first question :)

[mashedpotatomountain]

ok a big old hello to all! guess i'm probably everybody's worst nightmare, a long-time watcher who just decided to speak up

i've tried to give a bit about myself in the welcome section, so will be a bit more specific here.

so…i've read a lot of relevant posts which have been a great help so far, but i could still do with some more specific advice - apologies for the same old questions guys but here's what i have:

1. i am interested in observing, not imaging

2. i have good dark skies

3. i'd like to see as much as possible of course, but mostly DSOs i guess

3. after a fair bit of research, i'm almost settled on what i need in terms of scope - but could do with some expert opinion to help decide between skywatcher explorer 200P, skyliner 250PX, or 250PX flextube.

so, i'm only really interested in observing at this point, and don't feel the need for GOTO. the bigger dobs should be the obvious choice, point & shoot right? but then the EQ mount seems like a better bet even for manual tracking? then, if bigger really is better…does it make more sense to buy the solid 250PX or the flextube?

not sure but i think i've read somewhere that the flextube isn't just more portable but might come with slightly better lenses? could be wrong, this is a bit of a grey area for me, am starting to think that stock lenses make no odds as i'll be buying more soon anyway?

storage & portability aren't an issue, and i realise i'll be spending £100s on EPs soon anyway, but might the 250PX flextube give me best value for money at the outset?

perhaps i'm jumping the gun a bit for a beginner and shouldn't be worrying about the quality of stock EPs etc, but i'm sure you've all been there

any advice is MOST welcome.

thanks

rich

[Astro Imp]

Hi Rich,

You might it useful to read this thread:- http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/202502-large-dob-advice-please/

HTH but if there are still questions not answered then ask away, there are plenty of DOB owners here who have a wealth of experience.

[mashedpotatomountain]

Hi Rich,

You might it useful to read this thread:- http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/202502-large-dob-advice-please/

HTH but if there are still questions not answered then ask away, there are plenty of DOB owners here who have a wealth of experience.

hey thanks so much that was a really helpful thread, answered a lot of questions!

see you around. rich

[John]

Hi and welcome to the forum !

With your interests I'd say the 250PX dobsonian would be ideal and I think the solid tube one. The Flextubes don't weigh any less and you would need a light shroud to go around the poles to keep stray light off the mirror anyway. Optically they are exactly the same and I think they both come with the same stock eyepieces.

If you went for an equatorially mounted scope you will need to spend more and the scope will be a somewhat larger and less portable affair. Driven tracking is not a major issue for deep sky objects and many of us manage without it for higher power planetary / lunar viewing too !

[Charic]

mashedpotatomountain........Hi, welcome to SGL. From your immediate choices, And knowing what I know now, and someone stole my telescope, I`d probably pick the Skyliner 250PX. I`m loving my 200P. I would not recommend the Explorer as I don't like EQ mounts, for general observation. I don't like the idea of flex tubes. I know they can mean easier storage, but for me, why move my secondary mirror every Day? The 200P is also a great value  telescope for your needs about £280, but the 250PX offers more, in respect to light capture and what you can see. You mention dark skies , so that's good to start with. Greater Aperture is key, but also gathers more light, including light pollution. My recommendation is to start looking at the 8" Skyliner on the Dobsonian mount, then work from there, but if affordable the 250PX would be nice.

Edit* Spelling?

[itmo]

difference between solid and flextube is that flextubes are easier to carry out of the door. for 10 and 12" scopes , the solid tube is so large that it is difficult to fit it through a door without bumping into something. Also the flextubes have some drawbacks. If you are not careful in tightening the tube screws AND the ball bearing knobs, the collimation will move a bit. Sort of like flexing when you move the telescope in altitude. This will cause the collimation to change and will give you weird effects. Once you know of this , then it is not a problem. Collimation for flextubes pretty much HAS to be checked each time you extend the tube. It will be quite close or it might not even require actual collimation  but still it is good to check. 

[Schorhr]

Hello Rich,

how dark is the sky at your location exactly? (Bortle Scale or Mag according to visible usra minor stars... Is the milky way & andromeda visible)?

[Tinker1947]

I would go for a GoTo Dob, not to use the GoTo to find DSO's that's half the fun of star hopping using a Telrad ect. but when you have found the DSO the GoTo will track the object while you answer the phone make a cuppa tea or any thing else that might drag you away from viewing and nudging....

[mashedpotatomountain]

Hi and welcome to the forum !

With your interests I'd say the 250PX dobsonian would be ideal and I think the solid tube one. The Flextubes don't weigh any less and you would need a light shroud to go around the poles to keep stray light off the mirror anyway. Optically they are exactly the same and I think they both come with the same stock eyepieces.

If you went for an equatorially mounted scope you will need to spend more and the scope will be a somewhat larger and less portable affair. Driven tracking is not a major issue for deep sky objects and many of us manage without it for higher power planetary / lunar viewing too !

hey john, thanks for the welcome and the advice too. i didn't expect so many useful replies so soon!

i was pretty much decided on the solid tube myself until i read somewhere that the flextube perhaps had better EPs, so it's good to get some real opinions here rather than random google info

i'm really not worried about portability so it was just a case of finding out if there are any other benefits.

thanks again.

rich

good to hear from you. rich

[Schorhr]

I would go for a GoTo Dob, not to use the GoTo to find DSO's that's half the fun of star hopping using a Telrad ect. but when you have found the DSO the GoTo will track the object while you answer the phone make a cuppa tea or any thing else that might drag you away from viewing and nudging....

...or a EQ platform :-)

[mashedpotatomountain]

difference between solid and flextube is that flextubes are easier to carry out of the door. for 10 and 12" scopes , the solid tube is so large that it is difficult to fit it through a door without bumping into something. Also the flextubes have some drawbacks. If you are not careful in tightening the tube screws AND the ball bearing knobs, the collimation will move a bit. Sort of like flexing when you move the telescope in altitude. This will cause the collimation to change and will give you weird effects. Once you know of this , then it is not a problem. Collimation for flextubes pretty much HAS to be checked each time you extend the tube. It will be quite close or it might not even require actual collimation  but still it is good to check. 

hi, that's great advice, thanks a lot. storage & transport isn't an issue for me so perhaps the flex tube doesn't offer anything else and i don't really need it

thanks again

[Charic]

..........most telescopes arrive with a basic set of two lenses. These can always be bettered. Depending on your requirements and budget.

[mashedpotatomountain]

Hello Rich,

how dark is the sky at your location exactly? (Bortle Scale or Mag according to visible usra minor stars... Is the milky way & andromeda visible)?

hey schorhr,

i couldn't say exactly where on the scale i would be, but i live 10km+ from any town/built up area, in a house on its own in the countryside, so the conditions when clear are very good, to my eyes anyway - yes both the milky way and andromeda galaxy are easily viewable with the naked eye.

of course there are much better conditions out there, but it sure looks good to me anyway

rich

[mashedpotatomountain]

mashedpotatomountain........Hi, welcome to SGL. From your immediate choices, And knowing what I know now, and someone stole my telescope, I`d probably pick the Skyliner 250PX. I`m loving my 200P. I would not recommend the Explorer as I don't like EQ mounts, for general observation. I don't like the idea of flex tubes. I know they can mean easier storage, but for me, why move my secondary mirror every Day? The 200P is also a great value  telescope for your needs about £280, but the 250PX offers more, in respect to light capture and what you can see. You mention dark skies , so that's good to start with. Greater Aperture is key, but also gathers more light, including light pollution. My recommendation is to start looking at the 8" Skyliner on the Dobsonian mount, then work from there, but if affordable the 250PX would be nice.

Edit* Spelling?

hi charic, that's perfect advice thanks so much. the more i read the more i'm thinking it'll be the solid 250PX so thanks for the help.

rich

[mashedpotatomountain]

I would go for a GoTo Dob, not to use the GoTo to find DSO's that's half the fun of star hopping using a Telrad ect. but when you have found the DSO the GoTo will track the object while you answer the phone make a cuppa tea or any thing else that might drag you away from viewing and nudging....

i totally know where you're coming from, keeping stuff in view is why i was considering an EQ. i could get a 10" goto dob, money isn't the issue - but as a beginner maybe i owe it to myself to do a bit of manual work!

for now

cheers.

rich

[Charic]

I'm a great advocate for ease of use. GoTo's require programming and set-up, every time. EQ's require to be rock steady for photography. Motor drives require power from battery or mains. With a Dobsonian, I just lift it into place, and its ready to go ( and after a little time for cooling - warm house to Winter garden, allowing the  the optics to cool,  the Higher magnifications are more achievable, but wide views possible straight away) cooling required with  most scopes. I honestly cringe when I hear folk having  their problems with alignment and programming set-ups, instead of enjoying the views. I have an EQ mount, un-driven.  I don't like it.  A Dobsonian mount  actually takes up less floor space than my EQ tripod?

[cantab]

I'd try and see the 10 inch Dob "in the flesh" before buying. From what I've heard there's a surprising weight and bulk increase over the 8 inch.

[mashedpotatomountain]

I'd try and see the 10 inch Dob "in the flesh" before buying. From what I've heard there's a surprising weight and bulk increase over the 8 inch.

hey thanks, yeah i've heard many a newcomer being advised to check things out in the flesh before buying. i can totally see it makes good sense - but the only problem i have is, i'm not overloaded with good sense

i've got kid-in-a-candystore syndrome at the moment, with a finger hovering over the 'buy' button for ages and i'm not sure i can hold it back long enough to go check things out!

i'm pretty sure i can cope with size/weight issues…BUT. if i do end up with a 10" scope that breaks my foot or something, i promise to report it so you can all say 'i told you so!'

thanks again.

rich

[mashedpotatomountain]

I'm a great advocate for ease of use. GoTo's require programming and set-up, every time. EQ's require to be rock steady for photography. Motor drives require power from battery or mains. With a Dobsonian, I just lift it into place, and its ready to go ( and after a little time for cooling - warm house to Winter garden, allowing the  the optics to cool,  the Higher magnifications are more achievable, but wide views possible straight away) cooling required with  most scopes. I honestly cringe when I hear folk having  their problems with alignment and programming set-ups, instead of enjoying the views. I have an EQ mount, un-driven.  I don't like it.  A Dobsonian mount  actually takes up less floor space than my EQ tripod?

yet more sound advice charic, i'm with you on this - as mentioned i'm really not interested in imaging as such - if people want to see what i'm seeing they can come take a look or get their own scope! (just kidding)

so of course what you're saying makes perfect sense. to be honest i only latched onto the idea of EQ at first because the SW200P/EQ3 was the first setup i came across that was getting great reviews…i've since come round to the dobsonian thing and pretty sure that's where i'll end up.

thanks again. rich

[Charic]

I weighed my 200P and observed 26.64KG (OTA 11 Base 15.64) '365' are saying their 250PX is Net 28KG, but they measured and estimate nearer to 25KG?

At most  about 2Kg between telescopes. The OTA has to be wider, and possibly the mount to accommodate the extra width, but I think the actual base is still about 52cm wide (unless someone can correct that)

[mashedpotatomountain]

I weighed my 200P and observed 26.64KG (OTA 11 Base 15.64) '365' are saying their 250PX is Net 28KG, but they measured and estimate nearer to 25KG?

At most  about 2Kg between telescopes. The OTA has to be wider, and possibly the mount to accommodate the extra width, but I think the actual base is still about 52cm wide (unless someone can correct that)

well, i could do with a good workout!

all this sitting around chatting when i could be carrying a big lump of a scope around outside in the dark...

thanks for the info, it's all being taken on board

rich