About a new scope

[Ray02]

Hey guys! Well i was wondering, should I buy a scope? Will it be much better than the bins I have? How much for me as a new guy it will cost?

Cant wait for answers, thanks!

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[Knighty2112]

Depending on your requirements for the scope that might cost anywhere between £150 to £1,000 at a minimum. if you want a good decent starter scope to get going that isn't going to break the bank then Skywatcher do some decent refractors between 70mm and 120mm diameter that are a good start. If you need a scope to fit something more specific other than general visual astronomy then you need to state your requirements for any scope. These along with any mounts will push the cost up generally.

[Mak the Night]

These are very popular 'starter' scopes. 

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-explorer-130.html

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/maksutov/skywatcher-skymax-102-eq2.html

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/maksutov/skywatcher-skymax-127-supatrak.html

[Mak the Night]

Oh yeah, I forgot about Dob's.

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html

[laudropb]

There are lots of things which have to be taken into consideration. Perhaps most importantly where you want to observe from. If it is your back garden for instance you do not have to worry about transporting it and I would suggest the biggest aperture you can afford. If you have to travel then you have to decide what will fit into a car etc. also if you want a go to you will have to consider how you will power it. What do you hope to observe ? Do you want a grab and go or are you prepared to spend time setting it up each time you observe. The main thing is to decide what suits you best.

[Ray02]

Thanks for all the information i have 7x50 bins and i was stargazing several times, but what should i do, just watch the stars and the moon? What you do when you stargaze? And about the scope well i would pay like 200 euros maximum i think, btw i would like an manual one and not a very giant one that i can fit in it the car

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[jambouk]

I'd do some research to see if there is an astronomy club or society near to you; go along to a star gazing event and look through various scopes and see what tou think, the owners will be very happy to talk to you about the prices and the drawbacks of their kit.

Good luck.

James

[Ray02]

I'd do some research to see if there is an astronomy club or society near to you; go along to a star gazing event and look through various scopes and see what tou think, the owners will be very happy to talk to you about the prices and the drawbacks of their kit.

Good luck.

James

Thanks! Well im going to meet some new guys this weekend, about astronomy maybe ill find someone

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[Ray02]

As to telescope. . There are a variety of ways to get started and others will offer their opinions. There are no right or wrong answers only better or lesser choices within your budget of 200 200 euros.

Don't think of this as the last scope you will ever buy. If you look at this as your entry level scope with the plan that some day you will want a larger scope, then you have a plan. This scope will be smaller and lighter and will become your grab and go scope later. My first scope was the Meade ETX 80 GoTo refractor. That is now my grab and go scope as compared to my Orion XT8i 8" dobsonian. I use them both along with my binoculars.

Here are some possibilities

Skywatcher 100 P 86 Euros

This is a small table top reflector. About 4X the light gathering compared to your 10X50 binoculars

I believe Orion has the same scope under a different name that seems to get good reviews.

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-heritage-100p-tabletop-dobsonian.html

Skywatcher 150P - 175 euros - 2.25 times the light gathering of the 100P or 9 times the light gathering of your binoculars.

This could be an excellent first scope. This is a ground standing Dobsonian. While this is bigger it should still fit easily in any car. The base will be very stable. Comes with 2 eyepieces. Looks like an excellent value for the money and a 150 mm/6 inch aperture will give you access to a lot of the objects in the sky.

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html

If you prefer a refractor then the Celestron 90 mm AZ would be a good choice. 139 euros

About 3.25 times the light gathering ability compared to your binoculars.

I can't comment on the tripod/mount but this would also make a great first scope. Not as much aperture as the other two but maybe easier to transport. And refractors need very little maintenance or attention. I would not recommend a refractor below 80 mm so this is a valid option in my book.

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes/astromaster-90az-telescope.html

Each of the scopes include 2 eyepieces giving you two magnification options. If you add a 2X barlow to any of these you will double the magnification options you have with the included eyepieces and any eyepieces you add in the future - 23 euros Everyone needs a 2X barlow.

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/celestron-eyepieces/celestron-2x-universal-125-barlow.html

Any of these scopes will provide excellent views of the moon and will open the door to many of the deep sky objects you will want to explore. My lead recommendation would be the Skywatcher 150P. If you feel it is too big then either of the others would get equal weight. Just a matter of if you like a tabletop reflector vs a tripod mounted refractor.

There are probably 100 other choices but I believe these would be good options for you and within your budget.

And hi again, i cant say how much im thankful for your help thank you so much! But i dont know anything about scopes so :/ and i didnt hear your opinion of my binoculars 7x50 are they good enough?

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[Ray02]

What are those mm ? Eyepieces ? Light gathering of 100p or 9 times the light gathering of my binoculars ?

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[Knighty2112]

What are those mm ? Eyepieces ? Light gathering of 100p or 9 times the light gathering of my binoculars ?

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No, the 90mm refers to the diameter of the mains light gathering lens. Most scopes regardless of wether refractor telescopes, or reflector telescopes too normal incorporate either the number (in mm) within the name of the telescope. i.e, Celestron Astromaster 90AZ telescope (which is a refractor telescope) or the Skywatcher Heritage 130p Flextube telescope (which is a reflector or Newtonian telescope).

[Ray02]

Whats the difference between refractor and reflector? And as i understand the bigger mm the better view?

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[RT65CB-SWL]

Thanks for all the information i have 7x50 bins and i was stargazing several times, but what should i do, just watch the stars and the moon? What you do when you stargaze? And about the scope well i would pay like 200 euros maximum i think, btw i would like an manual one and not a very giant one that i can fit in it the car

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Hi Ray and a belated welcome to SGL.

 

What do you want to do with your telescope? planetary? ...deep-sky?...purely visual? ...reflector or refractor? grab & go?

 

Before you part with your money; (I do apologies in advance for being negative); I advise that you join a local astronomy club/society and go to a few star-parties and see what the members are using and ask what made them choose their particular 'scope/scopes and if possible visit a dedicated reseller/showroom that specialises in astronomy sales. Do not be lured into the department stores or popular internet auction sites as the sales staff/seller may have very little knowledge of astronomy. Also have a read of this... http://www.firstlightoptics.com/beginner-telescopes.html

I am afraid setting a budget of €200.00 euro you may not get you very much. OK there are a few telescopes 'out there' that might make it... ie there is the SkyWatcher Heritage-130P Flextube* &  Skyliner 150P Dobsonian*. Then there are refractors. SkyWatcher do various models, as do Celestron in their Astromaster range. If you are interested in planetary observation, then I would suggest a Maksutov or SCT. Unfortunately you will not get much change from €200.00 euro for a Maksutov or SCT for extras; (a dew-shield would need to be a must have accessory, unless you wish to make your own). Also the field of view is narrower and they can be a little frustrating for a 'first' telescope, though the views are exceptionally good.

BTW - when you do purchase your 'first' telescope, don't worry about the view being upside down. This is normal. When you add a 90^o star-diagonal; (this goes between the telescopes eyepiece holder & eyepiece with a refractor or Maksutov/SCT); up/down [north/south] are normal, left/right [east/west] are reversed. 

Wishing you clear skies. 

* these are of the Newtonian (OTA) reflector design.

[Knighty2112]

Whats the difference between refractor and reflector? And as i understand the bigger mm the better view?

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A refractor is your traditional kind of telescope with a large glass lens at the front of the tube, which sends the beam of light down the tube to the eyepiece at the other end of the tube from which you view the image through it.

A reflector ( also known as a Newtonian telescope) has a large curved primary mirror at the bottom end of the tube. The front of the tube is mostly open to the air, and the light then travels down the tube, where the it bounces off the curved mirror back up towards the top end of the tube again, where a secondary mirror at a 45 degree angle then sends the beam of light out to the eyepiece which is on the side of the telescope on the side where you view the image.

And yes the larger the refractor lens, or the reflector primary mirror the better the views will be through the telescope.

[Knighty2112]

Get yourself a decent book on binocular astronomy. I have a good book called 'Stargazing with binoculars' by Robin Scagell & David Frydman, which show you quite a lot of the things you can see with just binos. There are others too if you look on Amazon etc. Get a star atlas too, or copy some star map from the Internet and learn all the major constellation, like Orion, Ursa Major, Leo, Gemini, Cassiopia, etc, first. If you live in the northern hemisphere then don't worry about the ones you won't be able to see in the Southern Hemisphere, or vice versa.

When you know the main ones really well you should be able to start to see the lesser known ones and dimmer ones too. After that if you still have the bug start looking at getting a good starter scope, and you can then open up the sky to more careful scrutiny with a decent telescope.

Good luck, and good hunting with the binoculars.

[Mak the Night]

I've never read 'Turn Left at Orion' but it looks really good. I still think the best introduction to amateur astronomy was Sir Patrick's 'Observer's Book of Astronomy' which I bought as a schoolboy and still have in my possession to this day. I thought they were unobtainable now although Amazon have some copies at an odd selection of prices:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Observers-Book-Astronomy-Pocket/dp/0723215758%3FSubscriptionId%3DAKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q%26tag%3Dduc08-21%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D0723215758

I think Amazon need to update the biographical information on this page though.

My copy:

  

[Megaman250]

Well I started out using the astromaster 70AZ telescope and then quickly discovered that the small aperture 70mm needed upgrading so I got some binoculars they were large and cheap 20x80 Celestron skywatcher and they are brill, I was then lucky enough to be given a Skywatcher 130M as a gift.

The Celestron AstroMaster 70AZ is great for a grab and go telescope and is light enough to carry by hand to a more remote place as of course the bins are but with the scope I have the magnification!  

The Skywatcher 130M is there for when I want to see thing more clearly it produces a lot more brighter images than the AstroMaster but is a lot heavier to lug about.

If I was you by my own experience I would go for the bigger aperture as you already have a grab and go tool, Just make sure you use a tripod and for longer periods USE A SUN LOUNGER OR DECK CHAIR I didn't and was in a lot and I do mean a lot of agong the following days just from looking up.

I posted this last night - http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/257069-ok-that-hurt/

[Mak the Night]

Yeah, if you want a binocular view of astronomical objects it's probably best to get binoviewers lol!

[Ray02]

Thanks again fellas, for now i think i have enough things to read and understand, ill come back later with my questions

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[Ray02]

A refractor is your traditional kind of telescope with a large glass lens at the front of the tube, which sends the beam of light down the tube to the eyepiece at the other end of the tube from which you view the image through it.

A reflector ( also known as a Newtonian telescope) has a large curved primary mirror at the bottom end of the tube. The front of the tube is mostly open to the air, and the light then travels down the tube, where the it bounces off the curved mirror back up towards the top end of the tube again, where a secondary mirror at a 45 degree angle then sends the beam of light out to the eyepiece which is on the side of the telescope on the side where you view the image.

And yes the larger the refractor lens, or the reflector primary mirror the better the views will be through the telescope.

Ok I understand but which are better? Refractors or reflectors for a take & go scope?

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[happy-kat]

I have two portable one refractor one reflector, the refractor wins for me.

[Knighty2112]

Ok I understand but which are better? Refractors or reflectors for a take & go scope?

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None are better as such. Personal taste really. In general if you want to view a lot of deep sky objects then you will normally go for a large reflector, as refractors get very expensive once you get past 150mm diameter lenses. I too prefer refractors to reflectors though.

[Akiainavas]

Ok I understand but which are better? Refractors or reflectors for a take & go scope?

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There are no better/worse scopes. Only different and more or less suitable for different things.

If you're after an all-rounder take & go scope, an SCT might be worth considering - but they all have their +'s and -'s

[RT65CB-SWL]

Hi again Ray.

 

If you are living within the UK, there is this... http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/256835-man-on-the-moon-telescope/#entry2809741

...for £59.00 GBP you have not lost much money when aperture fever strikes.

 

I started off with a Tasco 40x refractor and was literally 'over the Moon' when I first saw the Moon, Jupiter & Saturn + solar projection of sunspots.

[mikeDnight]

Ok I understand but which are better? Refractors or reflectors for a take & go scope?

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Refractors focus more light into the Airy disc than Newtonians, Maksutovs or Schmidt Cassegrains, as the latter designs have a brighter first diffraction ring due to the secondary obstruction, and so refractors produce generally sharper images. Refractors can be great grab and go scopes. They offer stunning wide field views of star fields, comets and brighter DSO's, as well as sharp high power views of the moon and planets. They also cool quickly, don't suffer from tube currents and have no collimation issues. Inch for inch the refractor is superior. There are drawbacks though; cheaper end refractors are generally achromatic and so display a small amount of false colour (chromatic aberration). The longer the refractor the less evident the CA. It is not a fault though but just the nature of the beast, and is only usually visible around the limb of the moon or very bright stars or planets. Apochromatic and ED refractors use special glass or crystal lenses that all but eliminate chromatic aberration, they are excellent but are quite pricey, ranging from several hundred pounds to several thousand.

The Newtonian however has the advantage of greater light grasp, so DSO's will appear brighter. They are however large and generally cumbersome, and although good value for money, they aren't really a true grab and go scope. Personally I wouldn't entertain a Newt of less than 6" (150mm) aperture, and the longer the better, F8 and over.

Maksutoves offer sharper images than Schmidt's but both designs literally take hours to become thermally stable and so should be kept as near to outside temperatures as possible. Smaller apertures are easy to transport and a 5" (127mm) or 6" (150mm) Mak can make a nice grab and go scope, but they are narrow field instruments.

For a grab and go I'd prefer a 80mm to 150mm refractor to any other design of scope. And I'd go for quality over aperture every time. Today ED apochromats are cheaper than ever before and if you can stretch to one as a grab and go, or even as a main scope, I doubt you'd regret it. Skywatcher ED Pro's are excellent performers and relatively cheap.

Mike