New astronomer starting up, need advice on a scope

[Stargazer_00]

Hi all,

I am sure there are a million an one threads about new people wishing to start up astronomy asking for advice but please bear with me. I will value your responses greatly in my selection.

Let me first explain my own experience, my ambitions and my situation.

I have no experience whatsoever with any telescope. I am an absolute beginner, I know maybe 3 or 4 constellations in the sky but have had a burning desire to learn more about the universe i inhabit for a long time and now can afford to follow it properly.

I live in a small town (approx 200k people) which has a moderate level of light pollution. On a clear night there is a band of orange on the horizon in all directions but as you rise up past 15 degrees or so from horizon stars are visible with the naked eye. All major star consetllations should be visible with the naked eye. A short 10-15 minute drive from my house in any direction would be in much better conditions and certainly my back garden has zero local light pollution so after a few minutes my eyes adjust very well to the darkness, the only problem i have with LP is the town's orange glow. I do not know how to gauge the level of magnitude i can view.

My interest in astronomy is one of vision only not imaging. I dont have the budget to stretch that far at the start, maybe one day but not now. I would like to see good views of the moons surface, the system's planets, stars I cant see with the naked eye, the various DSOs that are relatively easy to spot. I appreciate that my light conitions make viewing any difficult DSOs impossible to find so I neednt gear up for them just yet.

Now; I've spent the last few days reading posts here and reviews there and have swayed between purchasing a number of different scopes but just can't seem to make an absolute decision.

My budget is £300 but up to £400 if required, i expect this should buy me a good starter scope. I have no idea what accesories I should be getting for day one, maybe none? eyepieices for sure at some point soon im sure.

Portability is a big deal for me, I dont want some giant dob sitting in my house as it'll get in the way - I want a scope I will use not just some giant that is as big as my budget will stretch.

I am undecided on getting a scope with GoTo, I like most novices, see this as instant access to the sky which I guess it is. I just dont want it to hinder my ability to learn where things are on my own if and when I choose to learn the sky for myself. If no GoTo then I would probably at least like a scope with a motorised base which can automatically track an object across the sky to save me having a headache from day 1 learning how to manually, contstanty adjust the scope to keep an object in focus.

Still with me? Bit of an essay.... my apologies.

The scopes i'm looking at are as follows:

Meade ETX 80 - cheap, easy to set up, good portability, auto star, built in barlow

Celestron NexStar 90 SLT - looks like a direct comparison as the Meade ETX 90 but at a significantly cheaper price point. The meade is out of my price range but this is in it. No barlow, has auto star

Celestron NexStar 127 SLT - as above but bigger aperture, looks like its better all around. F11.6

Celestron NexStar 130 SLT - bigger aperture but also only F5.

Skymaster Skymax 102 Synscan AZ GOTO - looks like a better version of the 90 above, equal to the meade etx 90. no barlow.

Skymaster Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GOTO - as above but better. more expensive obviously. top of my budget.

I find myself looking more and more at MAKs, not sure why. I guess they appear compact and give good images.

I am not scared of technology, I do want to learn the sky eventually.

Please give me your advice

[mallorcasaint]

This is a cracking staarter scope and would leave plenty for some better eyepieces!

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Explorer 130P SynScan AZ GOTO

[Stargazer_00]

Hi thanks for your quick reply

This looks like a great scope and is well within my budget. I can afford an equal aperture MAK, is there any benefit to paying more for a 127MAK?

Collimation does sort of scare me a little (dont know anything about it) so I was sort of put of reflectors once I read about this need to maintain them. Something about MAKs piques my attention..i dont know why..

Assuming I have excess budget can you tell me what accessories I should buy? I know eyepieces but no idea which. I read a post somewhere that said it was pointless buying some combinations...

[Stargazer_00]

Do any of the GoTo scopes actually come with a power pack? My garden is clearly in range of a power supply so seems a waste to burn batteries on it when I am in my garden.

Is there a stanard power supply I should get? Or is it specific to the scope base?

Do the go to bases line up with other scopes so I can upgrade later but keep the base?

so many choices...

[E621Keith]

No they don't come with power pack, but you can get a cheap one from Maplin for about £30, which also double nicely as a jump starter for your car. You will also need a cigarette lighter lead

First Light Optics - SkyTron Power Supply Cable for Skywatcher & Celestron Mounts

It's a good idea to use external power source, but keep some batteries in the mount as backup.

The SLT mount uses a standard dovetail, so you can fit other scopes to it. However, the 127 Mak or the 130 Newt are already at the mount's limit, so you will need a new mount when you upgrade. I think you are more likely to upgrade the mount before you upgrade the OTA.

As for Mak vs Newt, it depends on whether you like planets or deep sky. The Mak will perform better on planets, but the Newt will be better for wide angle deep sky. Like you said the Mak is maintenance free, while the Newt needs collimation.

[Duns]

I'm new to all this and I have the Celestron 130 SLT. The GoTo works a treat - dead easy. I too was a bit concerned about collimation - did it for the first time last week no bother at all - just followed Astro Baby's excellent guide - I therefore would advise not to make your choice soley on whether you need to collimate or not. Go for the best package that meets your needs and budget:)

[derekm]

The ETX 80 is rubbish; steer clear. The images are colour fringed, the focussing is ****, the Barlow useless and the aperture just too small. I couldn't recognise the Orion nebula through mine until I put on maximum mag.! Even then, it was just recognisable, not big enough to scrutinise.

I would also say that for visual, 130mm should be the bare minimum (OK 127 if you wish!).

When a Goto is good it's very very good, but when it plays up (and they do) they are very frustrating, to put it mildly.

My own preference is a Dob, for ease of everything. An 8" is easy to carry, fits a smallish car and has enough aperture to maintain your interest for years, as long as you don't think it's too big to have in the house. Skywatcher or GSO.

My Grab & Go 130 Heritage is great for it's size and as a second scope, but it is limited for deep sky visual, though it would be a good starter and stepping stone.

Try and get to a local club and try out/discuss with the members.

[ollypenrice]

An 8 inch Dob is, I would say, effectively smaller than any of the scopes you mention once you bear in mind that you have the tripod (and perhaps counterweights and mount head) to consider. OK, the 8 inch Dob tube is bigger but there is virtually nothing to a Dobsonian mount. The whole thing will stand on the floor in a corner, conveniently vertical. Tripods can be irksome things to carry and store with a penchant for falling over, unfolding and being a pest. In my line of work I do have quite a few of them and they are my least favourite things to move and store!!

GoTo on small scopes leads straight to a paradox; they'll Go To thousands of things that are too faint to see once you've Gone To them...

I'd have a look at some scopes in the flesh first. You will surely have an Astro Soc near you. Google the Federation of Astronomical Societies who have an on-line list of member clubs.

Olly

[derekm]

An 8 inch Dob is, I would say, effectively smaller than any of the scopes you mention once you bear in mind that you have the tripod (and perhaps counterweights and mount head) to consider. OK, the 8 inch Dob tube is bigger but there is virtually nothing to a Dobsonian mount. The whole thing will stand on the floor in a corner, conveniently vertical. Tripods can be irksome things to carry and store with a penchant for falling over, unfolding and being a pest. In my line of work I do have quite a few of them and they are my least favourite things to move and store!!

GoTo on small scopes leads straight to a paradox; they'll Go To thousands of things that are too faint to see once you've Gone To them...

I'd have a look at some scopes in the flesh first. You will surely have an Astro Soc near you. Google the Federation of Astronomical Societies who have an on-line list of member clubs.

Olly

Got it in one!!

[perfrej]

If I were to add two cents to the discussion it would be to seriously consider the fact that no scope can deliver as much bang for the buck as a straight old-fashioned Newtonian reflector. It is a great starting scope and will give you excellent views. On a side note, it can also be a the foundation for a start in imaging, and I, for one, do believe that you will want to venture down that road eventually.

I started my third "kick-off" in astronomy with a Skywatcher Explorer 250P, and it is a great scope! Costs very little compared to the light gathering capacity and the optical quality.

Yes, Newtonians are subject to collimation issues, but on the other hand, no other scope has such a mechanically simple design - piece of cake, really.

If you really know you will stay visual all your life, go with a dobsonian mount. If you feel a slight tickle when the word "imaging" is mentioned, get the same scope but on a decent mount (decent is EQ5 with GOTO).

I'd stay away from the beginners stuff...

Get going!

/per

[Stargazer_00]

I went for a Skywatcher Explorer 150P EQ3-2

I feel this is a good scope that'll give me good all round, allow me to learn the sky and wont cost me to keep it running (electricity or batteries)

Now i just need to learn how to use an EQ mount and colliamte :/

[Monki]

Congrats on your purchase, it's nice to see someone new like myself who wants to learn.....better then doing it wireless sat in an armchair.... Hehe

If your curiosity is as much as mine your new scope should wow you for a long time. My g/f bought me a 60mm celestron lcm goto for christmas, i know the majority of guys on here have 200mm+ scopes but i'm sure they will agree with me when i say; if you're genuinely interested in astromony, it doesn't matter if you've got a 60mm refracter or 200mm reflector, you will be impressed with what you can witness in the skies

Sent from a Galaxy S 2 far away.

[RikM]

I went for a Skywatcher Explorer 150P EQ3-2

I feel this is a good scope that'll give me good all round, allow me to learn the sky and wont cost me to keep it running (electricity or batteries)

Now i just need to learn how to use an EQ mount and colliamte :/

The 150P is a nice scope. You will be able to see loads with that set up. You may find that the eyepiece ends up at some inconvenient angles because of the EQ mount, but the EQ3-2 is small enough that you should be able to reach without spinning the scope in its rings.