WO Zenithstar 73 II Vs Sky-Watcher Evostar 80ED

[Cuto100200]

I've narrowed down my choice to these two and just wanted to get some opinions on the benefits of both scopes in comparison to one another, any experiences people have with these scopes etc. 

Thank you

[Osiris777]

As I'm a newb to the hobby, I can't offer much in terms of advice regarding how the scopes will compare in performance, but as I did go back and forth ad nauseum on which size scope to get for my first imaging refractor, I decided on the z73.  If you saw my first light post, you'd see how much of a debacle my first night out was with it (will get better with practice).  The quality, however, is top notch.  very smooth focuser and it just 'feels' like a well made piece of kit.  I loved the built in Bahtinov mask, as it made focusing very quick. 

[SamAndrew]

Both good choices, the WO will be better out of the box as the 2.5" rack and pinion will be a better focuser. Shorter focal length and lower weight will make it more forgiving for a novice.

Nearly bought one myself a few years ago but ended up picking up a 2nd hand star 71.