More money than sense?

[Scoob101]

Hello everyone, first time post so please be kind....

Firstly, to put this post in context, I`m a self confessed gadget freak. to say that I love technology (and throwing money at it) would be a lesson in understatement.

I`ve always been interested in astronomy/cosmology, and I really fancy trying my hand at some amateur stargazing. I`ve been looking at all sorts of scopes, have tried to read up a bit on the topic, but my overwhelming desire, as always, is to throw money at the problem.

I appreciate that there isn't really a "do everything" scope - so my preference is for deep sky objects, with some planetary observing as a secondary.

I want something fairly portable, so I can put it in the car and drive somewhere unpolluted, and I want something that's going to take some of the learning curve out of the equation.

So, having more money than sense - I keep looking at a Nexstar 6 or 8SE - and ditching the finderscope for a Celestron Star Sense Auto Align Accessory. I appreciate I`ll also have to invest in a power tank, perhaps a dew shield, and I`m sure a few other things I haven't considered yet.

I guess the question I want to ask the experienced members of this board is,.... am I completely unhinged? Would such a purchase be completely inappropriate for a noob?

[hazegood]

you   could   'throw  money at the  problem'    and  buy the best  gear in the world,  but that  wont help  unless you learn  how to use the equipment you   buy.

[Starlight 1]

I would  drive out to somewere dark and take a seat and sit down for hour or two  them think again before spending your money .

all the best

Les

[RichM63]

You have to be unhinged to work around here.

What normal person would want to spend thousands on equipment, and then be left to the vagaries of the weather just to have a 10 min window viewing a hazy cluster?

Great quality telescope.

However: more money than sense; set up a remote observatory in my spare field, and I'll look after any Jaguars you have.

[Dave Lloyd]

Yes, you are unhinged but it's fun isn't it.

[nightfisher]

How about getting a 200p dobsonian, see how you get on with the new hobby, if you like it then spend some money on it

[Floater]

Bentley - but can't drive it well. Stradivarius - but don't play the fiddle.

Money don't help if you've got no sense.

But have fun and enjoy yourself - even if your enjoyment comes from spending money.

I am not mighty enough to say you are wrong.

[RT65CB-SWL]

Hi 'Scoob101' and welcome to SGL.

The Nextstar 8 will give you more light gathering than the Nextar 6 so that would be a good start. The other thing to consider is weight. You would need a sturdy tripod, (I apologise but I do not know what it comes supplied with).  .

If you want the best "bid for you quid"/"bang for your buck" then have you considered a Dobsonian, eg http://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-skyliner-200p-dobsonian.html. It should fit in the average car as the main OTA will seperate from the base.

Failing that binoculars. They are great way to learn the nightsky.

[rowan46]

The 8se is a nice scope big enough to see most things portable enough and complex enough for most gadget freaks. It's probably the smallest 8 inch goto there is. it has a pretty big problem though. if you are as big a gadget freak as you say. you will almost certainly want to stick a dslr on it  and sct's on alt az mounts don't do deep space photography very well so if you really want to spend that kind of money think about if you are likely to go down the imaging route at all, if you are. look at getting something else.

[John]

Hello and welcome to the forum

There is nothing wrong with buying good quality equipment to start off but it's well worth spending some time learning about the capabilities of the various options because even the more expensive setups have strengths and weaknesses. You are quite right that there is not a single scope that will do everything well and it's also worth bearing in mind that the cost of accessories such as eyepieces to match the quality of the scope will add a fair chunk of further investment.

Personally my advice would be to do more reseach and ask more questions here before jumping into spending. I realise that sounds boring but my experience is that astronomy is not really a hobby of "quick wins" no matter how much money you spend on it. If you can, go along to a society "open evening" and have a peek through some scopes to see what they deliver. Apart from the Moon, the sights through a scope are most often subtle rather than "in your face".

A £300 scope could quite possibly show better views than a £2000 one and it's worth being aware of that

[Liquid360]

We could be brothers. I've jumped even further into the deep end with precious little experience. Come on in, the waters great. [emoji6]

[barkis]

More experienced Amateurs than you have done the 'spend a lot and it will all work out'  bit, and 

regretted it. In my case I did spend a lot of money, and I have not done much in the way of exploiting my not too shoddy equipment.

My only real valid excuse, is Bone idleness to be honest, Coupled with other diversionary activities.

This coming imaging season, is when I hope very much to start getting some payback for the layout I've made.

No guarantees, but I'm lucky enough to have some highly qualified help available to me, in the form of fellow moderators.

Of course that isn't a unique privilege for me, that help is available from most of the membership of SGL, All they need, is to be asked to help, and you will receive it.

Most of all, heed the advice already given. Don't rush into anything with big money initially, that comes a lot later when you have firmly in your mind what it is you want to achieve, be it successful observing,

or Deep Sky, or Lunar/Solar, Imaging.  The latter can be pretty expensive, although surprisingly good results have come from some guys with fairly low tech stuff.

You said you are an avid Gadget person, so you will already have a good Idea about spending, and how to keep a rein on it, and not go silly right away.

Think a lot, and take your time. The night skies are never in a hurry, and neither should you be.

Best Wishes for a happy and successful stay here.

Ron.

[Dave_D]

could be worse... you could be like some of us with sense but no money...

[michaelmorris]

If you a self-confessed gadget man, that's cool. We are broad church and all approaches to the hobby are valid.  From my somewhat-limited experience, I'd say there is no easy route into imaging. It's a long steep learning curve involving hours of frustration and a degree of (or perhaps in?) both masochism and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. 

An 8" SCT is going to be quite heavy to handle and large to transport and store.  Make sure you don't get discouraged early by it becoming ardous to handle and set up the scope.

Although I've never owned one, I've looked through a fair few examples of the Celestron 6" SCT and have never failed to be impressed.

It's always struck me as portable, good quality and great views.  The Skyprodgy 6 gives you the 6" SCT with starsense on an alt-az mount or you could opt for Celestron C6-SGT XLT GOTO + a star sense for a less compact but more future proof alternative.

[Billy Bluelight]

Welcome!

The kit I have (listed below - Google for reviews) is giving me great fun - about £1,500 plus a another £200 on a nice zoom eyepiece.  That gave me a kit which is a nice quality 8" scope and a very clever mount - I saw more in the first evening than I had in the previous several years of messing around with rickety old scopes.  

My kit fits easily into the boot of my car - three pieces - tripod, mount and tube, plus a plastic box with all my bits in and a leisure battery (don't bother with a power tank - waste of money - go for a decent leisure battery such as used on caravans - cheaper and will last much longer).  I can put it all together, have it aligned and ready to go in less than 15 minutes from scratch and dismantle and pack away in 5 minutes.   

I figure that at my age, if I get another 20 years out of it before I enter my dotage, that £1,700 works out at £85 per year - there is little else I need apart from maybe another camera at some stage for imaging.  Take off the sum I would undoubtedly get for it when I came to sell - let's say not less than half price if looked after, which it is, that means my hobby will have cost me £43 per year.  I don't know anything cheaper.

I wouldn't fiddle around getting something cheap that you sound as if you will rapidly grow out of and lose money on - go for something good quality to start with, big enough for your needs and which will last you for years without feeling you should have bought better.

My strong advice would be to join a small astro.club (small is beautiful) locally.  I belong to a lovely little club here in south Norfolk - Breckland Astonomical Society  with 100 members, of whom only 6 or 10 turn out every week.  They have endless patience, huge knowledge and are willing to answer all my dumb questions.  I can't believe how much I've learned from these guys - £20 a year is all it costs.

You clearly have the interest - if you have the cash to spare - go for it! 

[Charic]

I had an unlimited budget when I started, but have not squandered the money. My setup is just over £800 and is still  very basic,  easy to use, no special configurations, and just works. The end result is very good too.

Take your time, otherwise, you'll just waste your money. If you  can get along to some venue or club and get a feel for the equipment. then you can spend to your hearts content, but money alone just won't bring you the satisfaction you may desire,  careful  consideration and  choices will get you the winning  formula.

[Scooot]

Sounds like my interest is similar and this was my first set up after spending quite a while learning my way around with a pair of bins.

Orion Optics VX10L Dob for deep sky and planets.

Then add this little gadget.

http://www.astrodevices.com/products/Nexus/Nexus.html

Then wirelessly connect an iPad or similar to watch where you push the scope to look at something you fancy.

[Scooot]

Sounds like my interest is similar and this was my first set up after spending quite a while learning my way around with a pair of bins.

Orion Optics VX10L Dob for deep sky and planets.

Then add this little gadget.

http://www.astrodevices.com/products/Nexus/Nexus.html

Then wirelessly connect an iPad or similar to watch where you push the scope to look at something you fancy.

That should say VX10

[Scoob101]

Thanks very much for some brilliant responses, you've given me a great deal to think about. Thanks for the warm welcome!  

[SteveNickolls]

Welcome scoob101 to SGL. Difficult one this as you don't often know what will come to interest you most in the years ahead when starting out and even then you can gain a new interest. Finding your way around the night sky with the naked eye from a dark location supplemented by some small binoculars would be a good place to start. Binoculars are very portable and can take no time at all to set up. Once you are more confident where to look you may want to explore what telescope depending upon your growing interests. You will find that whatever telescope you buy binoculars will always be useful to you. Anyway whatever you do I wish you clear, dark skies and plenty of them.

Cheers,

Steve

[swag72]

Hi and welcome to SGL - As an imager I have found astrophotography to be a bottomless pit with regards to money. It will happily take every single penny you throw at it and still shout for more. 

Don't go down the imaging route

[Billy Bluelight]

Hi and welcome to SGL - As an imager I have found astrophotography to be a bottomless pit with regards to money. It will happily take every single penny you throw at it and still shout for more. 

Don't go down the imaging route

Good advice for me too there!

[Grotemobile]

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/cpc-deluxe-hd/celestron-cpc-deluxe-800-hd.html

This is what i bought,6 months ago.Done a lot

of soul serching,about spending 2 K on a scope.

Best thing i ever done.So easy to set up & use.

You wont need to buy a StarSense with this.

No good for DSO imaging,but every thing else,

it is spot on.

[bogdog]

money can't buy you clear skies or patience

start small,spend little,and then you will see if this hobby really is for you

put £3.50 of change in one jar,and on every clear night remove 50p to another jar(2) at the end of the week

if you have £3.50 in that jar ,then that will justify the spend you have in mind

lots of nights equipment lies dormant..some nights turn to weeks....or months

[Daniel-K]

http://www.obsessiontelescopes.com/telescopes/25/index.php these can be goto aswell