out half the stars in clusters and nebula's just don't seem as bright and after checking collimation for the 5th time you realize that your wife is snug in bed and your freezing your never's off looking at washed out skies. Giving up you go to bed pondering on the fact that your kit stinks and you need that 20" you seen listed in the classifieds.

The trick is don't look through a bigger scope, that way you haven't a clue what your missing. Wish someone would have told me that

Very true about sky conditions. Even at a dark site if there is alot of moisture in the air DSO's are a nightmare. Aperture comes way behind dark skies and sky conditions. Everything is against us in this country, big scope or not!

[ismangil]

Very true about sky conditions. Even at a dark site if there is alot of moisture in the air DSO's are a nightmare. Aperture comes way behind dark skies and sky conditions. Everything is against us in this country, big scope or not!

Which is why, on the rare occasions of good seeing we need big aperture to make the most of it