What is the best value GOTO refractor for a noob?

[dazzst]

Hi alll,

Quick and dirty question.

Looking for recommendations for a GOTO refractor for a newbie under £400.

thanks

Daz

[sunshine185]

Either celestron or skywatcher 102.

[rowan46]

this is the cheapest First Light Optics - Skywatcher Startravel 102 SynScan AZ GOTO its pretty much the same scope as the celestron First Light Optics - Celestron Nexstar 102 SLT. But on a different mount

[dazzst]

cheers for the fast reply. Is alignment dead simple or should we go for a GPS scope?

[foundaplanet]

Quick and dirty answer..

If I was spending £400 I would not bother with a goto refractor, I would go for this First Light Optics - Skywatcher Skyliner 200P Dobsonian leaving me a hundred quid for a collimator and a couple of other eyepieces..

Reason..much much more fun and much more to see..

[dazzst]

want a GOTO

[John]

want a GOTO

Thats fine. A 102mm refractor will not show some of the objects that are in the database though, and many might seem unimpressive.

Unfortunately most of your budget will be going on the mount rather than the optics, which are what show the views of course.

Would you consider another scope type, like a newtonian reflector, on a GOTO ? - you can get more aperture (size of main mirror or lens) for your money then.

[sunshine185]

Could you get a GPS scope for under 400? anyway alignment is easy, more so with the Chesterton, simply level the scope, point it north and input your location, then align using 2 stars I think.

[Parus major]

I'll agree with John, pointing at them is one thing, actually seeing what it's pointing at is another. I can guarantee you that you will see much, much more in a couple of nights with a 20cm mirror than you would ever see in a refracting goto. in your budget.

[dazzst]

Thanks for all the replies. I was under the impression that a refractor has twice the light gathering power of a reflector. If I'm wrong (probably am!) then as long as I have GOTO I'm not bothered whether it's a lens or a mirror. In other words, GOTO is the major factor here.

[rowan46]

This is imo a better scope than the refractor First Light Optics - Celestron Nexstar 127 SLT or the skymax 127 synscan. Although I like te slt mount better. It has better optics no fuss with collimation not as wide a view but the moon and planets will be brighter as will glob clusters. the problem with cheap refractors is that on bright objects you can get a lot of false colour and quality will drop off sharply at the edge of field. Have a look at the celestron slt series and their skywatcher counterparts. personally I prefer the slt mounts but there isn't a lot on it

[sunshine185]

If its goto you want then the best for the budget would be a celestron 130slt or a skywatcher goto 130p. Will give some great views of the moon and planets and you canuse 2" eyepieces so you will get some great widefield views.

[themos]

a refractor has twice the light gathering power of a reflector

Well, the reflector loses some light because of the obstruction of the secondary but the ratio never gets as high as that (for the same size of primary optic).

Consider that a doublet refractor has 4 sides of glass to figure and polish to the reflector's one and you can see why one pays so much more for refractors.

[sabana]

Light Gathering can be expensive. Your cheapest option would be a Dobsonian.

[mallorcasaint]

As a starter and if you really want a GoTo then this will be ideal and leave you plenty of cash for decent eyepieces or even a webcam for imaging planets.

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Explorer 130P SynScan AZ GOTO

As recommended by God a.k.a. Sir Patrick Moore!

[rowan46]

By the way the stories you have read about a refractor being twice as good as a reflector is only true of very expensive refractors and and being of equal apparture. it is true that a 5" apo refractor would blow the socks off a 5" reflector but it would cost 10x more

[foundaplanet]

You could have a look at this First Light Optics - Skywatcher Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GOTO. you lose a lot of wow in the experience next to something with a 200mm mirror but you would still get some good views of many things. There is also this First Light Optics - Skywatcher Explorer 130P SynScan AZ GOTO

[themos]

Get a big Dob and stick an iPhone on the front, job done.

[Parus major]

Thanks for all the replies. I was under the impression that a refractor has twice the light gathering power of a reflector. If I'm wrong (probably am!) then as long as I have GOTO I'm not bothered whether it's a lens or a mirror. In other words, GOTO is the major factor here.

Thing is - and folk might disagree with me here - If you get into this hobby then a sub £400 goto unit won't scratch the itch for very long in which case you'll want to spend money again pretty soon and for the sake of arguments, perhaps another £400.

If you were to buy something like a 200P Dobsonian, you're already £130 down on what you're willing to spend. If it doesn't pan out for you then it's the Volkswagen of the telescope world, it's highly sought after and holds it's value fairly well so you can sell it on if you wanted to. if it does become something you love you can take your £130, plus what you perhaps would be willing to spend and mount it on a very decent goto mount and have a setup that will give you high quality views, excellent tracking and goto capabilities and above all the aperture to see thousands of objects.

My thoughts which provide minimum spend now for very decent views and have excellent upgrade options to being a main BIG telescope which will keep you happy for years and years.

[themos]

If you want GOTO, perhaps this is the one to beat. I don't have first hand experience of it but I think people who own it like it.

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Skymax 127 SynScan AZ GOTO

[rowan46]

It is true that the dob will give a better view of everything. But size isn't your only determining factor. You need to look at how you will be using it, planets, deep space. where you will be using it. home, out and about and of course where to store it. the 200p is a great scope but it's not portable, transportable but not portable. it's not the only scope out there but is in my opinion the best for the price nothing under £400 comes close to the views of this scope but it is big and it doesn't have goto

[Daz1974]

Ive had my 130p skywatcher goto for 3 months now and it is a great bit of kit. You wont be disappointed

[dazzst]

Thanks for all the excellent replies. I have another question. I know it's possible to use a webcam but can we view and control the scope from indoors where it'll be warm?

[mallorcasaint]

Yes you can.

[dazzst]

Oh...That's brilliant. Can you point me in the direction for more info and restrictions such as distance (or can this be done wireless (maybe I'm asking too much!))