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Confused wife needs help for hubs Christmas Telescopic present!


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Skywatcher and Celestron both made by Synta Corporation. Same scopes really. An ST102 is an f5 like the ST80 so the evostar 90 will provide a higher magnification for a given eyepiece as it's a longer focal length. The 102 is great for wide field views but does display CA (chromatic aberration or false colour). A right can of worms eh?

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Skywatcher and Celestron both made by Synta Corporation. Same scopes really. An ST102 is an f5 like the ST80 so the evostar 90 will provide a higher magnification for a given eyepiece as it's a longer focal length. The 102 is great for wide field views but does display CA (chromatic aberration or false colour). A right can of worms eh?

Yep can open... Worms everywhere! Edging back towards the evostar....

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Would the field of view be so restricted as to lose positioning easily? I know what looking through extended photography lenses are like, I get lost looking at birds in the trees!

What would you choose if you were at the beginning of your Astronomy journey again? The Startravel or the Evostar?

Also, just looked at the Celestron 90mm, same kinda specs as the Evostar, is one manufacturer better than the other?

It isn't so much losing the target it is a case of not finding it in the first place. Especially as telescopes are confusing at first, the image is not the same way up as you would expect.

I would probably want the 150p dob for using on the deck, it could be kept in the conservatory to cool down. This would be impossible to use out of the window though... unless he sits on the roof!

/Dan

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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It isn't so much losing the target it is a case of not finding it in the first place. Especially as telescopes are confusing at first, the image is not the same way up as you would expect.

I would probably want the 150p dob for using on the deck, it could be kept in the conservatory to cool down. This would be impossible to use out of the window though... unless he sits on the roof!

/Dan

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Hmmm... Might increase the life insurance premiums... ;)

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Would the field of view be so restricted as to lose positioning easily? I know what looking through extended photography lenses are like, I get lost looking at birds in the trees!

What would you choose if you were at the beginning of your Astronomy journey again? The Startravel or the Evostar?

Also, just looked at the Celestron 90mm, same kinda specs as the Evostar, is one manufacturer better than the other?

Whatever you buy I would strongly recommend you buy the book 'Turn left at Orion' to go with it. This will mitigate immensely the getting lost part.
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Just to confuse things further , have you looked at a Mak ? If planets and Lunar are your targets they're pretty good !

I must admit I was just looking at the Mak's... They seem to be shorter versions of refractors, like hybrids, is that right ?

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You asked what would we buy, I would pick the ST102 and a nice 5mm eyepeice and using this thread save money and adapt one of your photo tripods. Get started and see where it goes.

http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/247988-grab-and-go-mount-ball-head-and-pan-plate-combo/

That's definitely a good plan stan.

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I must admit I was just looking at the Mak's... They seem to be shorter versions of refractors, like hybrids, is that right ?

Mak's are short reflectors, they just look a bit like refractors because of the glass corrector plate and the focuser being at the other end.

By design they have quite long focal lengths which means more magnification.

/Dan

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Chromatic aberation (CA), when the colours don't quite focus together and you get a slight colour fringe, is a feature of all refractor telescopes, unless you want to pay a LOT more for special lenses with exotic glass.

For astrophotography it may be very anoying, but for visual use it's something that I personally barely notice. In general the shorter the tube length, the greater the problem. The good news is: 1). the older you get, the less the eye notices it, and 2) there are filters such as the fringe-killer which reduce the phenomenon greatly. Even a simple pale yellow filter is suposed to work quite well!

For visual-use 'fracs, my general rule of thumb is bigger aperture and longer tube are better. But be warned, any refractor above 120mm aperture quickly becomes a serious piece of artillery and a fire arms license may be necesary :evil:

Personally I like equatorial mounts when they are solid (even though I live in the southern hemisphere and precise polar alignment is a pain), but on cheaper telescopes they are often far from solid. In this case, I would generally prefer a simple alt-azimuth mount over a shakey equatorial. Although I hate to admit it :Envy: , a reflector on a Dobsonian mount probably represents the best value for money; you can get 150mm of quality aperture for well under 200 pounds! If you have good photographic mounts/tripods, as has been suggested, this might also be an interesting way to start.

Certainly while a big telescope that is difficult to move and set up is a deterent to use, a telescope which delivers poor quality viewing is, I think, more of a passion-killer in this hobby!

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Some people - such as myself - like the 80mm F5 refractor. Sure - it displays some blue around bright objects. But this doesn't bother me. An apochromatic (3 lenses to counter CA) refractor can cost £650, while my achromat (two lenses) cost about £80. But do get the scope that will make you the happiest!

Blue don't me me blue.....

Happy Holidays!

Dave

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Right I think I've made a decision, the Skywatcher Startravel 102 (102mm/f5) on an az3 mount.

Not too huge, portable enough, bigger lens than the 80 or evostar 90, should let him see enough... Not be overwhelmed.

Final thoughts anyone?

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A good 'scope that will give you both years of service, and the AZ mount means you don't have all the hassle of polar aligning every time you want to do some viewing as you would have to do with an equatorial mount :)

The 25mm eyepiece is a good bit of kit, but the 10mm is not so good (though it is still adequate).

Clear skies to you both :)

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Well the deed is done, ordered from FLO, should get here when he's at work on Wednesday... But gawd knows where I will hide the box, I bet it's a large one!

Thank you all, sincerely, for your help. I know these kinda questions are awkward (I work in IT and get, "what laptop should I get?" ALL the time and my answer is, "depends what you want to do with it!").

I'm sure I'll stay around the forum, maybe let you know how he gets on... Most likely asking for more advice.

Merry Christmas and Clear Skies to you all xx

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The ST102 is a very good starter scope. You've done the right thing with the alt-az mount because the alternative eq1 is a bit lightweight for this scope. I use one with a camera and it's just about comfortable.

That's what I was thinking, the EQ1 seemed like the low-end model and was paired with much lighter scopes. With knowledge of trying to balance my DSLRs on wimpy tripods, I thought the AZ3 looked sturdier. As much as I knew hubs would 'get' the theory of an EQ mount, I wasn't confident in the sturdiness of the EQ1.

I have a feeling that if hubs doesn't take to the skies... I just might. ;)

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I started with an ST102 and it has been a brilliant scope for observing, I can pick out great detail on Jupiter, Saturn and of course the moon, also good for observing star clusters. The standard sky-watcher eyepieces are actually very good! The AZ3 is a good well built solid mount. He's going to love it!!!!

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Don't forget to post about your first viewing session :)

I still suggest joining a local astro-club (or more than one), and see if they have regular viewing sessions you can go to. The members there will show you various objects you can look at and should offer some good advice for future sessions. At the groups I have joined, they are only too willing to help out, lend eyepieces and give more advice than I know what do to with :D

If you haven't done so already, download Stellarium, it's a free planetarium program that is highly recommended by many people on this forum. Also, start buying books - Turn Left at Orion and Norton's Star Atlas are my favourites, both readily available from Amazon.

You do realise that now you have bought the 'scope, there will be cloudy nights for the next 6 months....

Another thing you could consider is buying a Baader solar filter (or making one from a sheet of Baader film) and look at the Sun. Needless to say, NEVER look at the Sun through the 'scope without one of these filters in place, you WILL damage your eye permanently.

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