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Delboy_Hog

By Delboy_Hog
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Delboy_Hog

Delboy_Hog

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Hi everyone,

I'm Derek, a relative newbie to astronomy and I have been roaming this forum under the cover of anonymity for some time now, but finally plucked up the courage to log in and say hi!

I love the website, reading about other people's experiences and admiring some of the incredible photos on here. I have well and truly caught the bug now, and live for those clear nights, the long peaceful hours outside staring up at the stars! I'm sure we all remember the first time we peered into the scope and saw Saturn, jupiter, our first galaxy etc...breathtaking! :)

I've had a Skywatcher 127 with the synscan AZ goto mount for a couple of years now, and absolutely love it! I've also dabbled in taking some photos, but the rickety camera-holding attachment and simple point-and-click camera mean my photos are not worthy enough for posting yet!! Really only just getting a feel for how to use the scope "well" I think, which I blame on the annoyingly few clear nights we seem to get in this country (the UK), though it may have more to do with the speed of my learning! Either way, I get the feeling that this is a hobby where you never stop learning new things...

And finally, a question for you all - I've been working with the 'stock' equipment from day one, and I wondered what you thought about the barlow (2x) and eye pieces (40mm, 25mm, 15mm and 10mm). Will I notice a significant difference if I invest in more reputable kit, particularly the barlow? If so, any suggestions welcomed!

Anyway, look forward to chatting with you all at some point and I've had a great time reading your posts already!

All the best,

Derek

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JamesM

JamesM

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Hi Derek and welcome to the forum. First off, we welcome your bravery in joining, we're very sociable here with lots of different experiences to share with you. There are only a couple on here who bite but given some of their ages, they don't do it with many teeth!:):D:D You're correct that you never stop learning, in part because the subject of astronomy is so broad and you can never learn it all, but even the bits that you do manage to learn keep changing - but hey, that's part of the fun.:confused: The stock equipment you had with the scope isn't that bad and is certainly better than the jam jars that they used to give you years ago. If you are looking at improving the barlow, may I suggest that you take a look at the TAL here which is relatively inexpensive compared to what else is out there but delivers very good performance. With regard to eyepieces, a lot of their expense can be attributed to particular design features that provide for example wider views such as 80 or even 100 degree field of view (spacewalk feel) or because of the quality of glass or the coatings that help boost contrast. As great as some of these eyepieces are, they do not yield results that are in proportion to the difference in their price compared to cheaper designs - it's a matter of what are you willing to pay for that 'extra' bit of performance. The BST range of eyepieces are good quality, as are the Meade 5000 plossl series along with the Celestron X-cel series and are very reasonably priced. It very much a personal decision helped of course by a good budget. At the end of the day good eyepieces hold their value well should need to resale to upgrade. Hope that helps.

Clear skies for now,

James

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