Best Telescope for £130 or under?

[Timo]

Hi, my aunty is buying my uncle a telescope for Christmas, however she is unsure what to look for in one, and unfortunately so am I.

She was initially looking at a National Geographic 76mm Newtonium scope from Argos (of all places).

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/pa....3ETELESCOPE.htm

Wouldn't think Argos is the best place to buy a telescope (due to the lack of choice), so would really appreciate any advice.

Are there any better telescopes that should be on our shortlist upto £130? What things (specifications) should we look out for in a good (ish) scope?

Thanks,

Timo

[jgs001]

Timo,What about one of these

, Or if your Aunt is near Sussex... http://stargazerslounge.com/index.php/topic,35448.0/topicseen.html

[Doc]

Don't buy from Argos if you can.

The telescopes you get from there are not very good.

Try FLO who are the sponsers for this site.

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/categories.php?cat=7

[John]

Hi Timo,

I agree with John's (jgs001) recommendations - do try and steer your Aunt away from Argos - the only decent astronomy product that I've ever seen in thier listings are the Celestron 15x70 binoculars.

Your Uncle will have much more enjoyment from a proper telescope.

John

[Tiny]

The Skywatcher 130PM reflector from firstlight is an excellent starter scope. If that one is too dear the Skywatcher 1145PM reflector is offers a bit less but will fit your price range. Both come with enough kit to get you started. Then you need a couple of bits (suggestions please) to tell you where to look with the scope.

[ChrisEdu]

Timo,What about one of these

, Or if your Aunt is near Sussex... http://stargazerslounge.com/index.php/topic,35448.0/topicseen.html

That's a good call!

[Timo]

You've offered some wonderful advice, and so quick. Thank you!

Argos are more a department store, so couldn't let my Aunt buy from there! Hence my posting here.

Looking at the Skywatcher Explorer 130PM and Skyhawk 1145PM (the Celestron on ebay is way out of our way unfortunately). They look great (will have to let my aunt decide her budget as ultimately it's not my money, but I will pay the difference Explorer > Skyhawk if it's significantly worth the extra?).

The difference between the two being the Skywatcher being able to magnify up to x130 as opposed to the Skyhawk's x100? (Incidently, was Argos' Newtonium's claimed magnification of x525 hyperbole? I'm guessing it was correct, but very poor quality image output. A bit like budget camcorders.) Are the "Highest Practical Power (Potential)" magnification specifications for the included eye-piece, or would that necessitate a different eye-piece kit being used with the telescope?

What would the larger primary mirror of the Explorer (130mm compared to the Skyhawk's 114mm) and the larger eye-piece focal length (650mm f/5 compared to Skyhawk's 500m f/4.4) offer? Is it higher magnification, or luminence, or similar?

So, they (Explorer/Skyhawk) contain everything needed (all in one package) to get going?

Noticed the optional extras, such as the Meade ND96 Moon filter and Celestron Collicap, and the Revelation Eyepiece kit. What do they offer?

It would be nice to think that my Uncle can upgrade the telescope with various options later if wished.

Sorry for all the Qs, and thanks kindly for all the responses!

Timo

[russ]

What would the larger primary mirror of the Explorer (130mm compared to the Skyhawk's 114mm) and the larger eye-piece focal length (650mm f/5 compared to Skyhawk's 500m f/4.4) offer? Is it higher magnification, or luminence, or similar?

A slightly brighter image and tiny bit more detail. But the difference would be small.

All telescopes, regardless of price, size etc, are limited by the same thing....our skies! The magnifications quoted are just for ideal situations. The ones quoted by Skywatcher are realistic for the scope on a good night with the telescope collimated perfectly. The Argosquoted ones areridiculous.

[Tiny]

The bigger mirror offers more light and so can see a little better. It also allows you to see stars that are very close together just a bit easier.

The magnification is the thing a lot of laymen think important. In fact the kit offered gives adequate magnification for nice wide view objects (using the 25mm eyepiece) and also seeing detail (using the 10mm with/without the barlow) Normally in our atmosphere high magnifications are not an advantage as they blur compared to lower ones. This means as a starter kit the 130 gives slightly higher magnification than the 1145 but either are OK. Having said that the 130 is worth the extra and once the person owning sees what it can do - and maybe reads some of the stuff on this site he can decide if he wants other eyepieces or a better scope.

Warning - Getting hooked on this stuff can be costly!

[geoff_k]

Timo

You have put your finger on the problem with so-called 'department store' scopes.

They make outrageous claims about magnification which is not the most important thing anyway.

As a rule of thumb the highest usable magnification for any scope is 2 x the aperture in mm or 50 x inches, although given atmospheric conditions (seeing) even these figures are rarely achieved in this country at least.

Therefore, the 130PM (a good choice for a beginner) translates into a maximum usable magnification of 260x. The Argos scope would struggle to achieve 140x at best and would soon find its way to a car boot sale or landfill.

However, other factors such as aperture, quality of the optics and seeing conditions are generally more critical than magnification. Add to that a reasonable mount and good eyepieces and you have a telescope that won't disappoint.

The 130PM package will give you everything your Uncle needs to get going. If he enjoys using it and really gets into the hobby there are always many more things to buy! Even if heaven forbid your Uncle loses interest, they are eminently re-sellable unlike the Argos scope.

The two eyepieces provided are fine giving magnifications of 26 and 52 respectively, the 2x Barlow lenses doubles the magnification of any given eyepiece effectively giving him four eyepieces. The RA (Right Ascension) motor is really useful for tracking objects and keeping them in view.

He may find that an additional eyepiece might eventually be useful to push up the magnification on objects such as the Moon or Saturn. Moon filters can also be handy to reduce glare from our nearest neighbour, and light pollution and nebula filters can really help when viewing much more distant objects. But they can wait, and you will have plenty of options for future presents!

Tell your Uncle that a forum like this is full of helpful people who give useful and friendly advice whatever your level of experience.

Good luck.

[Timo]

Tell your Uncle that a forum like this is full of helpful people who give useful and friendly advice whatever your level of experience.

Indeed! I already love you guys. Thanks so much!

Been speaking to my aunt and we're going for the Explorer 130PM for £150 (inc. P&P) from FLO.

One Q. My dad briefly mentioned that, with an old reflector telescope he had during the 80's, the image you actually see is inverted. This figures (if I had actually thought about it), but do newer telescopes like the 130PM have an additional inbuilt lens or concave mirror to re-invert the image?

Thanks.

[Timo]

Just a thought. Are reflector types of telescopes (such as the 130PM) more cost effective than refractors at this price-point, or vice versa? Which stands to offer greater usable magnification?

The [Startravel 80] or [Evostar 90] refractor scopes are at a similar pricepoint to the [Explorer 130PM] reflector.

[dweller25]

I know it's £15 above your limit but consider this one ...

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/proddetail.php?prod=dobsky150

This scope will last a lifetime and is a simple point and shoot Dobsonain capable of low power views of star clusters, galaxies, comets and around x150 power for the planets.

Dobsonians are the classic starter scopes.

[Astro_Baby]

Any reflector will invert the image ( come to think of it so will a refractor ) unless the scope has something to correct it ( either a diagnonal or a correction lens ) its not usually a problem for an astronomical scope as your not too fussed about stuff being right way up most of the time ( ie theres no natural orientation in space as there is with earth bound objects ).

Trust us - the 130PM is probably the best going for the money your spending and will give probably the best views for a scope in its price range. Loads of people on here have owned one and you wont hear many ( if any at all ) complain about it.

The Argos thing is seriously duff and you see loads of them on ebay fighting to get some money back and usually selling them for £10 in the end. A 130PM will last a lifetime OR if you decide to upgrade it or simply sell it on they will usually fetch a decent price.

I sold one super cheap a few months ago for £90 but I have seen them fetch £110 on secondhand sales usually cos its such a good bit of kit.

If you want to see my own review of it ( and I restarted in the hobby with one ) theres my pitch on it HERE

[Starflyer]

The 130PM also has a better mount than the Skyhawk. I've used 'scopes on both types of mount; EQ1 and EQ2, the EQ2 is much more substantial and you'll get less problems with vibration when focussing.

I just quickly read through this thread so somebody else may have made this point already

The 150P dobsonian is also an excellent suggestion.

Ian

[TheThing]

I'm sure that reflectors invert the image - turn it upside down - whilst refractors turn it into a mirror image - left to right. Correct me if I'm wrong!!

(Haven't had a refractor for ages, but picking one up on Sunday am at last!)

[mcut]

if i was starting out and had £130 i would borrow the £15 extra and get the 130pm from firstlight as already recommended.

[Doc]

if i was starting out and had £130 i would borrow the £15 extra and get the 130pm from firstlight as already recommended.

I would as well.

[DM]

Was asked by one of the students to recommend a scope (about £150) for the boyfriend. Went through the different options and tried to think about practical issues like portability etc. Eventually came down to the Explorer 130 PM or the 150 Dob. I think either would be excellent to get started with. In the end I think it went to the Dob for the extra aperture. It really is very difficult to choose a scope for someone else - there are a lot of things that really come down to individual circumstances and personal preferences.

Still, it was pretty easy to recommend where to get it from - another one for the sponsors I hope!

Cheers

Dave

[Timo]

Indeed, purchased the 130PM online from FLO yesterday! Went for the 130PM as it's a portable all-in-one scope (with tripod). Wasn't sure how the Skyliner 150P Dobsonian was mounted, in that respect?! Or is it just a table-top scope (spying from the rubber feet)?

Thanks.

[Timo]

One last Q. Is it possible to attach an SLR to the 130PM for astro-photography, like people do with other 'scopes? I guess an adapter may be needed?

Thanks

[Tiny]

There used to be a screw fitting on the 'top' of one of the scope ring brackets for this purpose.

[Astro_Baby]

Theres a screw for attaching a camera to the top of the scope for widefield / piggyback - ie you use the scope as a mount for the camera and use the cams lens.

Alternately you'd need a 'T' adapter to fit the camera to the focuser which is called prime focus photography. Another alternative would be to get an adapter that allows the camera to mount to the eyepiece itself which is called afocal photograhpy.

Although people do it with the 130 I was always dubious if the focuser would be strong enough to cope with a camera attached. Initially I was interested in photography but when I started looking into it it seemed like a) a lot of hassle that would end up putting me off the hobby and VERY expensive.

[ash]

excellent choice my first, well second, was a 130pm first sight of saturn through it blew my socks off.

Good choice of scope good choice of forum.....you're on your way :cheers:

Andy

[Timo]

Thanks again all. Need your advice once again, please.

What is the difference between these two Skywatcher 130's?!:-

They both have 130mm Primary Mirrors, but the one at FLO has 650mm focal length (f/5 aperture) and x26, x52, x65, x130 magnifications, and the other telescope of the same name has 900mm (f/6.92 aperture) and x36, x72, x90, x180 magnifications. There's only £5 difference.

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/product/default.aspx?sku=1017011

http://www.firstlightoptics.com/proddetail.php?prod=s130pm

I received the 130PM (650mm focal length) from FLO today. It remains unopened as yet. Should I exchange it for the other version?! I see the other version is for deeper-sky observations? What other differences are there, in use?

Even SkyWatcher's website shows the two Explorer 130s (SK1309EQ2) and (SKP13065EQ2), the latter being the '130PM' version from FLO.

Much appreciated,

Timo