Newts , planetary killers !

[cotterless45]

I'm a big frac fan , but looking back I found some memorable views of planets using Newts.

Don't think that you have to spend out on ed fracs or apos to get stunning views. The finest views were with a SW 150 Pl. the combination of 6" at f8 gave tack fine results. Some great oppositioñs , but the simplest of gear can produce, even orthos worked ! Collimation must be as good as you can do and it helped that  planets were quite high . Nick.

[Knighty2112]

Thanks Nick. I’ve been musing on a planet killer scope to add potentially to my mix, although to be honest the SCT does great when seeing allows.  

[nightfisher]

My bresser 150 F8 is pretty good but for what im doing these days the 127 mak is my choice, guess i bought the bresser at  the wrong time in my astro needs

 

 

[John]

When the planets have been higher, my 12" F/5.3 dob has produced absolutely stunning views of them. With them so low (from home anyway) the fracs make it easier to get a clear and prolonged view so they are getting more planetary use currently but I've missed what the big newt optics can do this season.

A longish, well collimated newt with decent optics and a relatively modest obstruction is a marvellous planetary instrument. So much less expensive than an apo as well

I'm a little wary of becoming a "one scope type" person.

[avtaram]

Totally agree, I've been using my 150pl f8 more often for short periods when the weather allows than my fracs as its kept in the summer house on a sabre mount. I'm amazed how good this scope is and cost only a fraction of what I paid for my fracs. I've only had to tweak the collimation a little once since I bought it about four years ago and the mirror still looks like new even though its been in the summer house all these years.

Avtar

[Mark at Beaufort]

Nick its great to look back and see the observing notes we made several years ago. For the outlay the Skywatcher 150L is an excellent Lunar and Planetary scope.

[Littleguy80]

Love the notes, Nick. My manual dob and collection of orthos have been working really well on that planets. I don’t own any fracs but also don’t feel the need right now. No doubt that’ll change in the fullness of time  

[Timebandit]

 

 

Had some great views of Jupiter with the OOuk 14 reflector a few weeks ago. A newt/reflector can produce some stunning views if the mirror it at ambient temperature and well collimated. The views of Jupiter a few weeks back in the reflector were certainty the best I have seen this year with incredible belt detail and the GRS showing so well ,and the colours so varied. The reflector certainly proved its worth that night on planetary, and combined with the great seeing conditions that we were lucky to enjoy.

A Newt is such a great bargain when you compare it to the APOs out there. What is a quality 6" to 7" APO , many many thousands. A quality newt in that range well under a thousand pounds . If you can afford just one scope then a quality newt/reflector at decent aperture is the way to go IMO.

 

 

[wookie1965]

I must start sketching, great drawings Nick I have the 200p F5 that gives good views but Jupiter now is right behind the street light which I am very annoyed about.

[iPeace]

4 hours ago, cotterless45 said:

I'm a big frac fan ,

Just like me

4 hours ago, cotterless45 said:

but looking back I found some memorable views of planets using Newts. 

Don't think that you have to spend out on ed fracs or apos to get stunning views.

My fracs are small - 85mm, 71mm and 60mm - and fun to use, travel well in various modes. But aperture does do certain things. Tried a bigger (120mm, very nice, very popular) frac, but eventually passed it on. In hindsight, it wobbled more, I was crouching more, and it wasn't making enough of a difference to be worth it. Dabbled in Maks. Tried a Newt just for the Herschel of it - then things started happening.

My first was a very affordable 6" f/6. Really opened my eyes to how much you can get for so little. In addition, the ergonomics are so nice - standing up at the front instead of crouching/sitting  down at the back just suits me.

5 hours ago, cotterless45 said:

The finest views were with a SW 150 Pl. the combination of 6" at f8 gave tack fine results

A 6" f/8 came soon after; admittedly sort of an experiment to see the effects of longer f-ratio and a "better" mirror. Result: more magnification, and little else to my eyes. This is not to say the 6" f/8 formula doesn't work - it does. It may well be a "sweet spot" for planetary observing - but I'm only speculating at the moment.

5 hours ago, cotterless45 said:

it helped that planets were quite high

This is undoubtedly part of my current speculations; with the planets often skimming the rooftops for the time being, it's not easy to tell. More inherently, I'm pondering the merits of the 6" f/8 format. Being used to much smaller apertures, the brightness of Jupiter at 6" is a lot to handle, and has me thinking about trying a filter or two in order to extract the additionally resolved detail from the glare. It may also just take some getting used to. On Luna - which is my most important reason for more aperture - this seems less of an issue; so much so that I've decided on a 8" f/6 Newt to give me the most aperture my mount of choice will comfortably handle. It should give me a bit more Lunar detail - not expecting miracles, but it won't hurt - and every bit helps for globulars, etc.

But awaiting arrival of the 8" f/6, the question is in my mind as to whether an even brighter Jupiter will be better for me, or less so. In other words, is 6" f/8 justfiably ideal for planetary due to it being big enough, with ample magnification, but not too big?

In short - I agree; you don't need to spend a lot for great planetary views. Even if you can afford a big(ger) frac, you may just prefer the Newt format for larger apertures, as I seem to do.

4 hours ago, John said:

I'm a little wary of becoming a "one scope type" person. 

Even when limiting the discussion to a specific class of target, the positions and / or conditions may well dictate.

Considering widefield use, I've curbed my own musings on some sort of long, wide-angle eyepiece for the Newt with the idea that if I want to get a good view of The Pleiades or wide views of rich star fields, I should be using a different scope - which I have.

These thoughts of mine come with the usual disclaimer to the effect that your dog knows more about all this stuff than I do.

[JeremyS]

6 minutes ago, iPeace said:

But awaiting arrival of the 8" f/6

What did you go for, iPeace?

[iPeace]

Just now, JeremyS said:

What did you go for, iPeace?

Custom carbon job from TS. Will report on arrival.

[JeremyS]

Just now, iPeace said:

Custom carbon job from TS. Will report on arrival.

Excellent - looking forward to the report

[dweller25]

For the planets I am a refractor/Mak fan but the scope that gave me the best planetary views was a Skywatcher 250P.

Sadly my back did not get on well with it, so I have changed my scopes so I can view from the rear.

Newtonians give amazing performance and are excellent value for money.

[estwing]

4 hours ago, Littleguy80 said:

I don’t own any fracs but also don’t feel the need right now. No doubt that’ll change in the fullness of time

save yer money...

 

[estwing]

if you are finding that your scope is suiting your needs, then go with that!

[Littleguy80]

28 minutes ago, estwing said:

if you are finding that your scope is suiting your needs, then go with that!

Very sound advice. My dob will keep me happy for years to come. I have a few ambitions, like seeing the full Veil complex in a single FOV, that will require a good wide field scope. That’ll probably bring about a frac purchase. For the foreseeable, though, it’s just me and Dob and I’m perfectly happy with that (cue music: just the two of us...)

[estwing]

41 minutes ago, Littleguy80 said:

seeing the full Veil complex in a single FOV

look at it from a mates frac then try it in a 16"+ dob....you won't bother trying to get it all in FOV  again...ask big dob owners...swampthing and mapstar...even Scott!

[swamp thing]

1 hour ago, estwing said:

look at it from a mates frac then try it in a 16"+ dob....you won't bother trying to get it all in FOV  again...ask big dob owners...swampthing and mapstar...even Scott!

I tend to agree with Cal. Buying a scope for just one view is kinda daft.

Go to a star party or invite another SGL member to an observing session with you. Both of these are far cheaper than buying a scope.

If you then decide you like the entire veil in one FOV then buy a scope that will show it  

 

[iPeace]

20 hours ago, John said:

I'm a little wary of becoming a "one scope type" person. 

[Littleguy80]

18 hours ago, estwing said:

look at it from a mates frac then try it in a 16"+ dob....you won't bother trying to get it all in FOV  again...ask big dob owners...swampthing and mapstar...even Scott!

 

16 hours ago, swamp thing said:

I tend to agree with Cal. Buying a scope for just one view is kinda daft.

Go to a star party or invite another SGL member to an observing session with you. Both of these are far cheaper than buying a scope.

If you then decide you like the entire veil in one FOV then buy a scope that will show it  

 

I hope Nick will forgive me for going a bit off topic....

The Veil was just an example rather the sole reason for consider a frac purchase in the future. I've had some good sessions recently with a friend who has a frac. The two scopes complimented each other well. There was another session with my 10" dob, a 3" frac and an 18" dob. All performing brilliantly under dark skies. 

I see myself as being a one scope guy for the next few years. I think the 10" dob is such a versatile scope that I can use it for pretty much anything. However, I think a widefield scope can give it a different kind of fun. Sometimes you want a sports car to drive as fast as you can around the track, other times you want a convertible to cruise in the sun with.

I totally respect what you guys do with the big dobs. The 18" I tried was stunning! I'd like to think that I'll have a big dob like that too one day. Doesn't mean a short frac won't give some great views too though. All I'm really saying is that there's no right or wrong if you're enjoying the view  

[estwing]

I totally agree mate Fracs definitely have there place in astronomy....it's in the finderscope shoe on your UTA..?

[John]

Don't know how I have ended up with 5 fracs and one dob

Must be something about the little fella's that draw me though

Don't be a "one type" person Neil - play the field, have fun, decide for youself what ticks your boxes

[Timebandit]

1 hour ago, Littleguy80 said:

 

I hope Nick will forgive me for going a bit off topic....

The Veil was just an example rather the sole reason for consider a frac purchase in the future. I've had some good sessions recently with a friend who has a frac. The two scopes complimented each other well. There was another session with my 10" dob, a 3" frac and an 18" dob. All performing brilliantly under dark skies. 

I see myself as being a one scope guy for the next few years. I think the 10" dob is such a versatile scope that I can use it for pretty much anything. However, I think a widefield scope can give it a different kind of fun. Sometimes you want a sports car to drive as fast as you can around the track, other times you want a convertible to cruise in the sun with.

I totally respect what you guys do with the big dobs. The 18" I tried was stunning! I'd like to think that I'll have a big dob like that too one day. Doesn't mean a short frac won't give some great views too though. All I'm really saying is that there's no right or wrong if you're enjoying the view  

 

 

Its all about horses for courses IMO . Each scope has its advantages and disadvantages. It depends on your wallet and what you really want out of the hobby. 

My own personal preference is Frac on lunar , planetary and double stars. And aperture in the form of a light bucket reflector to draw those fainter DSO. 

Horses for courses IMO ?

 

 

[Stu]

There is much to be said for a 150mm f8 newt Nick, nice and convenient to use and small enough aperture to cut through poor seeing well.

Strangely enough, the planetary detail I see through my 4" never feels like it is missing out too much based on the reports I read, not bad for a finderscope.

Shouldn't these dob boys get back to their DSO forum anyway, thought this thread was about planets?