130SLT HELP!

[Archiewbrown]

Hello, I’ve never used this website before and only used my telescope a handful of times. I own a 130slt with 25mm and 9mm eyepieces. I am struggling to see anything other than the moon, I could see saturn with the naked eye earlier and when I pointed the telescope at it with my 9mm It barely showed me anything. No rings. No definition… nothing, it’s frustrating me a bit. Im not expecting wonders from it but a little more than just the moon. I have read somewhere that I need a 4mm eyepiece, is this correct? I would love to get back into it and any help would be hugely appreciated. Thanks,

archie.

[Rallemikken]

15 minutes ago, Archiewbrown said:

I have read somewhere that I need a 4mm eyepiece, is this correct?

No. First you must sort why you can't see what you want with the eyepieces you already have.  Some things to check:

-- Collimation. Does the moon look crisp and sharp? If so, continue.

-- Focus. After you have taken a glimse at a crisp moon, have you fiddled with the focus knob? If so, don't. Some adjustment may be necessary when you switch target, but not much, and not untill you have the new target in sight. If you switch eye-piece, focus will have to be adjusted.

-- GoTo-function. This scope is computerized. Don't know exact how it aligns itself, but the chances are good that you are staring into the abyss while the mount tells you that Saturn is dead-center. At least align the finderscope 100%.

-- Expectations. You should be able to see the rings on Saturn with this scope, but not every night. If it is low on the horizon or the seeing is bad, Saturn will just look like any other star. Trust me, I have an 8" f/6 dobsonian, and clearly defined rings around Saturn is regarded as a bonus for the evening. Truth be told, I live at 65N, so it's alvays low. Also remember that imaging and visual is two completely different beasts. When you see an image of Saturn, with the rings and the Cassini division, the only thing you can expect to see through an eyepiece in the same scope is a slightly oblong star....

Clear skies, hope you find your Saturn!

[Paul2019]

I always found I couldn’t get on with finderscopes and have had way more luck with red dot finders. 
 

sounds like the issues mentioned above could be an issue but also I wanted to mention about observing too as we can define more and more features with observing techniques. Also the moon could be an issue as the light pollution from a high phase moon could be overpowering the subtle details of the planet but then again I would still expect to at least be able to define the rings.