Getting Started With a Basic Newtonian, Advice Please !

[Spiral]

Hi, realising that I was never going to get started with equipment that costs the price of a good holiday abroad ( married lol), I found what I hope to be a half reasonable starter scope second hand (barely used), in the form of a Celastron AM 130 EQ (thats a CG 3 manual mount)

It came with only two eye pieces, 20mm & 10mm, giving only 35 & 65 times magification, and they are fairly basic in quality.

The scope has a focal length of 650mm and a ratio of f/5

I want to use the scope to see as much as possible, not just a specific object like the moon.

I have two main questions;

What eyepieces to get next ? I was toying with either a 4mm or 6.5mm plossl & a 2x Barlow, but having looked at other posts on here I am now thinking that a 4mm on a Barlow will be too high a magification to find anything.

The manufacturer says the highest usefull magification is 306x, the 4mm with a 2x Barlow comes out at 325x but when the skies are clear here they really are crystal clear, no light pollution etc, so I thought I might get away with it ? ( if I could find & track anything at that magnifation ???)

The 6.5 mm plus Barlow comes out at 200x which seems like a big step down from 325x, what would I be able to see at that magnification ?

Having read that eyesight & age comes into the equation too, I am 47 but my eyesight is still very good & I have never worn glasses.

My next quandry is about collimation; how likely is a total novice going to be able to do this without a tool ?

If I am better off buying a tool, is it best to go straight for a lazer one or are the basic ones fine (such as this http://www.firstlightoptics.com/other-collimation-tools/cheshire-collimating-eyepiece.html )

[Astro Imp]

Please be aware that Plossls have very short eye relieve at short focal lengths, meaning that you need to put your eye right up against the eyepiece.

Have you read the sticky at the head of this section:- http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/43171-eyepieces-the-very-least-you-need/

Generally you won't need to go much above 180x-200x.

[rory]

Hi spiral . I'd advise reading this.

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/43171-eyepieces-the-very-least-you-need/?view=getnewpost

Power and high magnification is not the be all and end all . Most deep sky objects will require low and medium powers .

As for collimating the telescope . It's not difficult to do and I'd say get yourself a Cheshire collimating tool , they are simple to use and do the job , some may recomend lasers but it's down to personal preference .

High power is useful on some objects. , the moon and planets for example, but even then you need to stick within the limits of the telescope you use and take conditions into account.

[ronin]

A 130mm/650mm will not give 306x.

120x should be fine, you should, with the right eyepieces, get 150x, and if the gods smile on you 180x (occasionally).

I actually doubt 180x to be honest, but if you get a 3.5mm eyepiece you can try it.

Sounds as if the marketing people have decided that 2x dia is no longer a suitable selling point so have gone for a bit more.

Problem is that on paper you could put a 5mm eyepiece into a 5x barlow and the numbers say 650x, utterly meaningless but the maths says that.

[Spiral]

Please be aware that Plossls have very short eye relieve at short focal lengths, meaning that you need to put your eye right up against the eyepiece.

Have you read the sticky at the head of this section:- http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/43171-eyepieces-the-very-least-you-need/

Generally you won't need to go much above 180x-200x.

Is there an alternative to plossls that is affordable to a chap on a budget (say £50 per ep )

Yes I read that thread and as someone in my position (total novice ) was advised to start a thread specific to their scope I thought I would do like wise as the amount of info regarding all the different scopes etc is bewildering.

Thanks.

Hi spiral . I'd advise reading this.

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/43171-eyepieces-the-very-least-you-need/?view=getnewpost

Power and high magnification is not the be all and end all . Most deep sky objects will require low and medium powers .

As for collimating the telescope . It's not difficult to do and I'd say get yourself a Cheshire collimating tool , they are simple to use and do the job , some may recomend lasers but it's down to personal preference .

High power is useful on some objects. , the moon and planets for example, but even then you need to stick within the limits of the telescope you use and take conditions into account.

Its the ex two stroke bike tuner in me that always wants to exract the absolute maximum power possible, I have seen a 5mm on ebay from a link on another thread on here that could be an ideal compromise, or maybe something around 8mm would be better ?

The chesire looks like its a must have then, cheers.

A 130mm/650mm will not give 306x.

120x should be fine, you should, with the right eyepieces, get 150x, and if the gods smile on you 180x (occasionally).

I actually doubt 180x to be honest, but if you get a 3.5mm eyepiece you can try it.

Sounds as if the marketing people have decided that 2x dia is no longer a suitable selling point so have gone for a bit more.

Problem is that on paper you could put a 5mm eyepiece into a 5x barlow and the numbers say 650x, utterly meaningless but the maths says that.

Thanks, thats the kind of experienced based knowledge I was looking for, never having had a scope before I only have the manual to go off which is scant on information and apparently big on claims :-)

[inedible_hulk]

I can highly recommend the BST eyepieces and Alan is an absolute gent. You can find his store on eBay: http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Skys-the-Limit-Astro-and-Optical/BST-Starguider-ED-/_i.html?_fsub=2568750014&_sid=53377064&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322.

I have the Skywatcher equivalent scope and have found that a 8mm, 15mm and 25mm (and a Barlow) have served me well. TBH the 8mm barlowed and unbarlowed only really see use on the moon and planets.

[rory]

yep agree with above post . the starguiders at £49 new are on your budget and are popular for good reason. 

[Schorhr]

I have the Heritage 130p, 130/650 - 6mm is nice (and fits the whole moon at 108x).

4mm HR Planetary or BST Explorer and you are on the save side regarding mirror quality.

There are also wide angle eyepieces in 6, 9, 15, 20 mm are available for around 27gbp shipped.

They won't show a sharp field to the edge at f/5 (here the hr-p. or bst-e. perform better) but still are nice, affordable wide angle eyepieces.

32mm plössl will give you a bit more field and about the max. field on 1.25" focuser, the budget variant is a 30mm plössl as they are available cheaper (13-18gbp) but require you to build a eye cup.

Collimation of such a short tube can be done by a collimation cap (focuser dust cover with hole) or diy collimation tool with a 35mm film canister - will work well.

Cheap lasers are often not aligned well and a cheshire-sight tube will cost you around 25gbp that you can save for eyepieces.

[rwilkey]

Hi Spiral, the TS ED's are good ep's and I would recommend one of these, but don't get too hung up on magnification, it is a common beginners mistake: http://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/language/de/info/p4930_TS-1-25--ED-Eyepiece-5mm---60--Flat-Field---high-contrast.html

[Redbird48oo]

I have the celetron EQ130 also and use the x-cel lx eyepieces, I love them. they have good eye relief and a good field of view. ebay they were running about 65.00 each

[Spiral]

Thanks for the input guys, I am going to think on it for a week, buying something through the post a week before Christmas might not be a good idea & we have the thickest cloud cover I have seen for years :-(  and its predicted to be like this every night for at least a week too grrrrrr.

I've narrowed it down to either an 8 or 6mm & a barlow, not sure if the 6mm would stand up to being barlowed but the air here is very very clear & no light pollution.

The hole in the film tub collimation sounds worth giving a bash, at least its free !

[rory]

Absolutely , I used a film canister with a carefully pierced hole . Did the job. Happy days .

[Schorhr]

The 6mm 66deg eyepiece (27gbp) and the HR Planetary have a barlow element at the bottom.

You can unscrew that and by increasing the distance you can effectivly increasing the magnificaion.

If you are a skilled tinkerer or know someone with a lathe or 3D printer you can create a zoom eyepiece.

The Astrozoom.de adapters do just that, they even offer the HR Planetary and 66deg as zooms.

You can even use hardware store parts to do so;

http://ringohr.de/tmp6/PipeZoom.png

Though none of the standard size parts fit a 100%, but you can use masking tape or such to make them fit better.

Some eyepiece designs work better with some barlows... Especially if you have a eyepiece with a barlow element that often results in issues. Plus the barlows usualy make dust specs on th eyepiece lenses visible, that can be a bit anoying as you shouldn't blow them off or wipe them off, so you have to wait to clean them at home...

For a stand alone eyepieces dedicated to moon and planet I would not choose less then a 4mm, it's a stunning magnification that can be used almost every day...

With a 2x barlow 6mm can work well on good condition though the (cheap) barlows increase the contrast...