My search for a wide field telescope.

[PeterW]

Nice fast optic and an ultrawide ep to give a view with 6-7mm exit pupil. I have just found a 13"f3 to give me a 2degree field. 
http://www.bbastrodesigns.com/rft.html
Mel is the master rich field expert, problem is that mirrors like that don't grown on trees. If anyone knows an amateur mirror grinder who is game for trying a small silly speed mirror I'd  be glad to hear. (Low power views don't need the best spec). You could get an f4 which is pretty quick (and compact too), explore scientific do a cost effective coma corrector that doesn't slow the scope down.

PeterW

[Commanderfish]

I started off with an Evostar 120 funnily enough - and now my rich field scope is the Altair Starwave 152.  I have the white version.  Great scope, great optics especially for an achro (I'm an Apo fan).  I can get 3 degrees TFOV out of it with a Panoptic 41mm.  Awesome for scanning the Milky Way.

One final thing to consider would be an Orion Optics VX10.  As they are aluminium, they only weigh 11Kg for the OTA, plus another 11Kg for a dob base - or you can mount it on an EQ or Alt Az if you wanted.  I've recently got one and can get 2 degrees out of it with the Panoptic 41mm, even with a coma corrector on board.  I have been using the VX10 on an Ercole Giro mount but I've been getting some vibration at higher mags, so I've ordered an Orion Optics dob base for it. 

[Astrobits]

To answer the original question, to give a wider field of view than the 100mm f/9  'scope that you already have you need to go to shorter focal lengths which rules out all the Dobsonian telescopes mentioned . (This assumes that you already have the widest apparent FOV eyepieces which would be the first step.). To see more stars you need a larger aperture so a 120mm aperture would need to be faster than F/7.5 and a 150mm aperture faster than f/6 otherwise you will be losing field of view.

Peter W:

13" f/3 Hmmmm.....What size were you thinking. I might have a go sometime when I have dealt with my long todo list. I have a pile of glass blanks that need to be used.

Nigel

[PeterW]

If you've got a 6ish inch one and itchy fingers I could really do with an f2.7ish mirror. Thinking... when a mirror like that pops up, no thinking is involved! The thinking comes now about how to build the scope around it!!

[Astrobits]

57 minutes ago, PeterW said:

If you've got a 6ish inch one and itchy fingers I could really do with an f2.7ish mirror. Thinking... when a mirror like that pops up, no thinking is involved! The thinking comes now about how to build the scope around it!!

Sorry, smallest glass that I have is 8".

Suggest we don't hijack this thread and pursue  this via PM's

Nigel

[Paul73]

I got a ED80 f7.5 for wide fields.

With a 30mm 82° or an E21, you could nearly see the back of your own head! But the views were not bright. I've moved onto the ED120 f7.5 and the views are much brighter.

The light Orion Dobs could be the way to go.

Paul