8" or 10" Dobsonian?

[Thomas Blose]

I have an Orion xt6 that I really like. I'm thinking of either an 8 or 10🤔🤔 I'm into cellphone astrophtography of the moon and planets. Going from a 6 will the views in an 8 or 10 be vastly different? Or is the larger aperture mainly for deeper space objects?

[fiestazetecmk2]

200p  for me.size matters? .

If you can carry it.get it in your car.find somewhere safe to keep it.then fine.

Because they all come into play .

Even more so if you buy a dobsonion that's to big and heavy .

And you finish up looking at a fabulous dobsonian that lives in the corner of the room .

It really is something you need to think long and hard about.

Wouldn't change my 200p for anything because I can manage it. And it really is a fabulous dob .

Imho.

[John]

If you really intend to stick to the moon and planets then the additional aperture might not make a lot of difference. The XT6 is an F/8 newtonian which is a really nice spec for a lunar and planetary scope.

If you were to branch out into a wider variety of targets then the additional aperture, especially of the 10 inch will prove beneficial - there is no substitute for additional light grasp when it comes to deep sky observing.

 

[Oat]

I had a 200p and sold it - views were great but i learnt that the best telescope is the one you'll use the most, and for me the 200p was so big to store and so heavy and awkward to take outdoors that it didn't get much use.

If you have the space to store it and are happy to carry it outdoors (it's not light) then i'd go for aperture every time. But is not, then go for the smaller one..

[Louis D]

Moving up from 6" to 8" won't be nearly as noticeable difference moving from 6" to 10".  Try it for yourself on your 6".  Create a circular mask with a 4.5" diameter opening and put it on and off over the front of your scope while observing different objects.  This is the same step difference as moving from 6" to 8".  Now repeat the same experiment with a 3.6" diameter mask.  This will demonstrate the 6" to 10" step to you.  Make sure to consider the weight and bulkiness increases in moving from 6" to 8" to 10" before any purchases.  Also, each step up results in a shorter focal ratio, so each will be more and more demanding on your eyepieces in terms of edge correction.  On the 10" in particular, you'll probably want to invest in a coma corrector to make the outer edges of wide field eyepieces more acceptable.  If you only use 50 degree or less AFOV eyepieces, you might be fine without one.

[joe aguiar]

10" is a really nice size for dso (deep sky objects) but its heavier and more bulky

will it be fron iside your place to the backyard only? if so then sure get the 10" take the base first then the tube.

if u have to carry it to a pary etc then 8" will be max or too much depending how far 

Joejaguar

[davekelley]

I have a lot of light pollution and I have owned a 6", 8" and 10" dobsonian.  Quite honestly even bright nebula like M42, M57, M13, M31, M27 are my staples if I'm looking for DSO's, and it may just be me, but I couldn't see any great difference between the *2 and the 12 inch, the extra aperture seemed to pull in more light pollution somehow,  I liked the 6" and 8" dobs better!  I know that sounds mad but it's a personal thing at the end of the day.  There's hardly any difference in portability between the 6" and 8"  and the 8" is a faster scope but you would see the benefit of that extra aperture.  As you go bigger, you really want dark skies and therefore you want something portable you can take out somewhere properly dark.  Everything in the hobby is a compromise   There, I've been no help at all.  I now have a 127 Mak  because I wanted goto and tracking.  I love the tracking but the goto is rubbish, it never finds the target, not by a long way.

Whatever you decide to do, enjoy your scope

Dave.