So I bought a Telescope!

[szymon]

Well, OK - I bought a cheap telescope.  Specifically a Celestron Nexstar 80GTL Computerised Telescope.  According to here:

http://www.nexstarsite.com/Book/Updates/N80GTL.htm

this is a 900mm achromatic refractor with an 80mm objective lens, f/11, on a Goto mount.  I think for £80, picking up tomorrow, it'll be a reasonable starter scope, hopefully helping my son and I easily find and view the moon and planets.

We're off on holiday next week, driving down to Northern Italy, and the place we're staying is far from any cities; I'm hoping it'll be dark skies and I'll have time to spend with him looking at the skies :-)

Yaay?  Or have I done a bad thing?

-simon

[ronin]

Odd scope for that mount.

Just seems to long for it. I would expect that at this time you could not ask it to goto Alberio in Cygnus or the double-double in Lyra. Both simply being too high in the sky for the scope to get to before it hits the mount somewhere.

Equally trying to peer straight up is not a great idea but at least a Mak/SCT tends to allow it.

[Charic]

szymon.....Hi. Only you can tell if you've done a bad thing after you have used it and tried it out for a while.  Sometimes its a little too late to say I bought this, what have i done, Only to be told, you could have done better. I`m not saying you have done bad or good. What you have done though is get involved, thats the main thing. And your Sons interest will be heightened by having some optics.  Have you got any binoculars too. If you have take them too. You can  both look at the stars, searching with binoculars and getting closer with the telescope.

You will really need to study the set-up and alignment  procedures, and how GoTo works to get the best out of your telescope. Try and master that before you leave for your holiday.

My first telescope was a Celestron  127EQ   I paid similar prices to you but also received about £40 worth of decent books in the deal.  In my case, the telescope was inferior, and I've not regretted the final choices I've made since. Wish you well on your holiday.

[beamer3.6m]

It will be a great starter scope. Hope you enjoy your hols.

[szymon]

Seems odd that they'd sell it if the scope was too long for the mount.  We'll see :-).  I kind of can't wait until tomorrow!  Hope it's a clear evening.

Longer term I'm hoping to buy a large-ish Dobsonian telescope for real deep sky viewing.  Actually a friend is going to loan me an 8" reflector when we get back from holiday to see how we get on with it.  My thinking is, however, that I can keep this scope and maybe use it as a beginning for astro-photography (where I need a mount that can track anyway), and if the scope itself isn't very good perhaps I can attach my DSLR directly to the mount ;-)

We have a set of 10x50 binoculars, I actually ordered some 15x70 Celestrons today too and will probably send the 10x50's back.  While I can handhold the 10x50's just fine, they're a little too heavy for my son, and if we're going to need to use the tripod for them anyway I figured I may as well get some bigger ones!  I have a good quality photographic tripod from Redsnapper already.

I don't suppose anyone out there has actually used an 80GTL?  There are precious few reviews out there that I can find!

-simon

[lensman57]

Well, OK - I bought a cheap telescope.  Specifically a Celestron Nexstar 80GTL Computerised Telescope.  According to here:

http://www.nexstarsite.com/Book/Updates/N80GTL.htm

this is a 900mm achromatic refractor with an 80mm objective lens, f/11, on a Goto mount.  I think for £80, picking up tomorrow, it'll be a reasonable starter scope, hopefully helping my son and I easily find and view the moon and planets.

We're off on holiday next week, driving down to Northern Italy, and the place we're staying is far from any cities; I'm hoping it'll be dark skies and I'll have time to spend with him looking at the skies :-)

Yaay?  Or have I done a bad thing?

-simon

Congratulations Simon,

I am not familiar with that particular scope but the specifications shout Lunar and planetary. The mount is the one that is normally sold with the 90~ 127 Mak varieties. It is an AltAz mount suitable for tracking the planets and the moon and for short term observing of the brighter of the DSOs. At the paid price it is a bargain.

Regards,

A.G

[John]

I don't suppose anyone out there has actually used an 80GTL?  There are precious few reviews out there that I can find!

I've not used one personally but this website is an excellent source of information on all Nexstar scopes. This is the section that includes your scope:

http://www.nexstarsite.com/OddsEndsGT.htm

It looks as if there is a setting to stop the scope contacting the tripod so there maybe some restrictions on how close to the zenith you can observe.

When long tubed refractors are pointing towards the zenith you are often on your knees to get to the eyepiece so maybe it's a blessing in disguise !

[Charic]

Your Son would do very well with a pair of 7x50's. They have a larger exit pupil, and will offer fairly bright, but more to the point, wider views for taking in the whole of some of the constellations. As you go bigger, the images get smaller / tighter and un-steadier with binoculars. Also, almost impossible to handhold and steady anything over 10x50.  I'm using the Helios 8x40 nature sport with an 8° field of view, with a 5mm exit pupil. Great value if still available from our sponsor , flo!

[szymon]

Charic -- I did wonder whether it was worth getting something smaller, for example the 8x40's that FLO have on sale at the moment.  I'll see when the 15x70s come today, the other half already thinks I'm spending too much ;-)

[szymon]

Well, I just picked it up -- and it's a goodun!  Turns out that it is one of the last 80GTL's to be made, and the controller is the newer kind -- so it has SkyAlign, Solar System Align, Auto Two Star Align, One Star Align, Identify and Constellation Tour, and allows use of NexRemote via the RS-232 port on the bottom of the hand control.  Result!

It's cloud tonight and few stars are around, but I used the Solar System align to align on the moon, and then used the Identify functionality to point at a star (turns out I got within 1 arc seconds of it) and find out its name.  Superb!  I think that Identify is going to be the most important use of the Goto.  No idea what a star is called?  Point the scope at it and ask the mount, it'll centre on the star and tell you its name :-)

By the way, is it normal for clouds to appear *because* you buy new astronomy equipment?  That's certainly what it feels like :-)

-simon

[timwetherell]

Oh yes Simon, it's always cloudy when you get a new scope!

When I build my biggest scope it broke 5 years of drought in Australia. Rained solidly for about a year. I should have got a medal from the government or something. The farmers could at least have bought be some eyepieces in gratitude

all the best

Tim

[szymon]

I've ordered a Canon T-Ring adaptor to attach a DSLR (I have an EOS 50D and an EOS 6D), and have bought a used Skywatcher 2x Deluxe achromatic Barlow with built in T-Ring, so hopefully I'll get to try my hand at astro-photography too.  Now all I need are clear skies - it's so frustrating looking up at the clouds!! :-)

[Jim Steele]

Well, I just picked it up -- and it's a goodun! Turns out that it is one of the last 80GTL's to be made, and the controller is the newer kind -- so it has SkyAlign, Solar System Align, Auto Two Star Align, One Star Align, Identify and Constellation Tour, and allows use of NexRemote via the RS-232 port on the bottom of the hand control. Result!

Sounds like a good piece of kit - gets you looking skyward that's the main thing, next after the cloud follows appeture fever, then more cloud

Good luck and clear skies

[Charic]

Well, I just picked it up -- and it's a goodun!  Turns out that it is one of the last 80GTL's to be made, and the controller is the newer kind -- so it has SkyAlign, Solar System Align, Auto Two Star Align, One Star Align, Identify and Constellation Tour, and allows use of NexRemote via the RS-232 port on the bottom of the hand control.  Result!

It's cloud tonight and few stars are around, but I used the Solar System align to align on the moon, and then used the Identify functionality to point at a star (turns out I got within 1 arc seconds of it) and find out its name.  Superb!  I think that Identify is going to be the most important use of the Goto.  No idea what a star is called?  Point the scope at it and ask the mount, it'll centre on the star and tell you its name :-)

By the way, is it normal for clouds to appear *because* you buy new astronomy equipment?  That's certainly what it feels like :-)

-simon

ALWAYS.........Sorry you were not informed 

[timwetherell]

ALWAYS.........Sorry you were not informed 

I'm surprised that's a phenomena you've noticed in NE Scotland, how do you know which clouds are there to taunt you vs the normal blanket of clouds?

[lensman57]

Well, I just picked it up -- and it's a goodun!  Turns out that it is one of the last 80GTL's to be made, and the controller is the newer kind -- so it has SkyAlign, Solar System Align, Auto Two Star Align, One Star Align, Identify and Constellation Tour, and allows use of NexRemote via the RS-232 port on the bottom of the hand control.  Result!

It's cloud tonight and few stars are around, but I used the Solar System align to align on the moon, and then used the Identify functionality to point at a star (turns out I got within 1 arc seconds of it) and find out its name.  Superb!  I think that Identify is going to be the most important use of the Goto.  No idea what a star is called?  Point the scope at it and ask the mount, it'll centre on the star and tell you its name :-)

By the way, is it normal for clouds to appear *because* you buy new astronomy equipment?  That's certainly what it feels like :-)

-simon

Yes it is written in stone. I got my WO Star 71 APO yesterday( after 4 weeks of wait )  and since then it has been solid grey up here in Manchester, same tonight and tomorrow night.

Regards,

A.G

[Joves]

I'd say, for 80 pound, it's pretty well impossible to say you have done the wrong thing. The views you will see through that scope, combined with a GOTO mount, are easily worth more than that price, in my opinion. I'm pretty sure your son isn't likely to have any complaints about chromatic aberration either.

Well done and enjoy!

[szymon]

The goto mount now has a decent power supply, a 12v 8.6Ah motorcycle battery which fits perfectly in the tray on the tripod (and coincidentally adds some weight, making the tripod steadier).  Just waiting for a clear night and my boy and I will be taking it to a nearby hill (still in London, but at least there are clear views of the sky, in our back garden we have trees and stuff blocking and only a really good view to the north-west).

Today I put my EOS 50D with T-ring adaptor onto the back of the scope -- had to move it forward in the mount for it to balance but it seems to work.  I have a celestron deluxe 2x barlow with built in t-mount on its way to me (second hand but should arrive tomorrow), so will be able to use it with the right-angled prism (as opposed to just attaching to the end of the scope, which means that if I point up the eyepiece is pointing to the ground!).  Will try some pictures of the moon and a planet or two maybe :-)

I also have a Celestron Omni plossi 6mm eyepiece coming tomorrow, which should hopefully be a reasonable "high-power" eyepiece.  I got a 25mm and a 12mm with the scope, but they feel cheap and the 12mm is very hard to see through, the Omni has a 50 degree fov.