Dobsian telescope

[Shepdog]

If read every best under $300 article i can find and tried to find an answer here...can i get a good 8 inch dob in that price range? Or would I be regretting not waiting til i can spend $400?

This purchase will be what I hope to use for mid level user..

[BS269]

The only American telescope store I know of is highpoint scientific, who prices a skywatcher 8” dob at $445. Based on this price I would say you could find a used one for around $300 on the cloudy nights classifieds forum, link here - 

https://www.cloudynights.com/classifieds
 

you may have to be patient and look regularly, but buying second hand from the stargazing community is generally a safe bet, as they take good care of their equipment.
 

If this is your first time buying something to view the night sky through, then a good pair of binoculars are highly recommended for starting out. traversing the sea of stars is difficult for the inexperienced, using binoculars gives you the widest field of view to learn where everything is. Not to mention the breathtaking view of an innumerable amount of stars that you’ll see through the view.

if you are insistent on a telescope, then an 8” dob is a great choice that will serve you for life. Save up as much as you can, get one 2nd hand and spend the rest on some better eyepieces and accessories!

Ben

[faulksy]

for your lower price bracket you could buy this from our sponsor https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html

but bigger is always better

consider storage and transport as well

[Shepdog]

Thank you for the info...how big of a difference is there between the 6 inch and 8 inch model as far as what you can see ? And is THAT also something id regret not holding out for?

[Louis D]

2 hours ago, faulksy said:

for your lower price bracket you could buy this from our sponsor https://www.firstlightoptics.com/dobsonians/skywatcher-skyliner-150p-dobsonian.html

Two problems:

1. Over $200 to ship to the US from FLO.
2. Out of stock for at least 40 days.

[Louis D]

2 hours ago, Shepdog said:

If read every best under $300 article i can find and tried to find an answer here...can i get a good 8 inch dob in that price range? Or would I be regretting not waiting til i can spend $400?

This purchase will be what I hope to use for mid level user..

You'll find just about every retailer is out of stock on just about all telescopes, so you might as well continue saving up for a new 8" when they become available again.  That, and watch the astro classifieds (Cloudy Nights and Astromart) as well as Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace for used ones.

[Shepdog]

Ok...well..i just started and trying to learn as much as i can..and picking out a christmas gift in advance lol thanks Louis...amd Faulksy

[Louis D]

44 minutes ago, Shepdog said:

Ok...well..i just started and trying to learn as much as i can..and picking out a christmas gift in advance lol thanks Louis...amd Faulksy

Pick out something quick and get on the waiting list at a reputable dealer or two if you want it by Christmas.  You might get lucky and find a good used scope while waiting.

[Shepdog]

I think I will go used like you advised...checking marketplace on FB now lol

I just know if i dont get the 8 i will end up buying it later lol

[Louis D]

24 minutes ago, Shepdog said:

I think I will go used like you advised...checking marketplace on FB now lol

I just know if i dont get the 8 i will end up buying it later lol

Be willing to meet someone halfway distance-wise.  Nashville, Knoxville, Lexington, and Louisville would all be larger markets than your home town yet make for reasonable drives.  You don't want to ship a Dob within the US.  They're just too big and heavy unless you have a merchant account.  Be patient, but always make it clear you want to buy it, or they'll move on to a more likely buyer.  You can always back out later if there are real issues when you see it in person.

[Shepdog]

I wish there was a different emoji than the heart..lol I appreciate that advice..

[Louis D]

2 hours ago, Shepdog said:

I wish there was a different emoji than the heart..lol I appreciate that advice..

Yeah, apparently there's a lot of love of astronomy circulating around the UK.  😄

[AlexK]

I've been poking the idea of building a 8" travel scope for myself. If you have any experience sawing plywood there are plenty of easy to repeat designs. The set of nice mirrors for a 8" (same as in all scopes you see for $400-600 with mirrors from GSO) is around $200. I've been targeting the 1:4 one for $300 shipped. Set of mirror cell and a spider is around $80 (toughest to build). Set of eyepieces of same quality as what shipped with these Dobs is around $100. But I'd rather get a good 8-24 zoom for 70 and a Barlow for 30.

 

And yes, the difference between 6" and 8" views is striking enough to consider skipping the 6".

Edited October 8, 2020 by AlexK
(2nd question)

[Spacecake2]

7 hours ago, Shepdog said:

Thank you for the info...how big of a difference is there between the 6 inch and 8 inch model as far as what you can see ? And is THAT also something id regret not holding out for?

It depends what telescope you own now. If you have a 5 inch then there won't be much difference compared to a 6 inch.

[jonathan]

Just playing devil's advocate...  with the current boom in interest in astronomy and rush on telescopes, I think it's fair to say a percentage of those will find their way onto the second hand market as some find their purchases a bit beyond their level, or not being used as often as they thought.  Might be worth being patient if you want to pick up a nearly new scope at a bargain price.

As for size, from experience and the old addage I can say that there's certainly an aspect of diminishing returns with astronomy equipment where size and quality are concerned, 8" is a good size (😏) and should serve well, larger scopes have their uses but for visual I don't think the relatively small gains are usually worth the extra money or hassle.  If you want to go big, then start big and stay there, but don't buy 8" and then think that 12" is going to be massively better because in my experience it just isn't, plus a 12" Dob is like the size of a man and awkward to handle for one person.

[Louis D]

5 hours ago, jonathan said:

If you want to go big, then start big and stay there, but don't buy 8" and then think that 12" is going to be massively better because in my experience it just isn't, plus a 12" Dob is like the size of a man and awkward to handle for one person.

That's why I say to double your aperture to see a massive improvement.  I went from 3" to 8" to 15", and the improvement at each step was very noticeable.  I just can't fathom a 30" at this point. 😆

Edited October 9, 2020 by Louis D

[Shepdog]

I'm keeping an eye on FB marketplace ...not sure of other places within my local area to look..id drive a few hours for a deal for sure..are the dobs difficult to use as long as they are collaminated? And how difficult is it to collaminate? I dont wanns get into something beyond my skill level....yet lol

[John]

6 minutes ago, Shepdog said:

I'm keeping an eye on FB marketplace ...not sure of other places within my local area to look..id drive a few hours for a deal for sure..are the dobs difficult to use as long as they are collaminated? And how difficult is it to collaminate? I dont wanns get into something beyond my skill level....yet lol

The "Cloudynights" forum has a classifieds section that is US / Canada based:

https://www.cloudynights.com/classifieds/

The forum is free to join.

 

[jetstream]

29 minutes ago, Shepdog said:

I'm keeping an eye on FB marketplace ...not sure of other places within my local area to look..id drive a few hours for a deal for sure..are the dobs difficult to use as long as they are collaminated? And how difficult is it to collaminate? I dont wanns get into something beyond my skill level....yet lol

This place might have a Sky Watcher dob here in Canada. It might have free shipping to you. They are easy to collimate.

https://focusscientific.com/shipping.php

@John question: is it within the COC for me to post these vendor links? I was never sure.

[Louis D]

4 hours ago, Shepdog said:

I'm keeping an eye on FB marketplace ...not sure of other places within my local area to look..id drive a few hours for a deal for sure..are the dobs difficult to use as long as they are collaminated? And how difficult is it to collaminate? I dont wanns get into something beyond my skill level....yet lol

Dobs are dirt simple to operate.  Just point and look.  Then nudge-nudge-nudge to keep the object in view.  The harder part is learning where objects are on the sky, and what to look for through the eyepiece to know you're on an object.

Collimation is a learned skill that takes a few tries to work through and become proficient at, but it's not difficult to do.  Once done, most Dobs hold their collimation pretty well and might just need a slight tweak to it over time.

[callisto]

On 08/10/2020 at 01:28, Louis D said:

Yeah, apparently there's a lot of love of astronomy circulating around the UK.  😄

Ya'll better believe it my friend 😍

[John]

4 hours ago, jetstream said:

This place might have a Sky Watcher dob here in Canada. It might have free shipping to you. They are easy to collimate.

https://focusscientific.com/shipping.php

@John question: is it within the COC for me to post these vendor links? I was never sure.

I'm not a moderator now Gerry but I think it is OK.

[jetstream]

1 hour ago, John said:

I'm not a moderator now Gerry but I think it is OK.

I didn't notice!🥴 I just assumed you always would be for some reason, thanks for the info John.

[Shepdog]

IL check it out John...thanks

[Louis D]

6 hours ago, John said:

I'm not a moderator now Gerry but I think it is OK.

When did this happen???? 🤔