Bang for the buck?

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

As the stars have all gone on holiday I have had a lot of frustration as, I'm sure, a lot of you have too. I have done the usual computer simulated staring up, but it just doesn't do it for me. Cloudy Starry Night Pro is a fabulous toy but it lacks the "been there" bit. More like watching a TV program about somewhere foreign and exotic than actually going there. It lacks the taste, smell, feel, COLD, of the real thing.

So lets have a heated debate!

What do you feel gives the best bang for the buck in equipment terms?

It could be any of the following:-

You need to spend most of the budget on the 'scope as eyepieces, filters and other add ons will accumulate as time and money allow.

Get ANY 'scope as paralasis by analysis will kill the whole thin dead if you don't do it NOW.

Modify what you have with a new Crayford / mirror/ red dot finder / you name it.

Use the 'scope that you have and add imaging gear / eyepieces / filters / Barlows and focal reducers until you NEED a better 'scope.

These are suggestions only, feel free to add your own wishlist here.

I'm interested in where people want to be in, let's say a year from now, given normal financial circumstances (i.e. no lottery win)

Have fun!

Captain Chaos

[GazOC]

You need to spend most of the budget on the 'scope as eyepieces, filters and other add ons will accumulate as time and money allow.

That gets my vote. You can always buy more accessories, you can never make the mirror/lens any bigger!!

[Ambermile]

Gets my vote too. I reckon a decent 5" fast apo would see me perfectly through the foreseeable. With apo optics upping the magnification makes little difference for planetary and there's still a nice widefield scope without telenegative additions.

Arthur

[CELESCOPE]

Well CC i,m pretty happy now with what i have , the only thing maybe would be .like Arthur a 5 inch FAST APO, i think that would be it really , and to set myself up with a good but easy Auto guiding system , i think my main spending days are coming to an end , after spending over 12k on this hobby so far , it has to halt , lol i,m satisfied with what i have now will take me through what i want to achieve

Rog

[orion f6.3]

my hilux coating (aprox 25 years befor a recoat) and quality 1/8pv or higher mirror

[trekker308]

I wouldn't change my scopes, but a 1/10th wave mirror set for my MN78 would do me just fine .........

.... and a remote control device that would switch all the lights off for 15 miles radius would be even better!

[Albireo380]

I would settle with the ability to get by on 4 hrs sleep a night - so I can stay out late when the clouds part. Otherwise, a 5" APO and a skyscan HEQ6 would be nice Santa.

Tom

[gaelicstorm7]

Interesting question CC

Would love a 5 or 6" apo refrctor, but know I'll never afford one so -

Quite happy with my Megrez at the moment and imaging with my 350D, so there staying, if/when finance's allow my next purchases/upgrades will be in no particular order a new mount (something with autostar/skyscan), and another OTA (something with abit more oomph, maybe a 150mm Mak/Cass, I like the views through my ETX90 so something along those lines that can be put on a better mount and no faffing about columinating required). Would also really like some quality eyepieces maybe some Lanths.

But one thing is for sure where possible I'd buy secondhand, much better value for money.

Other than that I'm happy

Alan

Thinking seriously of selling my ETX90, it never gets used now, think it's beceause I can't really image DSO's through it ,shame really it's a cracking little scope.

[MartinB]

Best bangs for buck probably an F6 150 - 200mm Newtonian

Top wishlist item - a very solid, permanently polar aligned mount.

Martin