help and advice please

[jamie1971]

hi all

am very new to this and am trying to find a decent 1st scope for around £200, living in the centre of leeds i would like to find something that can be put in the car, i have been backwards and forwards reading up for about 2 weeks now and i did not realise how hard it would be, i realise 200 quid wont get me a huge amount but there must be something out there to achieve some good results, would like to find something that can clearly see some planets and some good stars (appologies dont know all the terminology), anyway i have seen some that look ok but again i have no idea really 3 possibles are skywatcher 102, celestron 102 gt goto, and today ive seen meade etx80 backpack a little more at £250 but i like its portability and on the review said it comes with 2x high quality meade super plossl eye pieces and thats something ive found on reading various posts that the eyepieces that come standard with most scopes at this price seem poor. some advice and help in simple terms if possible would be really grateful on any experience with above scopes and other similar price range, also dont mind going 2nd hand thanks in advance.

jamie

[ronin]

The ETX-80 is a reasonable little scope and is a goto. Meades are fairly easy to setup and align. You will therefore need to power the scope if you go elsewhere in a car with it. There are car adaptor kits available.

The Meade eyepiece are their standard Series 4000 offerings. There are better and there are worse.

You will get told that you are paying for the electronics and motors. Well of course you are. Meade will not be giving them away free.

Suspect that the Skywatcher 150P Dobsonian is available for the same, or similar, price. FLO - the 150P is £200.

With this you do everything, as in find things and track them.

Not sure about the Celestron 102 at this time.

[Zul]

Well you can buy Sky-Watcher 130/900 EQ-2 it is easy to get into car etc.

[jamie1971]

thanks the more advice i can get the better have seen this skywatcher evostar 120 2nd hand for £155

[ronin]

The Evostar 120 should be good.

Achro but a decent f number so reduced CA.

If on a decent mount would seem to be a fine option.

[Daniel-K]

the evostar is a great scope my friend has one and i really like it

[nightfisher]

the evo star you have seen is OTA only, so you would need a mount to go with it preferably an EQ5.

Might i suggest the skyliner 150p at just under £200 or if your budget will allow, go for the skyliner 200p, both these scopes will show you a lot of the night sky including lunar/planets and some galaxies /nebula, also very easy to transport and set up

[todd8137]

the 150p would be my choice, the back pack etx ermmm my mate had one he was a bit disappointed with it

[jamie1971]

is there a particular mount suited for the 150p and thanks for all the replies much appreciated

[jamie1971]

One thing I did fail to mention was took up some advice just after Xmas I read on a forum someone advising a beginner to get some binoculars to familiarise themselves with objects etc, I found a pair online of Nikon in the sale reduced from 130 quid to 50 I was astonished how much more I could see only problem it's made me super keen to spend and get a scope :-)

[nightfisher]

is there a particular mount suited for the 150p and thanks for all the replies much appreciated

the skyliner 150p has a built in mount, its known as a dobsonian

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Skyliner 150P Dobsonian

[MaxLux]

Hi Jamie,

Sounds like you are in the early stages of being reeled in by this absorbing hobby;) As I only took the plunge and bought my 1st scope 11 months ago I can fully understand your eagerness to get some first light! You've made a great first move with the binos! The Dob scope advice is sound and will always give you more bang for your buck. If you end up with a deal on an OTA buy the best Eq mount you can afford, you will be surprised how quickly you will formulate ideas on bigger and better kit! I started with the SW102 you mention. A decent little 4" Refractor with a Goto. Initially I was underwhelmed by its performance but soon realised that Iwas actually missing the point! You ain't ever gonna see the stunning colour images like you see of DSOs through the EP! I now tend to use my two scopes side by side (when time permits!) for different tasks, but the convenience of having a Goto on the Alt/Az mount is still valuable! Trust me your initial budget will be blown several times over in fairly short order unless you are really disciplined! Whatever you end up with, use it and enjoy it:hello2:

Clear Skies:D:D:D

[DazC]

Hi Jamie,

I got my first scope a year ago. It's a Celestron 130eq md and i love it to bits. I paid £135 for it brand new and everywhere else i've looked it's £180-£200.

At first i thought i wouldn't be able to lug it about but i already had an 85 litre back pack and it fits into that (just) with a pillow inbetween the scope and the tripod.

Just keep looking, you can get some awesome beginner kit for your dosh.

Happy hunting.

D.C