Whats a good telescope for a beginner

[Csuka]

Hi, i'm looking to purchase my first telescope, i don't have a very high budget at the moment though (Around £120), so i was wondering what telescopes you would recommend for a beginner? I saw one in jessops for £90 reduced from £180, i think it was called TA 1100-102 but I read that I should stay away from it.

So any suggestions?

[dtr42]

for the money First Light Optics - Skywatcher Explorer 130 slightly more £15 but nice scope [the 130p is dearer again but has the parabolic mirror . you should keep an eye out here U.K. Astronomy Buy & Sell or sometimes www.gumtree.com has a bargain

good luck

[Csuka]

for the money First Light Optics - Skywatcher Explorer 130 slightly more £15 but nice scope [the 130p is dearer again but has the parabolic mirror . you should keep an eye out here U.K. Astronomy Buy & Sell or sometimes United Kingdom jobs, cars, property, free classifieds and more - Gumtree.com has a bargain

good luck

Thanks.

[JamesF]

It depends on budget, what you're interested in using it for most (planets/solar system vs. deep sky objects vs. astrophotography etc.), how much space you have for storage, whether you want to find objects yourself or have the mount do most of the work for you and probably other things I've not thought of.

James

[ollypenrice]

A smallish Dobsonian reflector will be best. You have the cheapest optical system on the cheapest mount, but both mount and optics are essentially good.

Olly

[Csuka]

It depends on budget, what you're interested in using it for most (planets/solar system vs. deep sky objects vs. astrophotography etc.), how much space you have for storage, whether you want to find objects yourself or have the mount do most of the work for you and probably other things I've not thought of.

James

Planets/solar systems mostly, i have allot of storage and i don't mind finding things for myself.

[Tribal-Wolf]

The jessops scope is over priced even at £90. Stick with Skywatcher and You'll be ok. I just sold a Skywatcher 1145P and it wasn't a bad little scope for viewing. The 130P Heritage is a good little scope too. This might be worth watching

[Csuka]

The jessops scope is over priced even at £90. Stick with Skywatcher and You'll be ok. I just sold a Skywatcher 1145P and it wasn't a bad little scope for viewing. The 130P Heritage is a good little scope too. This might be worth watching

Yeah i saw that before, so that would be worth getting?

[astro_dog]

SKYWATCHER SKYLINER 200mm/1200mm PARABOLIC DOBSONIAN | eBay

this looks ok if your in the north of england. this is what i would have got as my first scope if i could start again! you have plenty of storage!

[Tribal-Wolf]

Yeah i saw that before, so that would be worth getting?

Yeah if it goes for the right price.

The skyliner astro_dog mentions is even better but I think it will go for quite a bit of money as there seems to be supplier shortage and everyone wants one.

[dtr42]

SKYWATCHER SKYLINER 200mm/1200mm PARABOLIC DOBSONIAN | eBay

this looks ok if your in the north of england. this is what i would have got as my first scope if i could start again! you have plenty of storage!

unfortunately they usually go about the £200 mark and the Skywatcher Explorer 130p Synscan AZ GOTO Computerised Telescope 130 barlow | eBay keep an eye on it but becaus eof the goto i think it'll end up about the £200 mark again [hope i'm wrong

[rowan46]

If you are on budget this is imo optically the best new scope out there

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Heritage 130p Flextube

it may look like a toy but it's not it's a proper scope unlike some scopes which masquerade as real scopes but are actually little better than toys. It doesn't do anything flash it just gives lovely views and has the same optics as the 130p

[dtr42]

i forgot about the flextube dob thats a good call:icon_salut:

[Beardy30]

go for the Skywatcher 130m and don't be coned into the 130P being better at the 45mm apaature it makes no difference and the motar is a better tool for visual use that the Parabolic mirror - it is going for about £169.00 at Sherwoods the best dealer on the web for Skywatcher.

[rowan46]

go for the Skywatcher 130m and don't be coned into the 130P being better at the 45mm apaature it makes no difference and the motar is a better tool for visual use that the Parabolic mirror - it is going for about £169.00 at Sherwoods the best dealer on the web for Skywatcher.

I agree there is nothing wrong with the 130 but the 130p is not a con side by side I found the image slightly brighter/sharper.

[Beardy30]

perhaps con was a bit harsh but i found pound for pound the 130m a better bet

[rowan46]

Actually I have just looked at flo again and found the 130 for the same price as the flexitube

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Explorer 130

as has been mentioned the 130 is a perfectly fine scope

[mikeyrea]

Hi Guys - enjoying reading this as I'm saving up for a scope too. To satisfy my curiosity is there any reason why skywatcher don't do an explorer 130 with a parabolic lens and a motor?

[182570]

the one on e-bay --have you seen the nagler being sold with it?think it might go for a good price

[Tribal-Wolf]

Hi Guys - enjoying reading this as I'm saving up for a scope too. To satisfy my curiosity is there any reason why skywatcher don't do an explorer 130 with a parabolic lens and a motor?

They do two, one is the SupaTrak 130P and the other is the 130P Synscan GoTo

[Andy-man]

Hi Guys - enjoying reading this as I'm saving up for a scope too. To satisfy my curiosity is there any reason why skywatcher don't do an explorer 130 with a parabolic lens and a motor?

There are 2 motors for the Skywatcher EQ2 mount (used on the Explorer 130P) that can be added;

One is a simple, single speed RA drive for £25-£30.

The other is a multi-speed RA drive for £60-£65.

No idea why they don't offer it as a "package" - price, perhaps?

[mikeyrea]

Thanks Tribal-Wolf & Andy-man for getting back to me!

[rowan46]

go for the Skywatcher 130m and don't be coned into the 130P being better at the 45mm apaature it makes no difference and the motar is a better tool for visual use that the Parabolic mirror - it is going for about £169.00 at Sherwoods the best dealer on the web for Skywatcher.

I just thought that I would get back to you on your statement that "sherwoods are the best people on the web for skywatcher" I was just wondering which criteria you are using for best, they are not the cheapest nor do they give the best service. It's not bad it's just not any better than any of the other good astro shops.

[Beardy30]

I would have to disagree only based on my own experience, i have found Sherwoods to give solid advice and the time they took and the after sales was second to none. For the Skywatcher range i would recommend them but i can only say it as i have found it compared to other dealers.

[Alkaid]

If you want a telescope for solar system use then a dobsonian is not the best option. At high powers it is easy to lose the object completely as you nudge the scope.

For solar system you also need focal length, as this will give a bigger image. The 130mm with 650mm FL will struggle with image scale. Either the SW 130 with 900mm focal length or the Evostar 90 refractor will be a good choice. There is a review of the refractor in the reviews section, freshly posted by yours truly.

Happy hunting and good luck!