Upgrade from Explorer 130ps

[broom]

Good evening, 

I currently have a Sky Watcher explorer 130ps which I've had for over a year. Just last week, I purchased the az gti mount which I want to keep and use with the scope I upgrade to. 

I have no interest in astrophotography.

I enjoy looking at the moon and planets, but I really want to view more DSOs. My garden is apparently in a bortle 5 location, but I have quite a few houses around me that keep their lights on late into the night. My current thinking is more aperture will assist with the DSOs since there is more light gathering capability.

My budget is only £350, possibly £400, and keeping the az gti mount is also a limiting factor since it's max payload is allegedly 5kg. I also want to keep the current scope since it's handy for my camping trips. 

Taking into account the information above, could you please offer suggestions on a scope upgrade? I was thinking the explorer 200p, but this looks like it's way too much weight for the az gti. The 150p looks to be on the 5kg limit however, I'm not sure if it's worth the upgrade.

If it helps, I currently have the stock 25mm eyepiece, and the 18mm and 8mm BST eyepieces. 

Many thanks, 

Darrell 

[Clarkey]

Given the limited carrying capacity of the az gti why not look at a dobsonian? At the 5kg limit I do not think you will get much better than you already have for visual. You can always use the goto mount as a guide to where to point the dob.

[Mr Spock]

I think for the money, a 200mm Dobsonian would be a good choice. It will show a lot more DSOs than the 130. You'll find it pretty good on planets too. The Skywatcher 200P is £369 and FLO have plenty in stock.

[ScouseSpaceCadet]

A P150i tube is much lighter than a 150P & would work on an AZGTI but they are usually sold as part of a telescope/mount kit and it wouldn't be a huge upgrade if you could find one. The max refractor size mounted on the azgti would likely be 80mm @ f7, maksutov - 127mm. The chaps above have made a good suggestion, for <£400 a 200mm dobson mounted reflector would be the cheapest way to access increased aperture and use the azgti with the 130PS - a good match up.

[broom]

Many thanks, all. 
 

I suspected that that an upgrade to the 150 wouldn’t warrant the cost. I’m really tempted by the DOB, but I’ve had one before and getting it down my garden steps use to frustrate me. However, it was the best scope I’ve ever had. 
 

Based on your feedback, if I do upgrade the DOB is the way to go it would seem. 

I have a secure shed at the bottom of the garden where I could store the DOB. My only concern is whether storing a scope in an un-heated shed would cause any issues. What’s your thoughts?

Darrell

[Mr Spock]

I store my Dob in a shed. Unheated is what you want - it means less cool down time. It will be fine as long as the shed is dry and the scope is off the floor by a few cm. My base is already on plastic feet and the tube is stored bottom down on some pieces of wood.

Scopes stored indoors typically have long cool down times. A Mak, for example, may never fully cool if moved from a very warm room to very cold outdoors. Dobs take a lot less time but it's still significant.

[broom]

Many thanks for that, Mr Spock. It’s very reassuring to know. 
 

The DOB it is. Final question, I promise. 
 

Does FLO typically offer any Black Friday deals on the dobs? If so, I’ll wait a few weeks to buy it.