some advice

[Gazer914]

recently joined SGL, and in need of some advice, i have been looking at a new scope and just wondered in any of the members had any thoughts on it?

Explorer 200P (EQ5) With Free DVD | Telescopes | Rother Valley Optics

im only a novice with a scope but getting there lol, i was thinking funds permitting of getting into astro photography in a small way so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

thanks in advance.

stuart

[Scott]

ive got that setup and love it. ive seen some great pics taken with it but not tried it myself. i think with ap its a matter of how deep you want to get into it. spend a few hundred or many thousands, its what suits your circumstances. i know when i get started with it its gotta be very basic as thats all my wallet will allow but i know it will give me a buzz. took a pic of the moon using my mobile held up to the ep and that made me happy. easily pleased i guess. lol

[Catweazel]

200P is a really nice scope. Many say that the EQ5 mount is not sturdy enough for AP with this scope, but I am about to start trying it with my 200P & EQ5, so will let you know how it goes

For visual, the scope is hard to beat for the price.

[bish]

Great scope. The EQ5 not great for astro pics but some people manage decent results and it's not too expensive.

[Gazer914]

hi guys well have deffo decided this is the scope am going for its a much better scope than my current one skywatcher 114 and cant wait to get the new mount, have spoken to the guys at R.V.O and they have said will be able to get the motors so that i can track with this one as well so i guess happy days lol i still get some good views with my current scope.

[rowan46]

visually its a different animal to the 114 everything will be so much brighter. I have seen images taken with this scope on this mount and must confess that I would be happy with some of the images but I have to say that those in the know say it's a long way from an optimum setup. I dare say it will be good enough to get your feet wet though.

[MBJ]

i have the 200p on an eq5 and have done some great images with it using an spc900 webcam and a dslr.i am about to go down the slippery slope of guiding as the mount really is at its limit,i can manage roughly 120 secs unguided on dso,s but thats it.my next purchase is an neq6 and a ed80 but i can tell you i will keep the 200p and the eq5 for visual as i absolutely love it and have no regerets about buying it.

[Gazer914]

thats what im hoping for Rowan, i only live 3 miles from the coast and would love to set up a good scope on a clear night there and see what sort of views of the stars i can get.

been looking at those mounts Nebula, very very very nice wish i had the budget for one, would rather have bought the complete setup but on the bonus side start small and get the experiance of using a larger scope. but still they are nice mounts, was watching a few youtube vids on them and a lot of people say they are quiet loud when tracking.

[Gazer914]

sorry MBJ i called you Nebula didnt have my glasses on.

[brantuk]

One of the key things with this combination is vibration. It'll take a couple of seconds to settle down and you won't want to use in the wind - but it'll be great for visual use.

For imaging you'll be able to track planets and get some nice shots with a webcam, but when you start hanging a dslr and guide cam and guide scope on it, it begins to get heavy for the mount and vibration has a bigger influence. This is when you'll probably want to upgrade the mount to something more accurate and more substantial.

But it's a great combo for a first scope with a very useful aperture for gathering light from those dim and distant dso's and giving crisp clear views of solar system objects

[Gazer914]

i had looked at the NEQ6 but for the mo its way out of my price range but hopfully once i have the experience with the larger scope will look at the better mounts.

have been planning on getting into ap for a while took me a year of saving and buying parts one at a time to build a decent comp for video editing and gaming but got there in the end lol its like once you get something into your system you know your not going to rest untill you've acheived your goal lol unfortunetaly thats me hehe

[182570]

I love the EQ5 mount ,but the vibration is a problem,even on my scope TAL 100RS it takes a second to settle,WHEN i start on AP it looks like I'll have to upgrade the mount as well as the scope.

[Avo]

Hi

Am fairly new to this and have a 200P on EQ5.

Am getting good views, particularly with a better EP, the ones that came with the scope are perhaps "starter" eyepieces to get you going. Up grading an EP has made a major difference in viewing.

Not considering AP yet but have not had the mount properly aligned to North star etc. Tend to just chase stars from the finder scope.

The mount is handy as you can break it down to move it about.

In hindsight, a Dob and a better set of EP's would have been an alternative for the money but one has to start somewhere.

[Gazer914]

well quick update should be getting the scope this week so happy days:-) as for the cam i found a post on here explaining how to mod an xbox live webcam to use with the scope, downside been round 3 different shops and apparently they dont sell them anymore, what a bummer lol

[brantuk]

Congrats Gazer - many cold and happy nights to come

[Gazer914]

just paid for it online so according to them should be here tuesday.

[Astro Imp]

Good luck mate.

Bet you can't wait for Tuesday

[Gazer914]

nope cant wait, lol