£450 Budget refractor or reflector if so wat make etc.(viewing planets)

[sam mayo]

for planetary viewing with said budget which type and what make #

also maybe stupid question but can u do astro imaging with a refractor,never used 1, thanks

[rory]

cant advise as to what to purchase, but you can certainly do imaging with a refractor.

[umadog]

Planetary observing is like most things: the largest, best quality objective, will produce the best results. A large objective which is bad quality won't perform well. A small objective will tend to perform less well then a large objective if both are of equal quality. Even if you're seeing-limited on a big scope, the brighter image tends to bring out more subtle colouring on planets. The focal length and focal ratio aren't terribly important (within reason). i.e. you don't need a long focal length for s sharp image.

[nightfisher]

for planets i would suggest a maksutov like the skymax 127

[sam mayo]

thinks its guna b the ssw 10" 250p just intrested wat other plp think

[Carbon Brush]

I don't wish to put the cat among the pigeons here.

Generally you would be thinking of a refractor, or long FL reflector, or compound (Mak Sct etc) scope.

Last winter I was very pleasantly surprised by the views of Mars through my SW200. F5.

Something thought of as a general purpose or deep sky scope.

All I'm saying is don't look only at long FL scopes.

These don't always give the best views of dim DSO, or wide field.

Keep your viewing options open if you can.

A decent quality scope generally has the UK seeing as the limit, rather than the optics.

If you look around for used kit, then you can have more choices to mix n match the scope and mount to suit you.

With any luck, your wallet is not quite to light aftwards.

Hope this helps.

[umadog]

No reason why a good DSO scope can't be an excellent planetary scope.

[sam mayo]

sorry this is prob stupid question but is the skywatcher skyline 250px a long fl scope (i think thats wt u wrote fl) im sure in the future im gona wanna give dso's ago and alot of plp recommend that 1 its all quite confusing at times lol

[umadog]

It's not a particularly long focal length scope. In fact, it's shorter focal length than most SCTs. The focal length isn't a particularly critical factor for most things. Let's put it this way, there are plenty of 25" Dobs with a 3 m focal length. A 25" Dob is obviously a good DSO scope.

[crazyjedi]

£450 will get you a nice size newt but won't stretch to a mount capable of imaging to go with it. As scopes go though the sw 250 is a good one though.

[Eastridge]

All I can say is that I am very very happy with my SW 250 but I know it it's a diffulct thing to image with cos of lack of tracking. For it's price seems best 'bang for buck' I could get. If I wanted to do serious imaging, like of DSO's I would have looked elsewhere.

Have you seen it in person / checked out it's size? Be sure you can cope with that - moving it and storing it.

Also be aware that as it has a low f number ( 4.7 ) it needs pricier eyepieces to get edge to edge sharpness, not an issue for planets but may be for you for DSO's.

[NGC 1502]

thinks its guna b the ssw 10" 250p just intrested wat other plp think

A 10" reflector should give excellent planetary views (as per your first post) and is a good all round versatile scope for planets & deep sky.

There's lots of good theory out there, but the main limiting factor is the state of the atmosphere. For good views of planets, a steady atmosphere is needed, and the planet high up, not close to the horizon.

Regards, Ed.

[Matt Scunthorpe]

Have you seen it in person / checked out it's size? Be sure you can cope with that - moving it and storing it

i double this, looking on websites at various scopes, definately reflectors, it can be mis-leading about the size. I know when my SW200p arrived i thought 'what the .... have i done', in my opinion, its just about the limit of handling on your own comfortably, also storage can be an issue. Mine is stored in the original box it came in upstairs in our office. im glad i didnt give in and go for a 10" (i really wanted too )

[sam mayo]

size is not n issue for me and storage either, i know if i bought the 8" i would b thinking "i wonder what the 10" is like" so for the xtra pennys i think its well worth it.thanks 4 your thought ver interesting,sam,gloucester

[crazyjedi]

Well I'm dead envious! My next scope will be the SW 250P DS on their guided EQ6.

It will cost me an arm and a leg but it is a fine scope and the EQ6 mount of theirs is a cracker.

Don't get too focused on running away with the idea of astrophotography right from the off. Once you have your scope you'll soon be swept up by the need for better lenses which are addictive (and £££££££££££) and then the actual kit needed for photography. It's all kinds of ££££££

But it's so much FUN

[sam mayo]

i know its to in enticing. im not focusing on the photography side until i know the sky and scope like the back of my hand,and when my magic lamp starts working and makes money lol its so much fun though its deadly lol

[rory]

thinks its guna b the ssw 10" 250p just intrested wat other plp think

i see you originally asked about refractors for imaging, and viewing planets. best bet is to be sure of what you want from your initial set up and then take it from there . you'll get as much advice as you can ever want here so dont rush. the views you'll have even through a 10" scope wont match photo;s seen in books and magazines, just so your aware, you probably know this but some dont until they put the eye to the eyepiece for the first time.

regards..

[sam mayo]

i had that with my first scope(if u can call it that more of a kitchen role tube with a tinfoil mirror frm a scopes r us with 600x ha ha they wouldnt lie on the box would they lol) i was shocked then i did my research and realised what u do see but i had the bug more than ever then witch is lucky because i imagine it would put alot of people off astronomy.