Telescope dilemma. Help!!!

[Jon Sales]

Hi guys,

Have a bit of a dilemma that I need your help with please.

I want to buy a Telescope after a 15 odd year absence from astronomy.

I've been using my girlfriends Meade DS2090 and showing her how to use it and now I've been bitten by the bug again.

Things have progressed since my days with an old eq mount with a Celestron 9.25 sct on it.

I now want something with a GoTo system big thought for visual observing and deep sky astrophotography later on by adding to it.

My current budget is about £800.

I've spoken to several dealers and they all suggest very different Scopes for the job so i'm handing this one over to you. Portability isn't a major factor as I have a big car if I want total dark skies but light pollution where I live isn't a problem.

Any ideas?

[rowan46]

First Light Optics - Celestron C6-N GT (GOTO)

this one is the best starter do it all mount and scope at the moment, yes you could get the the 8inch which would give you better views visually but then it would be overloaded for imaging and if you bought the heq5 you wouldn't have enough money for a scope to put on it. It's big enough to see plenty and steady enough to do some imaging on. Like everything when you put a budget on it. it 's a compromise but it should do everything you want of it.

[Jon Sales]

Hi Rowan,

Thank you for the advice:headbang:

That's been more help to me than the handful odd shoots I've called over the last couple of days

I'll let you know how I get on when I find one at a good price.

Cheers,

Jon

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Why not put the C9.25 on an HEQ5-pro goto mount. That gives you goto and an excellent platform for planetary and lunar imaging. You can even do widefield imaging by putting a camera with short telephoto or standard lens piggyback on the main scope. For serious DSO imaging, you really need something different scope-wise, but the HEQ5 will still do a good job. For DSO work, a short ED or triplet refractor (will be best). I got my 80mm F/6 for that purpose (and as a cracking wide-field instrument).

[Jon Sales]

Hi Michael,

I don't have the sct anymore. I sold it way back to pay some bills the ex kindly left me with to stop the bailiffs coming rings so i'm starting from scratch again.

My girlfriend it's going to chip in with this purchase as she it's a keen astronomer too.

I could always buy the celestron and then later buy an ED refractor at a later date to use on the mount also I suppose

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Sorry to hear you haven't got the SCT anymore. They are great scopes. Remember that in DSO astrophotography people often go "mount first". The mount is more important than the scope diameter (unlike both planetary photography and visual work). The mount on the C6-N should be OK for shorter focal lengths, but a simple rack and pinion focuser might be too coarse for photography. Best of luck!

[John24]

Well as per my opinion, if you are good at locating objects, then goto is probably useless. You can go for a bigger aperture short focal length and then put motor drives that will track the object for AP. SCT and mak cass require longer exposures so keep that in mind. Short f ratio are good for both AP and visual. Finally it is your choice. Clear skies

[Luke]

Hi Jon,

It's tricky figuring out which way to go, with all the options! My suggestion would be to try and set yourself up with a very nice mount for imaging now if imaging will be very important, even if that means the scope you get now is possibly a touch heavy for imaging on that mount, then get a nice imaging scope at Christmas or when funds recover.

Trouble is this is over your budget, but maybe something like the 8 inch Skywatcher Explorer Pro on the HEQ5 if you can find the extra?:

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Explorer 200P HEQ5 PRO

Then later I would think about adding something like an ED80 refractor to it, which is great for imaging but lacks the aperture for observing faint deep sky objects.

Hard decisions to make, good luck with whichever way you decide to go!

[hemihaggis]

Well as per my opinion, if you are good at locating objects, then goto is probably useless. You can go for a bigger aperture short focal length and then put motor drives that will track the object for AP.

sorry john goto is essential for ap as many of the objects you wish to take pics of are too faint to see with the naked eye .... how would you find them ????

[Jon Sales]

Thanks for all the advice guys.

Unfortunately my budget won't stretch to the Skywatcher 200 so I think i'm looking at the Celestron because the mount and score combo is a good price at the moment.

I'll then get used to using the scope and finding my way around again before getting an ED refractor to piggyback on top of it.

Unless I change my mind again lol.

Any more suggestions will still be greatly appreciated as you all know far mode than me.

[Jon Sales]

Thanks for all the advice guys.

Unfortunately my budget won't stretch to the Skywatcher 200 so I think i'm looking at the Celestron because the mount and score combo is a good price at the moment.

I'll then get used to using the scope and finding my way around again before getting an ED refractor to piggyback on top of it.

Unless I change my mind again lol.

Any more suggestions will still be greatly appreciated as you all know far more than me.

[Jon Sales]

Thanks for all the advice guys.

Unfortunately my budget won't stretch to the Skywatcher 200 so I think i'm looking at the Celestron because the mount and score combo is a good price at the moment.

I'll then get used to using the scope and finding my way around again before getting an ED refractor to piggyback on top of it.

Unless I change my mind again lol.

Any more suggestions will still be greatly appreciated as you all know far more than me.

[Jon Sales]

Thanks for all the advice guys.

Unfortunately my budget won't stretch to the Skywatcher 200 so I think i'm looking at the Celestron because the mount and score combo is a good price at the moment.

I'll then get used to using the scope and finding my way around again before getting an ED refractor to piggyback on top of it.

Unless I change my mind again lol.

Any more suggestions will still be greatly appreciated as you all know far more than me.

[Jon Sales]

Seen some nice Scopes today and now i'm all confused again

[Luke]

What scopes took your fancy, Jon?

[Jon Sales]

I've had a good look at the Celestron c8 ngt and the Skywatcher equivalent.

But.............

I'm a very keen photographer and work for a radio controlled aircraft magazine. Setting as I have all the DSLR equipment I'd like to use it for DSO astrophotography. I dabbled years ago when I had my 9.25 sct and would like to take it further.

I understand that I'd need an 80mm ED refractor for prime focus photography but don't want to blow my budget sky high. I know I'd need a GoTo eq mount also.

Want to know what would be a good set up and still be a reasonable price.

[rowan46]

If you are serious about imaging you need a minimum heq5 mount to take the ed80

First Light Optics - Skywatcher HEQ5 PRO Synscan

people have done some imaging with a cg5gt but once they get serious always upgrade. I guess the cg5gt is alright to learn on but it's performance isn't optimal if you are serious you want to do imaging get the mount first then build round it. with imaging the mount is the key.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

If you are serious about imaging you need a minimum heq5 mount to take the ed80

First Light Optics - Skywatcher HEQ5 PRO Synscan

people have done some imaging with a cg5gt but once they get serious always upgrade. I guess the cg5gt is alright to learn on but it's performance isn't optimal if you are serious you want to do imaging get the mount first then build round it. with imaging the mount is the key.

Agreed. I had thought about getting an autoguider extension to my Great Polaris mount (CG5 equivalent), but decided to save up for an HEQ5 or EQ6 (still not there yet) to use with my 80mm F/6. The GP mount could perhaps handle it, but not comfortably.

Mount first, then the rest.

[Jon Sales]

Thanks guys, I will get the mount first.

I see that the place selling the Ikharus ED refractors is near where my brother lives. Maybe I'll call them and see if I can pop round to look at them at some point.

Thanks again

[dmahon]

Buy second hand from astro buy & sell. You can always sell it on again later when you upgrade, usually for the same price.

I'd get an HEQ5 Pro, about £500*, and a 200P, about £180*. Later on, for wide field astrophotography, get an ED80, about £200*.

* Prices are second hand.

[Jon Sales]

Thanks for the advice. Just been looking on FLO. Wheats the difference between the EQ5 Pro Synscan and the HEQ5 Pro Synscan apart from the price jump between the two?

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Higher load capacity, better, more heavy duty gears.

[Luke]

The other thing as well Jon is that there could be a few more expenses down the road with imaging.

For example, on my HEQ5 I use a dual mount bar (£100+ I think), ST80 guide scope (£100-ish), laptop (already had, so for me, £0) and a QHY5 guide camera (£150-ish I think?) to guide the telescope to help get long exposures, there are probably a few other bits 'n' bobs.

Without guiding I would not be able to get as long exposures, which helps in getting more detailed images. You don't have to guide, and there are cheaper ways to guide, but it's another potential expense to keep in mind.

What I'd recommend is hold off for a mo with the mount for a few days and read the book Making Every Photon Count.

It will tell you about the various bits of kit needed and options, and tells you the process for creating the images. For me it's great to read this book before you settle on what kit to buy, it will hopefully make the whole imaging thing a bit clearer so you are better informed to make your decision.

Making Every Photon Count review here:

www.astronomynow.com/books/MakingEveryPhotonCount.html

"...a well thought-out guide for imagers to work from. If you are still not sure about taking the step into astro-imaging, I can more than heartily recommend this book as a great overview of what it entails and how great images can be achieved."

Best of luck deciding, it never seems to get easier to decide what to get! I try to enjoy it but it is an enjoyable form of agony!!

Luke

[Jon Sales]

Thanks Luke, I'll order a copy tonight

[Jon Sales]

Just one more thing lol, do you think i'm trying to run before I can walk so to speak?

Should I hold back a bit longer and just get a fast guided Newtonian?