SW 200p EQ-5 questions

[Azure]

Hey all,

Just bought a SW 200p EQ-5 off a friend, for a nice price of about £200. It's in very good condition and has few extra filters and lenses too!

Anyway, I wanted to ask if there are any tips or things I should know about the scope? It's a big step up from my previous scope, so I'm still getting the hang of it. Is it prone to any problems? etc.

Also, how much of a visual improvement will it be to my 130 EQ? I haven't had a chance to try the 200 out yet, but I can't wait to get first light ASAP!

Thanks in advance,

Az

[badgerchap]

You've got yourself a good deal there, well done. Should be a considerable improvement on the 130, you'll be opening up a lot of doors. The mount is also definitely superior. As for limitations I think you'll be fine - you'll be used to it after a few uses.

[MadAlbert]

You will notice quite a difference with the more light gathering ability, plus it's a rather good all rounder. Just remember to keep it well collimated.

If you do a search on the site for 200p you'll come across a wealth of information regarding this very popular, well respected kit.

[alan potts]

Plus one on what Badgerchap wrote.

Alan

[66mikeg]

+1 for the 200p, excellent scope

[cotterless45]

Super deal, you'll enjoy the extra aperture,

Nick.

[emadmoussa]

It's one of the best entry/medium level telescopes. I still use mine and I absolutely love it. I had to change to the mount though as I moved to astro photography. At £200, you got yourself a bargain, mate.

First thing check the collimation - well, when you have the chance to test it with a clear sky.

It's a good idea if you get a dew shield...basically, it's much much cheaper to make one yourself with yoga/camping mat and some velcro.

From my experience, first thing I felt I really needed was a a motor to track objects, or at least elongated adjustment knobs. Sometimes in the dark it becomes difficult to reach the knobs.

All in all, the scope is a great one and you'll notice much difference to your 130mm in terms of crisp images and magnifications. It gathers 60/70% more light than the 130mm...you're basically doubling your magnification power with better quality views. Aperture is king

[Helite]

Hey all,

Just bought a SW 200p EQ-5 off a friend, for a nice price of about £200. It's in very good condition and has few extra filters and lenses too!

Anyway, I wanted to ask if there are any tips or things I should know about the scope? It's a big step up from my previous scope, so I'm still getting the hang of it. Is it prone to any problems? etc.

Also, how much of a visual improvement will it be to my 130 EQ? I haven't had a chance to try the 200 out yet, but I can't wait to get first light ASAP!

Thanks in advance,

Az

I went from a celestron powerseeker 127 to my 200p on the EQ5 goto and was blown away with the difference, and slightly alarmed at the size difference when I initially seen it, can be a little bit of a handful compared to a small scope. You will really appreciate the views though. My only suggestion from my beginners point of view is get a couple of decent eyepiece's and a barlow for it.

Also if I didnt have the goto I would have invested in the motor for it, its so much more enjoyable to not have to constantly manually adjust the mount to keep on target.

[Azure]

Well it came with the basic 10 and 25 eyepieces as well as a barlow, so I'm not too fussed with getting any new EPs right away

But it also came with a 2" adapter thingy, is that for bigger EPs? Why are some EPs bigger anyway?

And if I wanted to upgrade it to a motorized mount, how much would that cost? Does it simply involve buying an upgrade and attaching it to my mount?

Thanks for all the info!

[emadmoussa]

Well it came with the basic 10 and 25 eyepieces as well as a barlow, so I'm not too fussed with getting any new EPs right away

But it also came with a 2" adapter thingy, is that for bigger EPs? Why are some EPs bigger anyway?

And if I wanted to upgrade it to a motorized mount, how much would that cost? Does it simply involve buying an upgrade and attaching it to my mount?

Thanks for all the info!

For wider field of view. Yes, you can buy the motor separately...either a single or dual axis...prices range between 60 to 100 pounds.

[Helite]

Well it came with the basic 10 and 25 eyepieces as well as a barlow, so I'm not too fussed with getting any new EPs right away

But it also came with a 2" adapter thingy, is that for bigger EPs? Why are some EPs bigger anyway?

And if I wanted to upgrade it to a motorized mount, how much would that cost? Does it simply involve buying an upgrade and attaching it to my mount?

Thanks for all the info!

I don't use the 2 inch adaptor, all my eyepieces are 1.25 inch. Going motorised can cost as little or as much as you want, you could make it full goto for I think it was about 300 pound, or dual or single axis motors for 70 ish quid, I fitted the full kit to mine and it was a simple bolt on set up. Im sure its not all that different to the single motors though im sure someone who has fitted them would be able to give you a better idea. But in my opinion the tracking is worth its weight in gold and personally I wouldnt be without the goto either.

[Azure]

Ah okay, I see. I'm going to see how I get on without motorized assistance, but it looks like something I'll end up investing in anyway.

Is it better to get dual or single axis? I'm assuming dual is better, offering both Ra and Dec? And is goto worth the extra money? £300 sounds like alot, it's already almost halfway to the price of a HEQ5, so would it be better to save a bit more and just invest in the HEQ5?

[emadmoussa]

Definitely dual axis...For me personally, I wouldnt recommend goto on EQ5. You better save up some pennies and upgrade for HEQ5 or NEQ6...let's face it , there comes a time when you want to get into astro photography. THhe EQ5 will serve you OK for exposures of 2 or 3 minutes provided that you have a motor, but more than that you'll need a sturdier, more accurate mount.

[Helite]

Ah okay, I see. I'm going to see how I get on without motorized assistance, but it looks like something I'll end up investing in anyway.

Is it better to get dual or single axis? I'm assuming dual is better, offering both Ra and Dec? And is goto worth the extra money? £300 sounds like alot, it's already almost halfway to the price of a HEQ5, so would it be better to save a bit more and just invest in the HEQ5?

Personally I wouldn't go for the goto upgrade, im regretting not just getting the HEQ5 myself but I got a deal on the mount and tube from FLO on the EQ5 and didn't know at the time I would be keen on photography and couldn't justify the extra cost on the HEQ5 when this was my first "proper" scope. I'm using the EQ5 to learn though and despite its limitations i'm enjoying experimenting with it and gradually building up the rest of my kit, I will eventually get the HEQ5 though.

I would however put the motors on, just visual is so much more relaxing without having to tweak it every so often, and it opens up experimenting with astrophotography easier. And in the future if you do wish to upgrade your mount I reckon it would be easier to sell and EQ5 with motors fitted as well, and considering you only paid 200 notes for your complete set-up so far you really cant go wrong.

[Azure]

Sounds good, hopefully should get to try out the scope tonight, looks like it'll be clear!

Thanks for all the advice, I feel a lot more sure about what I'm doing now Will probably get motors at some point, and then in the future upgrade to a HEQ5. I'll see how I get on.

[Azure]

Oh wait, one more thing - how are the motors powered? I know GOTO systems require a proper power setup, but do motors need the same? Or can they be run off conventional batteries?

[emadmoussa]

Oh wait, one more thing - how are the motors powered? I know GOTO systems require a proper power setup, but do motors need the same? Or can they be run off conventional batteries?

Dual axis motors come with a batteries pack (4 D size batteries). If you're intending to use the motor intensively then you're will have to think about powering it from the mains. For this, you need a 6v adapter with at least 2000mA -- something like this: http://www.amazon.co...3077918&sr=8-1.

Also, a bit of advice - if you're not good at dealing with the cold, I'd suggest that you get a cable extension for your motor handset so you can control it from inside the house. The handset usually has 2 R-11 cables coming out of it and plugged into each one of the motor drivers on the mount. So you need 2 R-11 cables and 2 ''couplers''. I bought mine from here:

http://www.ebay.co.u...984.m1439.l2649

http://www.ebay.co.u...984.m1439.l2649

[Scott]

I bought dual axis motors for my eq5 but to be honest, if you get your polar alignment right the dec motor is a bit redundant. when properly polar aligned you very rarely touch the dec once you are on your target. then again I suppose its only a few quid difference between dual and single motors.

Just my opinion so make of it what you will

Scott

[Azure]

Got first light with the scope last night - I was flabbergasted by the huge difference! The quality is amazing! Gonna love using this scope

Thanks for all the help^, will be really useful in the future when I start to upgrade my set up (:

[Helite]

Well done Like you I had a major WOW moment when I went from the 127 to 200p!

[emadmoussa]

Glad you had a good time What did you observe?

[Azure]

Clouds were rolling in, so I just had a quick look at the basics - Jupiter, M42, M13, etc. But was amazed at the clarity, especially on Jupiter's banding! Spent a lot of time just playing around with different mags and getting used to the bigger setup, probably going to get dual axis motors for it too, should keep me happy until the (far from now) inevitable purchase of a HEQ5