helios d= 200mm f= 1000mm

[Scott Brown]

Hi laudropb.... Mainly from my back garden in Biggar, it is pretty dark in general and will also be taking it on holiday up the west coast to our caravan which is by the sea and pitch dark with no light for miles. I will be getting a scope very soon so I want to make sure I get a decent first scope.

[Alan64]

The 130mm f/5 tabletop kits are quite popular.  Here's an enormous thread from the States regarding the 5" f/5 AWB OneSky(Celestron), which is the same exact telescope, both manufactured by Synta of China...

http://www.cloudynights.com/topic/463109-onesky-newtonian-astronomers-without-borders/

A 130mm f/5 Newtonian can be quite the little performer at a dark site.

My first telescope was a 60mm f/11 refractor, so you'll have me beaten.

[Scott Brown]

2 hours ago, Alan64 said:

The 130mm f/5 tabletop kits are quite popular.  Here's an enormous thread from the States regarding the 5" f/5 AWB OneSky(Celestron), which is the same exact telescope, both manufactured by Synta of China...

http://www.cloudynights.com/topic/463109-onesky-newtonian-astronomers-without-borders/

A 130mm f/5 Newtonian can be quite the little performer at a dark site.

My first telescope was a 60mm f/11 refractor, so you'll have me beaten.

Thanks Alan..... That's a great read.

[Alan64]

However, you might like one of these better...

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/reflectors/skywatcher-explorer-150p-az4-mount.html

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/reflectors/skywatcher-130p-ds-az4-alt-az-mount.html

[Scott Brown]

13 hours ago, Alan64 said:

However, you might like one of these better...

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/reflectors/skywatcher-explorer-150p-az4-mount.html

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/reflectors/skywatcher-130p-ds-az4-alt-az-mount.html

Thanks for that Alan lol, now I'm all confused again and don't know what to go for. How come choosing your first scope is so complicated.

[Ricochet]

Assuming that you are not planning on taking up astrophotography in the future (££££) I would go for the bigger apperture and get the 150p over the 130pds. However, if you plan on storing the telescope set up then a dobsonian has a smaller footprint than any tripod. 

[Cosmic Geoff]

15 minutes ago, Ricochet said:

 a dobsonian has a smaller footprint than any tripod. 

Not necessarily true. A folded tripod has a very small footprint, smaller than the typical Dobsonian base.

If the OP is interested in using the AZ4 mount/tripod, he can note that it readily folds up into a small footprint, and with the legs left at the in-use extension and the eyepiece tray left off, it can be stored or deployed extremely quickly.  (The EQ5 tripod also readily folds into a small footprint for storage.) I am assuming here that the scope is taken off when moving or storing the mount/tripod, as moving the complete scope/mount/tripod assembly is in many cases Not A Good Idea. 

[Louis D]

4 hours ago, Cosmic Geoff said:

I am assuming here that the scope is taken off when moving or storing the mount/tripod, as moving the complete scope/mount/tripod assembly is in many cases Not A Good Idea.

True, but the dob is much quicker to setup and observe with.  I can have my 8" out the door and setup in under 2 minutes.  That includes removing covers and checking collimation.  Admittedly, cool down may take another 30 minutes on cold nights, but the setup time is quick.

[Alan64]

On 2/12/2017 at 07:45, Scott Brown said:

Thanks for that Alan lol, now I'm all confused again and don't know what to go for. How come choosing your first scope is so complicated.

Back in the olden days here in the States, the best beginners' kits were a choice between two telescopes: a 76mm f/16 refractor, or a 150mm f/8 Newtonian.  The 76mm refractors appeared as this back then...

http://www.cloudynights.com/uploads/gallery/category_352/gallery_224509_352_162329.jpg

...whilst the Newtonians appeared as this...

https://www.rit.edu/cos/observatory/images/tel/tt01.jpg

...that is, if you were a lucky youth.  Both were quite long, and for mostly lunar and planetary observations, and as though it was taboo to look beyond the solar system at night.  They were made in Japan, and were quite costly, unlike today.  Now you can choose, penny-wise, between at least a 102mm refractor or a 200mm Newtonian, and now made in China. 

A 150mm f/5 Newtonian is bright and powerful for its size, yet compact enough for a quick jaunt out into the garden, or on a trip...

 

Magnifications range from a low and wide-field 19x, to 250x and beyond with the aid of either a 2x or 3x barlow; most versatile for observing practically everything in the night sky.  Your skies may be darker than my own, and I have a blast with mine beneath my skies.  Occasionally, I take an afocal photograph, by holding a small camera up to the eyepiece and snapping a shot; steady now, and on the fly...

Mind you, those aren't even short exposures, let alone long ones.  They appear exactly as you would see them through the eyepiece during a live observing session, and as I saw them just before taking the shots.

The Newtonian design is somewhat testy, however, in that it requires collimation of the two mirrors in relation to the focusser, initially, then to tweak it on occasion.  The higher the powers, the more critical or precise the collimation(alignment) needs to be.  The most beautiful images are seen at the higher and highest powers, and then to have seen what few people have ever seen before.  The Trapezium star-cluster within Orion is nothing short of mesmerising at 188x.  I would have a look at these instructions before deciding on one...

http://www.forumskylive.it/Public/data/serastrof/201281510358_Astro Babys Guide to Collimation.pdf

Collimation tools...

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/other-collimation-tools/rigel-aline-collimation-cap.html

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/other-collimation-tools/premium-cheshire-collimating-eyepiece.html

The effort to learn and master collimation is well worth it, and most rewarding, for the images produced by a classical Newtonian are 100% free of false colour when viewing brighter objects; sharp and clean.  Once collimation of a Newtonian is mastered, no other telescope design of this Earth will remain a mystery.

I can't stress the importance of collimation enough to those first starting out, and because invariably the urge to ramp up the power is inevitable, and should be without disappointment.  As it is, the atmosphere conspires against us all from the beginning, therefore there is absolutely no need to compound the situation further with a sort-of-collimated Newtonian.

I and others will be more than happy to assist you in the owning and operation of a Newtonian.  I, for one, have many pictures...

[Scott Brown]

On 14 February 2017 at 19:09, Alan64 said:

Back in the olden days here in the States, the best beginners' kits were a choice between two telescopes: a 76mm f/16 refractor, or a 150mm f/8 Newtonian.  The 76mm refractors appeared as this back then...

http://www.cloudynights.com/uploads/gallery/category_352/gallery_224509_352_162329.jpg

...whilst the Newtonians appeared as this...

https://www.rit.edu/cos/observatory/images/tel/tt01.jpg

...that is, if you were a lucky youth.  Both were quite long, and for mostly lunar and planetary observations, and as though it was taboo to look beyond the solar system at night.  They were made in Japan, and were quite costly, unlike today.  Now you can choose, penny-wise, between at least a 102mm refractor or a 200mm Newtonian, and now made in China. 

A 150mm f/5 Newtonian is bright and powerful for its size, yet compact enough for a quick jaunt out into the garden, or on a trip...

 

Magnifications range from a low and wide-field 19x, to 250x and beyond with the aid of either a 2x or 3x barlow; most versatile for observing practically everything in the night sky.  Your skies may be darker than my own, and I have a blast with mine beneath my skies.  Occasionally, I take an afocal photograph, by holding a small camera up to the eyepiece and snapping a shot; steady now, and on the fly...

Mind you, those aren't even short exposures, let alone long ones.  They appear exactly as you would see them through the eyepiece during a live observing session, and as I saw them just before taking the shots.

The Newtonian design is somewhat testy, however, in that it requires collimation of the two mirrors in relation to the focusser, initially, then to tweak it on occasion.  The higher the powers, the more critical or precise the collimation(alignment) needs to be.  The most beautiful images are seen at the higher and highest powers, and then to have seen what few people have ever seen before.  The Trapezium star-cluster within Orion is nothing short of mesmerising at 188x.  I would have a look at these instructions before deciding on one...

http://www.forumskylive.it/Public/data/serastrof/201281510358_Astro Babys Guide to Collimation.pdf

Collimation tools...

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/other-collimation-tools/rigel-aline-collimation-cap.html

https://www.firstlightoptics.com/other-collimation-tools/premium-cheshire-collimating-eyepiece.html

The effort to learn and master collimation is well worth it, and most rewarding, for the images produced by a classical Newtonian are 100% free of false colour when viewing brighter objects; sharp and clean.  Once collimation of a Newtonian is mastered, no other telescope design of this Earth will remain a mystery.

I can't stress the importance of collimation enough to those first starting out, and because invariably the urge to ramp up the power is inevitable, and should be without disappointment.  As it is, the atmosphere conspires against us all from the beginning, therefore there is absolutely no need to compound the situation further with a sort-of-collimated Newtonian.

I and others will be more than happy to assist you in the owning and operation of a Newtonian.  I, for one, have many pictures...

Thanks for that  Alan, it was some read..... The collimation looks to be a task and a half but I'm sure it will get easier the more you do it. I have spoke to the missus and I am now back at getting a skyliner 200p Dob, in fact I am going to look at one tonight so all being well I shall have it in my back garden tonight wraped up warm with my daughter and hunting for things to look at. Haha I've never been as excited as this in a long time.