SW Explorer 150P + AZ4 mount - advice for a beginner, please

[Chaplin]

Hi everyone

Thanks a lot for taking time to check out my post.

So, I'm very new to all of this - only got this second hand 150P (750mm focal lenght) +AZ4 mount about 3 weeks ago after my wife suggested we'd get a telescope for our daughter. I did some browsing around and thought that spending well under £200 on this second hand setup would probably better than buying something new for that price from Amazon.

Since I got the scope with the stock EPs and barlow, I've already got some extra gear:

- Baader Hyperion 8mm

- TMB Planetary Optical 6mm

- William Optics SPL 12.5mm

- AstroEssentials Variable moon filter

- 25mm stock EP + 2x stock barlow what came with the scope

I've spent outside around 5-6 hours over the last couple of weeks , checking out the Venus, Capella and other easier to find brighter stars and constallations. And I've loved it so far!

1) I've used couple of the apps on the phone for guidance but I've really struggled to work things out cause most of the things are upside down etc when looking through the EP so moving around has been a struggle. Any advice how to make things easier when navigating? Or is it just practise practise practise? 

2) I've been trying to find some of the nebulas, like last night I was trying to pinpoint the Dumbbell Nebula but had no luck at all. Now, it can be that as it's to the East of me and I'm looking across whole of Manchester (Salford is to the west of Manchester), there's just too much light pollution. Or maybe the gear I have (scope + EPs), aren't good enough, or maybe I just couldn't find it. What do you think, is my setup good enough to see those DSO's? And if you think it is good enough, it's obviosuly my skills what need improving

3) Altough I'd like to be able to learn the skill to find all the objects in the sky, I also quite like the idea of a GoTo mount. Is there anything out there I could fit on my existing mount to make the whole setup GoTo? As I quite like the idea of doing astrophotography in the future, ideally the GoTo system would be good enough to support it. 

4) I wear glasses but when looking through the EP I remove my glasses. It feels a lot more comfortable that way, even though it's annoying to take them off and put them back on again when trying to check the app on my phone for some guidance. Am I doing it right or should I be keeping my glasses on all the time and just find a comfortable position to use all my EPs?

5) Range of EPs and barlow. I'm thinking that I probably need another EP on the 25-30mm range, something with a wide angle as I really like the Baader 8mm wide view one I have at the moment. I'm also thinking of buying a branded 2x barlow (is Celestron X-Cel LX 2x good?) to make sure I'm getting a good quality image through it (don't trust the stock one what came with it).  Would something like 25mm help me star hop easier?

So yes, there you go, a complete novice with a lot of questions and wishes (and not enough money to make it all happen)  Thanks

[Cosmic Geoff]

I have seen the Dumbell Nebula (M27) many times from my urban edge of town site.  So could be that your light pollution is too bad, or you are just not finding it.

You can't convert the AZ-4 to a GoTo mount.  You would have to buy a complete GoTo mount and tripod, adequately rated for the 150p.  And that is likely to prove rather expensive.  If you could run to a EQ-5 Pro Synscan (at around £550), that would do the job and also be good for mounting alternative scopes.

As a cheap but not very good option, the AZ-4 has calibrated altitude and azimuth scales which may serve as a guide for finding stuff once you establish a reference point and have a program on hand to give you a "live" altitude and azimuth.  You can buy a "Wixey" gauge which will give a more accurate (digital) altitude reading.  I had to dismantle my AZ-4 and flip over the azimuth scale disc to make the azimuth read the right way round (increasing westwards).

[Chaplin]

Thanks @Cosmic Geoff 

I was just thinking how to get an accurate altitude reading on this mount and the idea of a digital gauge is brilliant, thanks! I guess I'll have to do with that until I can get a new mount and tripod...

I think the previous owner has already flipped the azimuth scale disc as it's upside down

Thanks a lot for your thoughts.