Im wondering what would be a good starting telescope?

[Smee]

Hello friends. Im new here. I was after a little advice regarding a decent starting point for a telescope for my son. It is his birthday soon and he seems interested in getting into stargazing. he is autistic, and knowing him....it could well be something he really gets into, which would please me.

Anyhow, i was wondering if anyone could help me...by telling me if the following telescope would be a good starting point? Any help would be appreciated.

So, here is the telescope i was planning getting him.

http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/products/skywatcher/startravel-80-az-3-90044/show.html

[swag72]

Hi and welcome to SGL - I would recommend staying away from Jessops and the like and buying from an astro retailer, such as FLO. They have a section for beginner telescopes here http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes.html

These scopes have been put there by SGL users and recommendations, so you know that they will be good.

[Ags]

I have an ST80. It is OK for the brighter star clusters and the moon but you will see very little detail on planets.

Also, I think the mount the scope is on is fiddly to use and wobbly.

How about this?

http://www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_info.php/info/p2705_Skywatcher-Heritage-130P-FlexTube-Dobson---6years--.html

[Alien 13]

Hi and welcome to to SGL the scope you linked to is not bad but this version has slightly better optics for lunar and planetary viewing http://www.firstlightoptics.com/evostar/skywatcher-evostar-90-az3.html.

The link to the SGL recomended starter scopes posted by Sara is well worth a look.

Alan

[ronin]

First scope is never an easy decision.

I would tend to avoid Jessops, they are not know to specialise in the area of scopes.

The other perhaps odd thing I see is that very few of the astro retailers appear to have the ST80 on the AZ3 mount.

The scope is easy to use and has a wide view, so locating items will be, or should be easy. The drawback is that you will not get much magnification out of it to show deatil. By this I mean Jupiters bands or Saturns rings.

There is a slightly bigger scope on the same mount from Rother Valley Optics, the Evostar 90, it is also £20 less.

It would be a better overall scope. As someone else said the mount will not be all that solid, but you are starting out. So that is the compromise.

The Evostar 90 will show Jupiter's bands and if you dropped a 7m or 8mm eyeopiece in should be good for Saturn.

RVO

That is the one I would look at, but as said the first scope is never obvious and everyone will have a opinion.

For retailers look up FLO, Green-Witch, Sherwood Photographic (yes they are astro), Rother Valley, 365 Astronomy, Astronomica, Opticstar, Harrison Telescopes, Altair Astro. That should keep you occupied. :grin:

[houston]

Skywatcher evostar 90mm may be a better choice for around the same price.

[itmo]

How autistic? If he is able to cope with interesting devices and technology I would even go for either an 8" dobson or even a 6-8" scope on an equatorial mount. This is a very difficult question to answer since autistic people have their limitations/differences in the sensory side. I would maybe start with decent binoculars. Also not knowing his age this is a very difficult question. My (relatively normal, recovered-epileptic) son had his difficulties. He was quite unable to get the idea of how to look into something optical until about age 5. Since I am not an MD and since autistic people have (AFAIK) differences in the sensory side, I have no idea what is your son's ability in this. 

[Smee]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I only picked that telescope as i thought it looked the part lol. Im now thinking that the Skywatcher Evostar 90 might be a good bet...after reading your replies. Plus it gets bigged up by The Sky At Night Team....so that would be good. That is unless an even better telescope for around the same price could be found. Im really relying on outside help with picking a decent telescope for my son.

He is keen on looking at the mooon.....and i guess we would both be thrilled if we could see the rings round planets etc too. I really dont know much about the subject, despite being fascinated by the whole stargazing scene (i watch loads of tv progs about the universe etc lol)

Star Forming...in answer to your questions...my son is 11 and he is pretty good with technology. he is as bright as a button and not afraid to try things out.

[petergc]

Hello welcome. Defo stay away from Jessops as Swag72 suggested. I made that mistake bought a reflector in the sale and ended up taking back the scope the very next morning. I then joined here and ended up buying a Skywatcher Evostar120 refractor from FLO. :-)

[AlexB67]

Hello welcome to SGL. What sort of budget would be willing to stretch to ? .  Do you and your son  have an interest in deep sky astronomy, the ability to view deep sky objects and want an all-round performer for planets too I would consider the Dobsonian range of telescopes.

The 6 inch Dobsonian is also in your reach for another 50 pounds, so not that far away.  You may have a good reason of opting to buy what you have selected because of the mount for example, but you are paying quite a bit for that.  If deep sky astronomy is on you list of likes, in this price range I would personally opt for the most light grasp you can get. The Dobsonian mount is very easy to use. The heritage already linked at a similar price has a lot more light grasp too.

It may be worth reading around the pros and cons of each scope type, Dobsonian reflector versus refractor in this price range and see what you think is best for you and your son.

Best of luck with the buying 

[bomberbaz]

I have the evorstar 90 and its a great little scope as a starter. However there is a heck of a good arguement forva dobsonian 150p. More aperture, probably the easier to use arguably.

But before you shell out your pennies, are there no local astronomy clubs near to u, try b4 you buy would b my advice, my local centre is always keen to help out with advice for newbs, although based upon limited info, the 2 above sound good options.

Steve

[Dooshka]

Hello Smee

I have Aspergers Syndrome and I find astronomy immensely calming and therapeutic. I strongly believe that star-watching can benefit many people on the autism spectrum.

As regards a new scope, check out the Teleskop Service Rich Field Telescope RFT905 currently costing 135 Euros. I have just bought one and am VERY impressed with it. I will be completing my first light review of it in Stargazers Lounge in the next couple of days, See the TS Optics 90/500 Refractor - Bargain? discussion on this forum.

[Smee]

I went for the Evostar 90 AZ3. its all set up now and just waiting for it to get dark. Got this really good looking app on my phone. Wherever i point the phone in the sky will show me what stars and planets are in that area....so that will be real handy, as neither myself or my son have a clue about stargazing lol

looking forward to getting a look

[Smee]

Are there any handy tips i might need to know before setting off out with the telescope? PS...i know not to look at the sun lol

I have 3 boxes left. of which i have hopefully provided a pic that you can see. im guessing these are just eyepeices?

[bomberbaz]

They provided a 45 degree diagonal, you will be needing a 90 degree one otherwise its going to b very hard viewing objects high in the sky. The eyepieces should b fine, I really like the 25mm, its a little cracker imo

[clarkent]

I would second bomberbaz's advice to try a local astro-society to glean knowledge and advice at first hand.

Many arrange local star parties a number of times a year and there is no better intro than viewing thru various scopes and talking to fellow enthusiasts.

Not sure what app you have, but also do try Stellarium; it's a great stellar planetarium. You can have a mobile version on your phone and also a free version for the PC.

Good luck with the new scope and clear skies.

[Smee]

They provided a 45 degree diagonal, you will be needing a 90 degree one otherwise its going to b very hard viewing objects high in the sky. The eyepieces should b fine, I really like the 25mm, its a little cracker imo

What does the 45 degree diagonal do? And any idea how much a 90 degree one might cost? is it worth having. I cant stress how little about this stargazing i know lol

[clarkent]

Hi Smee

The diagonals or prisms just shift the your viewing point to a more convenient angle.  

You put them in at the eyepiece end of the scope with the EP and then instead of having to look from the end of the scope up the scope axis, which can be difficult if the scope is pointing high up into the sky, you can look at 45deg or right-angles to the scope.  

Just do a google image search for refractors with diagonals and you'll see plenty of pictures how they fit and work.

[happy-kat]

If your phone is android there is an app called sky eye that you can use to help locate stuff works along the lines of sticking it on the telescope then it works like a push to find the object.

[Smee]

Hello again people. I have a problem.....and its more than likely that im doing something wrong. I tried putting the eyepices things in, but i cant see ANYTHING through the telescope. I had a wee look thro the wee finder thing (excuse my bad terminology) and i saw loads of stars. I tried the 10mm adapter and the super wide one straight in to the eyepiece, couldnt see anything, so i tried fitting the 45 degree prism thing, then putting in the 10 mm adapter thing and still couldnt see a thing thro it. Please can anyone help.....i really dont know if something is broken or what

[John]

The first thing you need to do is to make sure the finder scope is pointing exactly where the main scope is pointing. This is much easier to do in the daylight when you can find a distant object (ie: a mile or more off) such as a chimney or similar with the main scope (use the 25mm eyepiece in the 45 degree diagonal) then adjust the finder scope so that the same object is right on the cross hairs of the finder. The instructions should tell you how to adjust the tilt of the finder scope in it's bracket to make it line up with the main scope view.

Once you have done this you can be confident that what ever you get on the cross hairs of your finder scope in future will at least be somewhere in the field of view of the 25mm eyepiece. 

When under the stars use the 25mm in the 45 diagonal again as it gives the lowest magnification which will make things easier as you get used to the way the scope moves and focuses. You focus the scope by turning the small wheels on either side of the focus which moves the eyepiece and diagonal in and out.  A star at sharp focus will look like a tiny point of light. If you see a disk of light then it's not in focus. Putting the 10mm eyepiece in, in place of the 25mm, will give you more magnification (90x with your scope) but stars will still look just like points of light. The Moon will look very impressive at 90x though.

If you explain to the dealer that you intend to use the scope for astronomy perhaps he would exchange your 45 degree diagonal for a 90 degree one which are much better and more comfortable for astronomy purposes.

[bomberbaz]

First thing smee stay calm, it is highly unlikely that your scope is broken. Now I know this might be an obvious question but have you taken the end cap off ?

If you did, then fine. next insert you 25 mm eyepiece into the diagonal as shown below.

Now find a bright lamp a good distance away and point the scope at it and get this into the centre of the eyepiece and keep it there. Now see if the viewfinder red dot is in the same place, if it isn't then you need to adjust the finder. You will find these one under and one on the side of the finder.

Once you have done this you are ready to find your first object. If you have software then try finding Jupiter. Its nice and bright and you will get x36 magnification with the 25mm eyepiece. This is so much easier to use than the 10mm eyepiece and this is what you should use until you get the hang of focusing.  You may just see a whitish blurred circle at first, this is the object out of focus. Remember to focus steadily using the small wheel adjuster as per the photo above.

See how you get on with this. You asked about the 45 degree versus 90 degree diagonal, see below!

You can see how when you get  to higher viewing that this would make your viewing far more comfortable to use and this might be something to look at for your scope.

[bomberbaz]

Beat me to it john, although I had pictures too

[Smee]

Thank you very very much for your replies. I havent had a chnace yet to read them properly, as im just up and getting breakfast together. I can say, that i had figured out that during the day would be a good time to try and set the mini scope up along with the main scope.

I will admit.....the end cap ALMOST did catch me out....but i did eventually find there was one in there lol

Once ive had breakfast etc, and settled the wee man into the day, i will have a proper read of the replies and give setting up the Telescope a go and let you know how i get on. Thanx again, your help is really appreciated.

[Smee]

****UPDATE**** I did as you all advised.....and i have it set up. problem here is, im in a built up area (mins from city centre).......so im surrounded by buildings........so the farthest away thing i had to focus on, to enable to set it up, was only a few hundered meters from me. Will that be ok? One thing i noticed is that the mini scope isnt that stable......i tried to focus it so it lines up with what was in the centre of the telescope....which was fine.....but when i went back to it...it had shifted again