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Skywatcher 200p dob

Beardy30

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autonm

autonm

Posted
Posted

I have this exact telescope.

CONS:

If you want to do any type of imaging through it - then you can't as the mount is not motorised/tracking. You would need either a Barndoor mount or purchase a HEQ5.

Which is what I have just done.

PROS:

Relatively easy to carry/move around.

Dob mount is perfect for star hopping yourself or easily gliding around the night sky.

Requires no setup at all... move it to your garden and away you go.

The £ spent is going on the Scope itself rather than the actual mount.

Im sure people will tell you about the optics etc - but as a quick scope to get up and running its great.

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Reeny

Reeny

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Posted

Depends if you are in town, or at a dark sky location.

I had a quick 60 minutes last night.

The Hercules cluster and the ring nebula were easy to spot, and gave a good view (albeit on a charcoal grey background due to moonshine and cloud in the sky).

I needed to collumate my 200P,

and more fine tuning is likely to be required to get the best out of it.

Extras I needed are:

A water butt stand / adjustable seat / or a 90 degree finder scope for good posture. 

Moon filter (compulsory)

OIII filter (optional)

BST / Maxvision / or some other make of quality eyepieces to do the scope justice (eventually - the 25mm is fine for now)

I went for the 24 / 16mm MaxVision with a 2x barlow I already had.

The freebie Skywatcher eyepieces have been relegated onto my old scope now where they perform well.

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Reeny

Reeny

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Posted

I notice from your signature that you already have binoculars.

They will be useful for spotting.

The 8" dob will give a surface area of Pi x radius squared = 3.14 x (203mm/2) squared = 33,312mm2

Your 130m  will give a surface area of Pi x radius squared = 3.14 x (130mm/2) squared = 13,266mm2

You will get 2.5x more light into the Dobsonian. Not a massive amount of difference, but it means:

The 8" will have easy to focus views at 100x to 150x magnifications

And weather dependant views from 150x to 200x plus magnifications.

Tight star clusters will be seen as individual stars (rather than the blurry image you may be seeing now)

The moon craters will be seen in much more detail at the higher magnifications available.

Nebula will be easier to find, brighter, and clearer (I have only found the Ring so far).

I have a dark corner of the garden away from street lights where I set the scope up.

I don't have any problems regarding portability / set up time / ease of use / quality and robustness.

At the price range - I can't see the 8" being a disappointment at all.

I got mine for £250 brand new on an Ebay best offer.

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AlexB67

AlexB67

Posted
Posted

Thanks so am I better off with a 10"

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

It really depends, it is very easy to get sucked in on the bigger aperture is worth while, but there are other factors that this brings when you compare the 10 inch skyliner to the 8 inch. 

Have a read of this http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/196931-buying-a-dobsonian-8-inch-or-ten-inch/ too. Good luck with the picking :smiley:

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Reeny

Reeny

Posted
Posted

Thanks so am I bet off with a 10"

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

You would also be better off with the 12" / 14" / 16" etc.

You need to decide where to stop.

My decision to stop at 8" was based on the price in pound notes, storage space, size, weight, and manual handling.

Offset against the gain from a bigger aperture scope.

The £190 price difference has already been spent on new eyepieces, filters, stands, and accessories.

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rory

rory

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the 8" dob is a great piece of kit, simply because as many agree ,its at  good balance between size/weight and performance.  if theres something to be picky about ,it would be the mount . can be a little awkward to get the (just right) stiction. however ,very simple modifications can be done which help. don't get me wrong its perfectly usable. you may find a telrad/rigel finder would be the best £40 you can spend on an upgrade.

another good point is at f/6 its still nice to e/p's where as the 10" start to ask for good quality eyepieces. I truly loved my 200p dob and felt that with the right angle finder and telrad ,coupled with a few simple mods( which is another plus, rainy days can be spent playing and tinkering to your hearts content).

  you may also want to put on your list is a chair of some description(drum stools work well) 

 of course I say all this  while in the back of my mind I cant help thinking  " get the 10"  :evil:

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xanaxik

xanaxik

Posted
Posted

Hi guys!Thanks for your posts , im new here. im about to buy skywatcher 200p dobs. .. and i cant wait! i can buy it in about a week :) just been outside and clear sky is awsome just have to wait!

My first scope was celesron 114eq which was nice but .... and after long time without telescope its time to buy something nice like 200p...hope you all supporting me in this choice? :) thanks

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Reeny

Reeny

Posted
Posted

Beardy - I try to see at least one new object per night.

Tonight it was the dumbell nebula / and M103 near Cassiopeia.

No problems viewing from my back garden in a light poluted town, while hiding in the shadows from the street lights.

If I could man handle a 10" I would consider the 50% price increase for 50% more apperture.

Go for the biggest you can manage

The 8" is perefect for me, but have a look at the physical size of the scopes before comitting to the purchase.

They are both big bits of equipment.

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Rob63

Rob63

Posted
Posted

I am really happy with my 200p Dob, I added a telrad and a few BST EP's and now have a great scope for visual astronomy.

In terms of bang for buck I don't think the 200p can be beat.

t's also pretty good in the "grab and go" department as the size while big, is pretty easy to manage.

Having said that if you have the money the 10" is tempting even though it's a bit more weight to shift around.

Remember the old adage that the best scope is then one you will get out and use.

Personally I am starting to drool over the 16" :laugh:  

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