Hi all...

[Zermelo]

Congratulations, the Heritage is well regarded as a starter scope around these parts. (yes, I do say "scope". No, I'm not cool).

[Mr Spock]

Hi Jason, welcome to SGL 

[Starwatcher2001]

Welcome aboard SGL Jason. Good to have you with us.

While you're waiting for your scope to arrive, it's a good time to get out into the back garden and get familiar with the constellations - if you're not already.

I'm fond of this time of year as it's Nov/Dec when I first ventured outside to look at the stars and hadn't a single clue what was where. I bought a copy of "Collins - Night Sky", which is well-battered 20 years later. I spent every night I could getting familiar with the constellations, how they move during the night, and the names of the major bright stars. That gave me a reasonable mental map of where the treasures lie up there. Good viewing nights are precious, so doing this before you get your scope will help you get the most out of it. As the seasons progress your targets will change of course, until Orion, Auriga and the rest return back again next year like old friends!

Enjoy this amazing hobby!

 

[Tiny Clanger]

1 hour ago, Jasonb said:

Thanks for the welcome! I have to say, I'm on a few different forums for different topics and I'm really struck by the amount of replies I've gotten, makes me feel quite welcome for a newbie!

So, things changed quickly. I had been looking at the Starquest 130P, deciding I really wanted a 130P if possible, and the EQ mount, while possibly overkill for my first 'scope (do people say 'scope' or is that not cool? ), might have advantages later on. But, of course, nowhere has anything in stock for ages, so that's frustrating.

Then FLO announce their Black Friday sale and I start thinking I should be open to other telescopes, and not be so locked into the Starquest. So I did a bit of research about other potential 130Ps and then FLO offer a Skywatcher Heritage 130P! Some quick research shows it basically has the same aperture, focal length etc. etc. as the Starquest, so the 'basics' are there for me. A light shroud and some pfe tape for the focuser seem to me the main first mods (though I'll look into that more later) and that doesn't seem too daunting. And the Dobsonian mount really is going to be easier to deal with from the off. This telescope is for me, but I have a 7 year old daughter as well, and this telescope seem like it would be much easier for her to get into too.

So after that quick research I pulled the trigger and got the Heritage!  Can't wait to get my hands on it now, it'll be good to being a beginner who actually has a telescope! Most of my thoughts around the Barlow/Eyepieces etc. are still valid as it's effectively the same size telescope. In fact, this one doesn't come with a Barlow, so the 2 way Barlow (1.3x and 2.25x) might be a good first buy now, before looking at eyepieces.

Clearly I'm just writing all this 'cos I found a telescope in stock and I'm all happy, but I also want to say thanks to the forum already for the help and advice I've gotten, I literally wouldn't have bought a telescope today if I hadn't have joined here.

I don't want to bend any potential forum rules by continuing to use my 'welcome' thread for weeks and weeks, so I'll probably look at starting a new equipment thread in the Newbie section (if that's the right place to go?) once I get the telescope.

Thanks again!

 

Yay ! A heritage dob 😀, good choice, you and your little one will really enjoy using it.

BTW I have no idea if 'scope is a cool word , neither do I care ... I'm just a very lazy typist !

Heather

[Jasonb]

Just noticed that you'd typed "'scope" as well @Tiny Clanger, like yourself I'm just trying to save time typing!

Delighted to have a scope on the way now, and I'm glad I lowered my sights a little and got a more basic scope but with the same spec optics. I've already been out with some Binoculars looking at the moon and Mars (my Daughter swears she saw an Alien!) and I'm using Skysafari too to get a sense of things when it's too cloudy out. 

 

[M40]

Welcome and good choice on the Heritage, looks a great starter choice 👍 

Another +1 for turn left at Orion, it will not only give you more than a few pointers to look at but it also gives you some calculations for eyepieces and telescope maths. I must admit I found the book a difficult read initially, but you learn and understand it's content as you go on and then the book becomes very useful. I also find a planisphere very useful for spotting the brighter stars very quickly helping you find your way around.

And saying telescope.... does that make me uncool? Oh yeah.... that's cool 🤣

[Jasonb]

Ha! I seem to have started some sort of thing about telescope/scope, sorry!

So, try to keep up with me, it's been a hectic few days. After getting the Heritage yesterday, a StarQuest 130P appeared in the sale today! The one I had my heart set on in the first place. Cue a frantic email to FLO, who very generously and quickly refunded the Heritage sale and I was able to buy the StarQuest instead!  Thanks to FLO for their prompt help, I'm delighted. Only a tenner more for the StarQuest!

Need to take a breath now and relax for a bit, I was on the site parked outside one of my work buildings to get wifi to buy the scope!

[Pete Presland]

Hi welcome to SGL from Pete in Bedfordshire 🙂