Opinion Please

[naxos10]

I have stumbled across the following and wondered if you feel it is suitable for a first scope or should I been looking at something newer:

Celestron CG5. little used approx 10 years old and in very good condition. It is not thought to need collimating and the mirrors are not tarnished.

The following extras are also in the deal:

Celestron 6x30 LER finder

Celestron 2 x Barlow lens multiplier

· Celestron 6mm lens

· Celestron 17mm lens

· Celestron 25mm wide angle lens

· Dew shield

· Night torch

· Padded carry case constructed from space-age resin, waterproof, airtight and unbreakable. It's lined with die cut foam for custom fitting of the optical tube and many accessories

· Star Charts

(All of the above in excellent condition)

Or should I look at something newer ie Celestron Nexstar 4SE, Celestron Nexstar 127SLT, Celestron Omni 127 XLT or other.

Your comments would be very much appreciated.

BR

Alan

[John]

Hi Alan,

That description is for a mount (the CG5) and accessories but does not describe the scope apart from mentioning that it has mirrors so it's difficult to comment on whether it's a good setup !

Can you find out a bit more about the scope, ie: diameter of main mirror, focal length etc ?

[naxos10]

Hi John,

From what I can find out it is 125mm SCT with a focal length of 1250.

I think the tripod is a lightweight equatorial as it does not look as robust as an EQ5/CG-4

BR

Alan

[Ags]

The CG5 is almost identical to the EQ5, there should be no difference there.

[John]

If it is a 125mm F/10 SCT (also known as a C5) on a CG5 mount then it's very similar to the Celestron Omni 127 XLT except an older model which used the Starbrite coatings rather than the current XLT ones and the mount is a bit more heavy duty.

Decent scope if it is in good order throughout but it is 10 years old so you would want to be sure that it's in good condition. No mention of the mount being motorised so assume not.

There may be better options for your budget though but we would need to know more about what your interests are to advise.

[naxos10]

I am interested in viewing the sky in greater depth than my eyes and 10-20 x 50 binoculars. Lunar and planetary mostly with whatever dso the scope I buy will see. I appreciate there is no one size fits all solution. To be able to try imaging would be nice but in no way essential.

One of the main concerns is portability and size as I want to take it with me to campsites (hopefully dark sky ones) and we have limited storage space in the campervan.

Ease of use and low maintenance is another parameter hence looking at the 2 scopes with goto and I have recently come accross the 127 XLT which may be better optically but I am not sure about it's portability.

I hope this is the additional information you were looking for.

BR

Alan

Budget may stretch to £450 ( the price of the

[naxos10]

Has anybody got any other scope suggestions to those I have listed.

BR

Alan

[naxos10]

Hi All,

Along with the scopes mentioned in my thread (4SE & 127 SLT/Omni)I have come across then following:

Tal-1

Tal-150P

I am not adverse to a manual scope so was wondering if either of these would be a good starter scope with portability and little servicing?

I have seen the Williams Optics Zenithstar ZS71 which I could stretch to depending upon what other accessories would be required> Would this be better long term?

All comments appreciated by a confused newbie.

BR

Alan