First scope need advice.

[Apone]

Hi i'm buying a telescope for the first time and would really appreciate some advice about the scope that i'm thinking of getting.

After viewing various forums and looking into what most people suggest as a best first time scope for planet and some dso viewing i've set my eyes on the skywatcher skyliner 250px dobsonian. Only there's a few things I was hoping someone with more knowledge could help clear up for me.

First of all just confirming that this would be a good investment as a first time buy for my intrests as stated before, basically something that will give me a few years of pleasure of looking at pretty lights in the sky. I may be over complicating things here so forgive me if i'm way ahead of myself but i've seen a few posts before about the lenses that come with the scope that they're "Not very good" Is this not very good in terms of they're a pretty much MUST replace, or could I get away with starting with them and upgrading later as necessary?

The other thing I was reading about is that it may be a good investment to get a laser collimator to make life slightly easier, what's your opinions on this?

To round it off any and all advice would be greatly appreciated if you have the time and would be nice if you could let me know if there's anything else I should be thinking of getting to get the most out of the new scope or if I have made a mistake in my choice.

Thanks in advance!

[Uplooker]

You seem to have covered most points correctly. You should really familiarise yourself with quite how large a tube / scope the 250PX is. It is not small, and you need to consider if you are able to store or transport the tube to your chosen viewing location. try and see one in the flesh at an astronomy shop. You should also budget for a red light torch and star atlas.

Ian

[AndyWB]

I'd advise a Cheshire collimator over a laser collimator. It can do things like help position the secondary, and using at night just needs a small torch.

Uplooker's advice is good - the 10" is pretty big, it's worth having a look at.

Otherwise, about the eyepieces - they'll work okay, but there are better. I'd try them and see at first, then consider what you want to do.

[ronin]

Is there the vaguest idea of getting an nice big 10" scope and eventually getting images by attaching a DSLR ?

By vague I mean anything above 0 ?

If so it is the wrong scope.

I ask this as it is more then a little common for someone to get a nice large dobsonian, tell everyone they do not want to image, then within 6 mionths ask how they can attach a DSLR and get images of M42 and M31 from it.

[T-J]

Hi Apone,

Seems like a nice telescope, and you seem to have thought about most things. I agree with Uplooker and AndyWB in that you should have a look at it firsthand, if possible, considering the size of it. I figure you are quite interested into stargazing, since you're opting for a scope like that. Kind of obvious, right, since you're here. Nevertheless, I thought I'd ask some questions for you to ponder, before buying any telescope, just to be sure that it's right for you.

Have you thought of this a longer time?

Have you been interested for a long time, or is this a new interest to you?

How much do you think you will be able to use it, given work, family and other activities?

Most people getting into stargazing, sooner or later get "Aperture fever" and wants a larger telescope in order to be able to see even more details/dimmer objects and so on.

How much space do you have to store it when not in use, and where?

Whast's my budget, and do I have meney left to spend on eyepieces etc, if I get his telescope?

Now, you don't have to answer these questions here, if you don't want to. I just thought I would pose these to you, in case you had overlooked something, which is easily done when desiring to get a good telescope and start scanning the skiesYou may already have thought thesethrough, for all I know, and if so, great.

As I understand, this 250px is still rather easily moved, but even so, I would suggest starting with a smaller one, in order to get into "the trade" so to say, and see how it works out for you. You may have a great telescope, but it'll be of no use, if you find that it's cumbersome to carry out, set up and afterwards take apart and go inside again. Of course, this is all up to you, and only you can decide what works for you. Just pointing out some things that is easily forgotten.

Good luck with whatever telescope you decide to get, and welcome to the wonderful World of stargazing.

[Apone]

Wow thanks for all the fast replies!

@uplooker - I have a star atlas ready and yeah I have an idea of how big the scope is and i'm lucky enough to have quite a lot of storage space and a large garden with a good view and very little light interverence. Even so it's good advice and i'll definitely look into finding somewhere that's local to me where I can see it first hand. Also thanks for the advice about the torch - something that seems obvious that I overlooked.

@Andy - Thanks i'll take a look at a cheshire and stick to the eyepieces unless there's a problem.

@ronin - Thanks for pointing that out! Nice to know for future but no I have no intrest in photography only at viewing.

@Nebula - Thanks for pointing all this out! Answers -

Something I was intrested in as a child, I had a very basic telescope but nothing serious. My uncle recently gave me a pair of his visionary 7x50 Binoculars and it resparked the intrest and now I am in a new job I have a lot of free time avalible to me so I decided to take the plunge. In terms of storage I have a back conservatory which is spacious and secure to store it in. My budget is £500 - £550 maybe a bit more at a stretch so looking at the prices ect enough for the scope and a few extras.

[Herbig]

Sounds like you have thought this through fairly well but before you take the plunge definitely go and have a look at one. If you can go to a local Astro group and have a go with one or something similar, you will also probably get to use some better EPs so you'll have an idea what you may need to purchase later.

[Apone]

@Herbig - Just found somewhere that sells one just down the road from me so will be going to check it out next week glad you guys pointed this out early I will have a poke about and see if there is any local groups in my area thanks for that, no doubt the people at the shop i'm planning to visit will have some idea if there are any around my local area.

[Owmuchonomy]

Agree with all the above. Just another point to factor in is how dark your skies are. It certainly is a scope with big potential but you will lose a lot of that unless you have or can get to a dark site.

[T-J]

You're welcome, Apone. Happy to be able to help you. Let us know how it goes. If you liked the dark skies with stars Before, you will love them even more when you get to know them even better.

Oh, and a couple of more things, I didn't Think of when posting earlier:

When you get yournew telescope, whatever you decide on, learn to set it up and maneuver it Indoors, or at least in Daylight first, before taking it outdoors in the dark beneath the starry sky. When you have learned how to set it up, try in darkness, still Indoors.You will save yourself a lot of time and trouble doing this. This is especially true if you have many parts to keep track of which may be tricky before you get the hang of it.

Secondly, get a star map or planisphere and a few books on the topic may also be helpful. A good one is "Turn Left at Orion" which describes stars and constellation in a really good way, and also walk you through how objects look in various telescopes and how different stars and other objects look depending on what instrument you are using. A large book, but packed with useful info. If you want, I can give you some more titles tomorrow. Always good with some reference material, alongside Stellarium. There are also some free apps, in case you have a smartphone.

Clear skies!

[Apone]

@owmuchonomy - Good point! i'm lucky enough to live in a very clear area with nice visible sky so hopefully all is good to go

@T-J - Thanks matey i'll be sure to stick around the forum it seems like a nice home for sky watchers I will spend some time toying around with it indoors for sure and thanks for the recommendation on the books and apps and yes as much info on books ect you can give me the better! I will have a browse on my kindle tomarrow and see if I can get some that you recommend. Oh and sorry for getting your name wrong the first time I was in abit of a rush and only noticed the rank system title lol

[dpc]

I bought the Skywatcher 250 dob about 6 months ago and am happy with it. I've heard about the eyepieces not being the best but until I have a lot more viewing experience I'm not sure what I would replace them with. I'm still finding my way around the sky but know so much more than I did a few months ago. The scope is easily manageable as the base is separate but I have kept a couple of the polystyrene bits so that I can put them on the garden table and support the scope on them whilst I put the base in the required location. 

Hoping to find Uranus tonight before the moon comes up and then it will probably be on to Andromeda if it stays clear.

Hope that this helps.

[T-J]

I was just about to post my message when something went wrong and I lost it. So here comes the abbreviated version of it, as I have to be going really soon, but thought you may want to start looking fr the books and see what you think for yourself. If there is anything you wonder, just ask.

The books I ave in English, are:

Guy Consolmagno and Dan M. Davis: Turn Left at Orion.  A large book, but a gem and rich in great information. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundreds-Telescope/dp/0521153972/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1415573685&sr=1-1&keywords=turn+left+at+orion

Roger W. Sinnott: Sky & Telescope's Pocket Sky Atlas. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sky-Telescopes-Pocket-Atlas/dp/1931559317 Has star maps in colour which I find good when searching for objects or stars. Has 80 star charts and clear labels visible in dim light. IT covers all of the sky, and although it doesn't fit an ordinary pocket it is eas to bring along when you head out. 30000 stars and 1500 deep-sky objects included. Spiralbound with detailed maps. Shows both constellation bounderies and stick figures to help you find your way. Really good book.

Erich Karkoschka: The Observer's Sky Atlas (with 50 star charts covering the entire sky) http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Observers-Sky-Atlas-Karkoschka/dp/B00E6TQ06O/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1415574024&sr=8-4&keywords=karkoschka   Another great book. This may be geared more to those who watch the sky with unaided eyes, binoculars or small telescopes, but I think it should be very useful to you too, even if you're planning to get a larger one. It includes a short introduction into observing the sky and great description of the star charts and tables.  Charts contains all stars to the 6th magnitude and enlarged sections of charts showing stars to the 9th magnitude highlighting 250 nebulae Galaxies and stellar clusters.

The edition I have is the third, and this includes additional pages with photos of all 250 nebulae covered, an updated calender for the next 20 years (Should be 14 years now), double star ephemerides  from 2005-2020 and predictions for dates and times ofvariable star minima/maxima.

Regarding Sky & Telescope they have a great website too. Check it out. It is full of interesting information. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/

I linked to UK Amazon site, since I guessed you live there somewhere. If not, just look at the U.S. site or one of the other ones available. Just ask if there is anything you wonder about.

About getting my nick wrong, don't worry. Easily done, especially as you're new to the forum and "Nebula" is actually a fitting name in a stargazers' forum.

Clear skies!