equipment purchase

[twiga]

Where is a good place to buy astronomical equipment

[Cornelius Varley]

That would depend upon where you are in the world.

[twiga]

near salt lake city utah

[twiga]

utah

[Kev M]

Are they having an Astronomy day today at the University...maybe you could pop along ?

https://observatory.astro.utah.edu/

 

 

[Cosmic Geoff]

This is rather like 'where should I buy a car?'  It depends on whether there is a dealer near you, how much you know about scopes, and whether you want a popular model, or something exotic, among other things.

Avoid buying a starter scope from a general store or supermarket.

Safest bet is to educate yourself as far as possible and then buy from an astronomy dealer -either face to face or online.

If you like a bargain, you can buy secondhand.  Buying from genuine amateurs via a forum like this (or your local equivalent) is fairly safe and will save you money.

You can buy used from dealers who sell used astronomy equipment with some confidence as they have a reputation to maintain. Savings vs new will not be so large.

You can find bargains on ebay but this is more risky and there is the possibility of getting burned by less scrupulous sellers.  If it looks too good to be true, then it probably is...

Be aware that if you buy used you may get something as good as new, with extra accessories, but equally you may find that your used purchase needs some fettling before you can use it.

[dweller25]

The guys on Cloudynights may know some good places

[rwilkey]

Hi Twiga and welcome to SGL.  I have found the best place to order stuff is AgenaAstro in CA, I have made many happy purchases here and they have great customer service and fast delivery, found here:

https://agenaastro.com/