dob or explorer?

[Steve Swancott]

I cant belive after everything i've been deciding about im acctually considering about getting a dob.

I've looked on flo for a 10" dob but they've discontinued it so i dont know what to do. is there any other recomended and trusted places that sell dobs?

And for beginers standerd is 8" explorer or 10" dob probobly trying to run before i can walk? I've been told the 8" is much better than the 6" (i'd also asume so because it's bigger!)

anyway BEGINER TELECOPE FOR 13 YR OLD- DOB OR EXPLORER?

[JamesF]

I'd say go for the dob, but what size probably depends on whether the 13 year old has to drag it in and out of the house (or elsewhere) themselves. A 200P with base, finder etc. is probably going to weigh getting on for 25kg and is not the most convenient shape to carry.

James

[Naemeth]

There is always this one. Mind you, they do have the 400P (not sure whether that's 10" or not).

Oh, and go for a Dob, preferably smaller than the 200P. 150P maybe, you don't want a huge scope for a beginner. 130P may even be preferable.

[JamesF]

300mm is 10", 400mm is 16". Or thereabouts.

James

[Tribal-Wolf]

big scope are gonna be heavy for a 13 yr old unless they're big for their age. A 10" is a big scope. Have you been and looked at scopes in a shop or an astro society? If not I would advise you do before making a decision.

[tjr]

10" is 254mm.

How about this:

First Light Optics - Skywatcher Skyliner 250px FlexTube Dobsonian

I would go for dob over the Explorer. As Chris says, it would be a bit of a lump for a 13 year old to move about and probably wouldn't get used as much as a result.

[JamesF]

Doh! I am losing it. 300mm is of course 12".

James

[Moonshane]

if given some help carrying the scope, a 200p dob will be superb as a beginner's scope. I run an astro club at my primary school and the year fives were pushing it around no problem and finding brighter targets like venus, Jupiter and luna within minutes using a red dot finder - essential additional purchase.

[RikM]

A 200P Dob would be great. My 13 year old can lift my 10" but wouldn't be able to carry it very far. He regularly helps an observing friend carry her 8" in from the car, through the house and out to the back garden. Base first, then the tube, no bother at all.

[Steve Swancott]

would it be fairly ok to lift up/down the stairs and out through the door?

and is there any difference in the flextube and the 'normal one'? I know that one looks a lot cooler but that shouldn't be a difference of about £100 surely...

[mdstuart]

I would not want to be regularly carrying my 10 inch up and down the stairs as this would put me off using it.....The flextubes are more compact for storage but not necessarily much lighter from what I hear..

You could get a second hand scope say a 6 inch and then upgrade at a later date and sell the scope on..Of course the usual risks of buying second hand apply..Go for astro buy and sell and verify seller to a forum like this..check the price to recent completed ebay sales etc..that reduces the risk..

Mark

[Moonshane]

the base and tube come apart in seconds and for an adult )and maybe even your child at 13) both parts would be readily moved up and down stars with no issues.

the flextube version makes a smaller length but the 200 full tube is not that large and easily transported if you want to do so. up to 10" (inclusive) I'd say a flex tube has no real advantage.

[stevetynant]

I cant belive after everything i've been deciding about im acctually considering about getting a dob.

I've looked on flo for a 10" dob but they've discontinued it so i dont know what to do. is there any other recomended and trusted places that sell dobs?

And for beginers standerd is 8" explorer or 10" dob probobly trying to run before i can walk? I've been told the 8" is much better than the 6" (i'd also asume so because it's bigger!)

anyway BEGINER TELECOPE FOR 13 YR OLD- DOB OR EXPLORER?

I wouldn't get too hung up on the word beginner here either- the 8 inch or 10 inch are really capable scopes and you may never want to change them (though like everything else once you understand things a bit better you'll always want more)

The other advantage of the Dob for a 13 year old is the placement of the lens which is low down for access - not always the case with scopes on EQ Mounts.

If you intend being there to help and you can afford it I'd go for the biggest aperture possible and get the 10" scope - if your 13 year old is a boy - he'll manage it (transporting) himself in a few year at the least.

They should pretty much hold their resale value as well so its not really that big a gamble if the interest doesn't last.

good luck with your choice

Steve

[JamesF]

I'm sure there's a fairly active astro society in or near Swindon. It might well be worth getting in touch with them to see if anyone has such a scope that you could see before you commit yourself to buying. Quite a few of the larger scopes come up for sale second-hand because the seller says they're too big or they don't have room for them.

James

[swamp thing]

Hi

TBH the only time I would recommend an EQ mount is for deep sky AP for visual observing the advantages of a Dob far outweigh anything an EQ has to offer.

If I started out in astronomy again the scope I would choose would be the 150 skyliner. IMO this is as good as a starter scope can get. Cheap, easy to use, gives great views, kind on eyepieces, remains collimated unless you throw it down the stairs. Basically tough as old boots.

Another reason is as it is your first scope you have nothing to reference the views too. Most beginners find details through a scope subtle at best first off. If the hobby is a stayer and your in it for the long haul no matter what you get you'll wanna upgrade anyway (that's the fun bit). When you do get around to upgrading the time you spent getting your eye in with a small scope will give you a real wow moment when you first look through a big scope.

Going from a 6" to a 12" is pretty hard to match with an 8". For this jump to be the same with an 8" your next scope needs to be a 16" for a 10"...20".

God luck with your decision

[rory]

Interesting, so upgrading from say 8 to 12 would be subtle ?

[JamesF]

If you look at it in terms of the area of the objective, which dictates how much light the scope can capture, a 12" scope can capture four times the amount of light that a 6" scope can, but only two and a quarter times as much as an 8" scope. The change from 6" to 12" should therefore be far more pronounced than the change from 8" to 12".

That's probably quite a naive way to look at it, but you get the idea.

James

[onesmallstep]

I cant belive after everything i've been deciding about im acctually considering about getting a dob.

I've looked on flo for a 10" dob but they've discontinued it so i dont know what to do. is there any other recomended and trusted places that sell dobs?

And for beginers standerd is 8" explorer or 10" dob probobly trying to run before i can walk? I've been told the 8" is much better than the 6" (i'd also asume so because it's bigger!)

anyway BEGINER TELECOPE FOR 13 YR OLD- DOB OR EXPLORER?

Hi and welcome.

If the scope is for a 13yo then here is my advice. Get the 6-inch / 150mm dob for the following reasons:

1. The Dob design is easier to set up and use than the equivalent Newt / EQ arrangement. This means that the user will not be put off by complicated alignment procedures.

2. The 6-inch Dob is lighter than the 8-inch+ models so is easier to lift and handle. Easier to use = more likely to be used, something to consider when planning observing sessions or just waiting for gaps in the clouds for some ad-hoc stargazing. Although there is an argument for larger aperture this is negated by usable aperture which limits scopes to an optimum magnification of 200x, well within the range of the 6-inch Dob.

3. The Dob is cheaper than the equivalent Newt / EQ model. Again, something to consider when buying a first scope is the cost vs use in case astronomy is a fad rather than a genuine interest. You can always upgrade at a later date and either sell the Dob or keep it as part of your growing collection of scopes (we are all guilty of this one ).

4. The 'best' scope is the one you will actually use so although other models, types and sizes of scope will be suggested in response to your question this has to be weighed up against how often you will use the scope, observing planetary vs deep sky object (dso) targets (the 6-inch will do both), and storage / transport (a Dob takes up less room than the equivalent tripod / mount model when set up and will also have a quicker setup time as you only have two components - the tube and base).

I hope this helps.

[swamp thing]

Interesting, so upgrading from say 8 to 12 would be subtle ?

Not subtle no, but not as dramatic as 6"- 12" as this is doubling the aperture giving 4x the area of glass available.

The smaller the starter scope the more dramatic the first jump to a big scope.

I started with a 4.5" newt, then next went to 10" this is an enormous jump. The difference is nothing short of staggering, yet from 10" - 16" the jump is not as dramatic even though it's similar in inches. To get the same type jump as from 4.5" to 10" my next scope after the 10" would have to have been to 22".

I'm not suggesting that smaller jumps are not fun, but for maximum impact after your starter scope doubling up aperture is very dramatic indeed and gives a real wow! Factor.

[7oddy]

Hi, I have currently a SW 130M and have just ordered a SW 250PX solid tube. Can't wait until it arrives. Don't know what to expect with the jump up in aperture, but after reading some reports.....sounds like it could be interesting. Not sure what to expect going from an EQ mount to a Dob either.

[Naemeth]

To be honest, it would be better to keep it in a shed if you have one than upstairs, then it would practically be at ambient temperature when you wanted to use it, this would negate needing it to be lighter in a sense, unless you are going to need to drive to a dark site, in which case, lighter can mean it's easier to transport .

[rory]

Not subtle no, but not as dramatic as 6"- 12" as this is doubling the aperture giving 4x the area of glass available.

The smaller the starter scope the more dramatic the first jump to a big scope.

I started with a 4.5" newt, then next went to 10" this is an enormous jump. The difference is nothing short of staggering, yet from 10" - 16" the jump is not as dramatic even though it's similar in inches. To get the same type jump as from 4.5" to 10" my next scope after the 10" would have to have been to 22".

I'm not suggesting that smaller jumps are not fun, but for maximum impact after your starter scope doubling up aperture is very dramatic indeed and gives a real wow! Factor.

got ya,makes sense.

i wonder what i could expect moving from a 90mm frac to a 8" newt ? could be reality for me any day ,so id be interested to know.

[Caldwell 14]

got ya,makes sense.

i wonder what i could expect moving from a 90mm frac to a 8" newt ? could be reality for me any day ,so id be interested to know.

Well you are going to notice a big difference on light grab, no question. Firstly objects such as open clustera (my favorite targets) will be brighter and bigger, enough for you too wow a bit and you will see more of them.

The seeing will play a big factor when you use your proposed 8 inch and it going to limit the mags you are going to be able to use if you are going to be able to use, an important factor if you are into observing solar system objects. You little refractor is going to punch through poor seeing (like we have most of the time here) in a way a Newton never can.

[rory]

thanks caldwell. my favourite dso's up till now are the brighter planetary's ( ring, dumbell, blue snowball) and globulars. it's globulars i would love to prise more detail from .

anyway the deal regarding the newt isnt done and dusted as yet ,so im getting hopes to high.

cheers for info.

[Scott]

Steve, ya gotta see a 10" dob before you buy one. they're big. see it. move it. try to carry it, don't buy a scope you might never use. take your time and get to somewhere you can see it. i'd rather get a 4" i use than a 10" i don't.