Mak 180 or SCT 8/9.25

[E621Keith]

I use my C925 on a GPDX just fine. I use it for visual only.

[Mr Spock]

Like most people with a C9.25 I have no plans to change it. The aperture hits the sweet spot for planetary observing: big enough to see fine detail but not so big as to be affected by poor seeing.

It has a reputation for being a fine performer compared to other SCTs. I can confirm mine is excellent in that regard; better optics would be wasted really given the quality of this scope and our generally poor seeing conditions.

[ismangil]

Damian Peach uses C14 for last year's winning photo of Jupiter.

Just sayin'

Perry

[Gary70]

It sounds perfect for me, size and performance. I'll be mainly backyard with trips out when I can, but these short breaks in cloud usually mean a drive out is a risk, as we all know in the UK.

what size/eyepieces do you find best for planets & DSO? Visual not AP.

[Mr Spock]

I generally find a 10mm most useful for planets (x235). I usually start with a 12mm, then go up 10, 9, 8 until I find the right magnification for the seeing conditions.

For DSOs a 22mm T4 Nagler is magical For wider views (which I don't do all that often) my 42mm LVW is as wide as it gets.

[faulksy]

i have had the mak which was great for sure but the 9.25 is a lot better

[Gary70]

Thanks guys,

A nice little base of knowledge

[laser_jock99]

A C9.5 (or maybe even a C11) is on my 'to get' list. My justification being that no one scope does it all and you may as well buy the best you afford. Treat it like an investment, well looked after, quality kit will retain a fair bit of value should you need to sell later. All my scopes are second hand and could all be sold today for at least (if not more) than what I paid for them.

[astrofox]

C9.25 on a CG5 goto is pretty awsome on a dark sky. Haven't tried it with a camera yet.