Hi, BACKACHE ... might change Dob 150 for Mak ?

[Specman]

Kind of drawn to the fact its 1035mm as the Skywatcher is

1500mmm , thought this would allow wider veiws also faster?

Yes, I was torn between these two little scopes myself, but what swung it for me was the reviews for the NexStar 4 with its famous orange tube. Unlike the other Nexstars it requires no colmination and it is factory set. The front mirror is silvered to the objective lens so no way that is going out of alignment. For me this mean't it would make a good travel scope and could be 'chucked' about a bit.

The focal length BTW is 1325mm, 102mm Aperture

Celestron NexStar 4SE Computerized Telescope

[knobby]

Cheers. I've just found a 4se on Astro buy and sell for £275 pretty close to where I live ... very tempting but I'm a bit wary of second hand stuff.

I could keep the dob though for that money

Now I'm confused

[knobby]

Yes, I was torn between these two little scopes myself, but what swung it for me was the reviews for the NexStar 4 with its famous orange tube. Unlike the other Nexstars it requires no colmination and it is factory set. The front mirror is silvered to the objective lens so no way that is going out of alignment. For me this mean't it would make a good travel scope and could be 'chucked' about a bit.

Celestron NexStar 4SE Computerized Telescope

The focal length BTW is 1325mm, 102mm Aperture

sorry specman, I sidetracked a bit a few posts back and started leaning towards the Vixen First Light Optics - Vixen VMC110L

thats where the 1035mm focal length came from

[Photohound]

Hi knobby, i have the 4SE and an 8inch newt (dob on three legs) both celestron, both brilliant for different reasons.

As an earlier poster suggested you cant go wrong with the 4Se for portability, durability and reliability. Its a sinch to set up, with a bit of practise and care at setup it stays on target for long viewing sessions, or you can 'manually' adjust with the handset.

I dont recommend the onboard battery setup, but a cheap power pack from maplins will run it for 5-6 hours easy.

A nice quality EP will show you wonders and if balanced carefully i can mount my canon 20D or 50D (not lightweight at all!!) with remote timer et al and get some nice short exposure moonshots/planetary shots as well.

As for the difference with the 8incher, its down to what your looking at in the black stuff - accuracy of collimation, etc.

But i would say the clincher is.. i suffer with degen discs in my back and some nights the 8inch kit is more than i can face, but ten to fiftenn minutes later the little 4SE is up, aligned and ready to go.

So there is a ramble that may shed some light - hope it helps

[knobby]

i'm really going off the rails now !

because my dob has tensioners that double as handles I tend to carry it as one lump, probably why it hurts so much.

I'm now thinking if i get a 8* dob, because it would be out of the question carrying it whole , i would have to move the mount and the OTA seperately ...

have I been conned into Apeture fever:icon_scratch:

[knobby]

Well its getting near the weekend, time to mull over the options again, seriously looking at an 8" dob !

dont fancy the fact that the goto's cant be pushed.

Do you think that the extra 2" will really make much difference would it help to overcome poor seeing / transparency ? or allow higher magnification.

Cheers again:confused:

[imarcs]

Another option. Buy a 10" Lightweight Truss Dob

New Model - Sumerian Optics

More Expensive, but much more portable. Weight = 9.5kb

[knobby]

I want one ... too expensive tho. And I don't think its available yet in the UK

[knobby]

Anyone know of any places that can get a Skywatcher 8" flextube or meade 8" truss ...

all out of stock !

Really fancy one now.

[brantuk]

The only advantage I can think of with trusses on the 200P is reducing storage space. Otherwise you might as well get a full tube then you won't have to get a shroud. 12" plus and you might want trusses on a dob

[knobby]

Just think the mount / bearing / focuser looks better made.

Think it would be lighter too and the meade looks like it comes off the mount easier ...

Maybe i'm wrong, just by looking on pictures off the net

Budget is £150 ish ( My Dob on ebay ?) + £200 ish Birthday ? Christmas money !

thanks again everyone for your oppinions / help

[knobby]

does anyone have either of these scopes, ( Meade lightbridge / skywatcher flex tube ) :icon_scratch:are they better or just looks that way in the pictures ?

[Specman]

BUT .....

my back is getting old and the short trip from the conservatory down two large steps and onto the back patio and back again is killing me.

SO been thinking about changing to a 127 mak or a Celestron 4se, will the 1" inch or 2 make much difference (no puns please ladies)

Cheers

Gaz (looking to lose an inch or two )

I will remind you of your original post. You've got aperture fever mate! Sounds like you need thinking time, I suggest you mull over your options over a few jars down your local.

[Tribal-Wolf]

does anyone have either of these scopes, ( Meade lightbridge / skywatcher flex tube ) :icon_scratch:are they better or just looks that way in the pictures ?

I have a 200P flextube but it's the auto. I have fibromyalgia amongst other things and have become quite weak due to illness. I can manage my dob fairly easily into the house if need be but I keep it in the shed so it's always cool and easy to get to. Remove one thumb screw and the tube comes off if you need it lighter. Some people say the flex tubes need collimation every time you use them if you collapse it but I find it stays collimated quite well tbh.

As far as I can tell the focuser is the same crayford as the 200P classic dob, some of the pictures however show the older rack & pinion focuser.

[Squagnut]

The change in viewing from a 150 dob to a 127 mak wouldn't be all that traumatic, especially if you're mostly interested in bright targets - it would be far more noticeable to go to a 4SE. I have a SkyMax 127 and I've been astonished at how well it performs, especially for its size. Tube, mount, tripod and a flight case is all it takes.

[knobby]

I have a 200P flextube but it's the auto. I have fibromyalgia amongst other things and have become quite weak due to illness. I can manage my dob fairly easily into the house if need be but I keep it in the shed so it's always cool and easy to get to. Remove one thumb screw and the tube comes off if you need it lighter. Some people say the flex tubes need collimation every time you use them if you collapse it but I find it stays collimated quite well tbh.

As far as I can tell the focuser is the same crayford as the 200P classic dob, some of the pictures however show the older rack & pinion focuser.

Thanks ... think I might have to rename this thread to 'confused of Essex'

wish you good health! Thanks for your reply