advice

[bishop36]

Hi all, i'm looking to get my first scope. I want one that is easy to transport and easy to use, but one that i can use for a long time without having to step up to a different scope in a short time. I've been looking at the orion AstroView 120ST Equatorial Refractor and the celestron omni xlt 150. Does anyone have any thoughts on these two and are there any other ones i should consider, any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks

[umadog]

I guess you have a car? Where do you live? Where would you store the scope? Are you further west where the glow from DC is less of a problem? I've observed in the area a few times and there are some good spots if you're prepared to travel.

Do you have a strong reason for choosing an equatorial mount? I ask because they're rather heavy and bulky. For about the same price as the 120 mm refractor you can get an 8" or 10" Dobsonian from Orion. The 8" will pull in almost 3 times as much light as the refractor. The 10" over 4 times as much. Both of those are scopes you could keep for a long time. Those really can be keepers. Globular clusters, for instance, really start to come alive at 8". The difference from 5" is substantial. Hand tracking on a Dob isn't hard at all, although those Orions do need after-market bearings to get the best out of them. Bearing kits are easy to come by. We commonly recommend Dobsonians to beginners because they provide the most aperture and stability for the price.

Since you're in VA you should definitely join NOVAC: http://www.novac.com/ They have regular meetings in the DC area (join the mailing list). As a member you can turn up and look through telescopes first hand and get a feeling for what's out there. Members will help you out when you get your first scope. They also have a selection of loaner equipment so you can try stuff out at your leisure before buying. Loaner scopes of interest include a 10" f/6 Discovery Dob, a 12" Lightbridge, a 10" Inteliscope Dob, an Orion XT10, an Orion XT8, and a Meade XT 125. A lot of those are on a waiting list but the lists don't seem long.

[glowjet]

Hi Bishop36 and welcome to SGL as I see this is your first post, I have no knowledge of the AstroView120 ST, but the Celestron Omni 150 XLT did receive a very good revue by the Sky@night mag some time ago, but as Umadog has already remarked, you can acquire a larger aperture Dob for your money which is basically easier to use and set up. Perhaps a little more research could be helpful, taking into account such as where do your interests lie, Moon, Planets or deep sky etc. Do you have much local light pollution, meaning that you will have to transport your scope to a dark site to get the best results, your financial expenditure, all this should be taken into account and have a bearing on what scope you eventually end up with. Advice from a local Astro club would also be invaluable

John.