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Hoping to start observing soon

Lakewitch

By Lakewitch
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Lakewitch

Lakewitch

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My wife and I are interested in buying a first telescope and exploring our wonderful universe a little. But having read various posts here, we are going to wait until the next meeting of the local astronomy society in Carlisle, and hopefully gain some good advice before buying anything.

I had looked at the Celestron Astromaster 130 EQ on Amazon at £130.54 as that seemed an affordable (for us that is) option to start with. But now as said, waiting until we talk to others before committing ourselves, as a lot of people recommend the Skywatch Skyliner 200p...but maybe a future purchase?

Collimation seems such a daunting task, but I am sure patience and careful reading will sort that out. So whilst not observing yet, I shall read on through the forum and endeavour to learn more about this fantastic space we occupy in the Universe, and the means by which we can see some of it.

Will post when decisions made, but in the meantime any comments on the equipment mentioned will be appreciated. As we have very limited income (pension) that will be a factor.

Bright eyes, dark skies.

Lakewitch.

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Mr Spock

Mr Spock

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Hi, welcome to SGL :)

The 200p is a very capable scope. It's always a good idea to have a good read and ask a few questions before deciding. And don't worry about collimation, it's one of those jobs which are easy when you know how ;)

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JonDoe

JonDoe

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Hi to you and your good lady welcome to SGL, good to know your waiting till atleast you`ve been to the meeting, you will be able to look through some of the telescopes there

and see what takes your fancy,

Stellarium is a good program to install on your pc to help you learn the sky.

good luck and enjoy your new hobby, your never to old to start.

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JamesM

JamesM

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Hi and welcome to the forum. Good advice above regarding taking your time and looking through kit first, which will most certainly help you establish your own datum point of what type and size of scope will meet with your expectations. It can be tricky buying a scope with so many recommendations and websites publishing all sort of data and specifications on products that essentially you can't verify until you have bought them. I would certainly recommend going along to a couple of public observation evenings to get your eye in on some of the scopes and also try and remember to make a note of the eyepiece used as it can sometimes make a difference to the view that you see.

Of the choices you have listed, I would certainly go for the 200P (U.K's best selling scope!) as it represents great value for money where aperture is concerned and aperture in astronomy translates as resolving power = detail. It's a good performer on planets and deep sky objects (DSO's) and is certainly a scope you would quickly upgrade too, so with a bit of saving why not make it your first scope and thereby avoid the cost of the initial smaller scope. AS the 200P is a more desirable scope, its resell value will be better than a traditional beginners scope which you might find more difficult to sell when you decide to upgrade. The Celestron 130 is not a bad scope in itself but like so many setups at this price point, the weakness of the setup is the mounts that come with them which are not sturdy enough, meaning that every time you touch them, you have to wait for the whole setup to settle down before viewing. One typical scenario that can certainly make your head turn into a funny shape, is when you are trying to fine focus on a planet at high magnification. You will need to touch the mount to maintain tracking of this fast moving object, whilst waiting for the image to stay still long enough to tweak out the last bit of detail - but by then you will need to adjust the tracking again and so the frustrating merry dance begins. In addition, the red dot finder on that Celestron setup is difficult to align with the scope and way too bright. The dobsonian design is also a manual scope which will require you to keep pace but the mount (though basic) is much better at presenting a steady view. If your heart is set on having a scope on an equatorial mount, the use of a tracking (RA) motor would certainly help minimise the contact with the scope and as there will be two of you observing, it would certainly help facilitate sharing without the danger that either one of you might 'lose' the found object - but of course it adds a little more to the budget I'm afraid. Hope the above is food for thought. :smiley:

Clear skies and hope you enjoy the forum

James

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Doug

Doug

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A warm welcome to the SGL

I also agree with the others on the Dobsonian A 200mm is a good scope

I was told by My club years ago that 200mm scope or larger would be the best in a lit up area

clear skies

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Lakewitch

Lakewitch

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Wow, so many replies and really good advice...........and I think waiting for the right scope is better than going in too low budget and regretting it. Wife and I have both downloaded Stellarium, and that is a great way to start learning some of the night sky. Having been a pro wedding photographer, I appreciate the value of a good lens/mirror and kit that does the job in all conditions. James, your breakdown of the Celestron is a far more useful review than any others I have seen on commercial sites and Amazon. No way can you beat experiential wisdom...thank you for the input, much appreciated. I am lucky in that living on the coast, I can drive just a mile down the road and it is inky black out there, so hopefully get the condtions needed once we are set up. (oh but then there is the wind of course...but I am the eternal optimist).

To all of you who have welcomed us and helped with advice, a warm thank you!

Cheers

lakewitch

(Frank)

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Khw

Khw

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Hi lakewitch , welcome to SGL . Theres plenty of advise on this great forum so don't be afraid to ask , hope you sort out a scope soon . I have the 200p which I find so easy to use . Good luck and enjoy the view! Kevin

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SnakeyJ

SnakeyJ

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Hi Lakewitch and to your wife,

Welcome to SGL and as you've already found its a great forum to learn about astrononmy and get lots of really good/friendly advice. Sit back, enjoy and do the research - stellarium is a good point to start as once set to your location it will give you a pretty good idea of what you will see and a good basic orientation. There's plenty of good reading as well, with Turn Left at Orion being regularly recommended. The Skyliner 200P is a great scope and excellent value in its price range and is highly recommended by many - but if you can try and hook up with a local astronomy group and see if you can get some hands on and a feel for the various options. Its not until you get to see and handle these first hand that you will get a true feel for the size and weight which are important considerations for this first purchase.

Have fun and clear skies - Jake

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badgerchap

badgerchap

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Collimation seems such a daunting task, but I am sure patience and careful reading will sort that out.

Don't be daunted by collimation, it's not as tough as it sounds and is actually quite interesting in itself as it belies some of the properties of optics :)

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paul schofield

paul schofield

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Hello and welcome to SGL. The 200p is an awesome scope, I am still impressed with mine after almost 2 years use. It may be worth your while having a look at other places to purchase your scope. First Light Optics, Telescope House etc. I believe the after sales service would be much better too than Amazon, just my personal opinion. Good luck with your scope purchase.

Paul.

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