Guess what I'm going to ask?!

[davekermito]

The very standard newbies question here...

For my light polluted skies and my meagre budget I have whittled my choices of a scope to the following choices:

SW Skymaster 127 (autotrack)

Celestron Nexstar 4SE

Celestron Nextar 102SLT

Now they all have their benefits, and I really do like the idea of a goto (but it's not no.1 priority):

Skymaster - 5" diameter, best light gathering abilities, and a good focal length.

Nexstar 4SE - smaller diameter, but with the bonus of the go to.

Nexstar 102SLT - simple construction, the benefits of a nice size refractor, and a goto.

All are in stock at the local specialist shop (may I recommend the www.sherwoods-photo.com on price and helpfulness).

So, for my novice (but with a bit of experience) requirements and my edge of city location, which would you go for.

Thanks in anticipation!

[daz]

But what are your novice requirements??

[davekermito]

I going to be vague and say a bit of everything!

I'd like to explore some of the more obvoius Messier objects at first, particular nebulars and galaxies (I know the aperture size will not show a great deal).

But if the moon and the planets are up and about, a bit of that too!

[Andrew*]

So it appears your budget is around 300 for the telescope?

Given the budget, and your primary interest being DSOs, I would go for as much aperture as you can for the money, and would suggest an 8" reflector on a standard EQ mount: http://www.firstlightoptics.com/proddetail.php?prod=200eq5

This scope will show you much more than any of the ones you mention. However, you will need a little more patience and time to get to know the night sky and the positions of the objects you wish to observe. The mount is perfectly capable to hold the scope for visual purposes, and although it doesn't track objects automatically, it has slow motion controls which make it pretty easy to follow planets at high power as they move across the Field of view.

I've had this set-up and must say I loved it!

Andrew

[blinky]

If you have decided in one of those you list then I would go for aperature, so thats the 5". Not having GoTo means you have to learn the sky and gives a much better sense of achievment than pressing the buttons and watching!

[FLO]

SW Skymaster 127 (autotrack)

Celestron Nexstar 4SE

Celestron Nextar 102SLT

If you live under an orange sky then it is best to concentrate on targets that are less affected by light pollution - lunar, solar only with a suitable solar filter!!!!, planets and some of the showcase deep-sky objects like the Ring, Dumbell, Orion, globulars and the like. With that in mind, from your short-list, the Skymax 127 SupaTrak is the best option.

Having said that, Andrew's suggestion of a Skywatcher Explorer 200P EQ5 is a good one and is more of an all-rounder.

HTH

[davekermito]

Thanks fo all the responses!

Thanks to my pestering powers, I have secured the use of a 102SLT for at least 6 months whilst a friend of mine is travelling (can't beat a free bit of kit)!

So this gives me the ideal opportunity to have a bit of a play with a smallish refractor before making my mind up on any purchase!

(Steve - I have made a couple of small purchases from a certain online retailer to complement my borrowed scope!)

[John]

Thanks fo all the responses!

Thanks to my pestering powers, I have secured the use of a 102SLT for at least 6 months whilst a friend of mine is travelling (can't beat a free bit of kit)!

So this gives me the ideal opportunity to have a bit of a play with a smallish refractor before making my mind up on any purchase!

(Steve - I have made a couple of small purchases from a certain online retailer to complement my borrowed scope!)

That will be a great opportunity to see where your interests lie and shape your own purchase

After trying out many (too many !) scopes from 80mm to 250mm aperture over the years I've now settled on a good quality 102mm refractor on a simple non-driven, non GOTO mount as my main (only at the moment) scope. I'm surrounded by street lights so mobility during observing sessions is paramount. It's suprising what you can see with modest size scopes if you keep at it

Hope you enjoy your "loaner".

John

[davekermito]

Took the 102SLT out on Saturday night (the missus was impressed that it kept me out of the pub!)

Was absolutely dismayed at the light pollution at my location - considering it was completely cloudless I struggled with the naked eye to see anything below about 30-40 deg, just an orange glow.

Still managed to get a half decent view of a few binaries and larger nebula and clusters, plus managed to resolve Mars to a decent sized disc.

Looks like I'll be travelling with the scope to get some darker skies, therefore it seems 'portability' will be a big deciding factor when I finally make my own purchase!

[Sam]

You've probably just done the best thing for deciding what to buy and that's borrowing a scope and using it to see exactly what what can be achieved. It's a shame the light pollution is so bad at your place - you can get LP filters that will help a bit.

Sam