How many different scopes and why?

[col]

Having got my Stellalyra Dob I was more than satisfied thinking I wouldn't need anything else, as  I already had my Tal 100R, and the Startravel 102.

Even including my 20x80 Opticron Bino's and my Hawke spotter I couldn't resist the skywatcher ED80, of which I'm very happy I decided to get it.

You would think that's it, everything I need is there now.

But I'm even now thinking Id like a Heritage 150 Tabletop dob for an easy grab and go if its a gamble with the weather and Id like a bit more aperture than the ED80 and the  SW102.

I'm beginning to think I've caught some sort of astro virus.

Looking at others lists of scopes at the bottom of their post  I'm  understanding the multiple scopes some have more now.

Is there reasons why you may have several different scopes, or is it just because you like them?

I think I'm a bit of both 🙂

 

[Captain Scarlet]

We all have the virus, and luckily it’s quite a benign one!

More seriously: I often get asked “why d’you need more than one telescope?”. My answer these days is always “why does a photographer need more than one lens? - for different focal lengths and apertures.” That usually learns ‘em!

Cheers, Magnus

Edited November 5, 2022 by Captain Scarlet

[DaveL59]

In my case I started off wanting a TAL, either a TAL-1 or 100 series. The one for sale local suddenly went silent then eventually replied to say it was sold. Meantime a wee NatGeo tabletop came up for a tenner, hard to say no just for something to play with. Then a SW130 again at a great price. A while later a TAL-M came up with its wood case, same price as I paid for the SW130 and for a while it was my most oft used scope as its easy to pick up and drop into the garden. Then a 100RS appeared, round trip to Coventry to collect and its a lovely scope much as I'd expected and my most expensive purchase to date on this hobby. A short while after a Tal-1 came up and I picked that up purely for the 32 bore eyepiece as I'd wanted a 25mm for the M. In the end I shifted its mirror and fitted a TAL 1.25-inch focuser to that one and again, easy to lift and drop into the garden, gotta love those pedestal mounts vs tripods. 

I did also pick up a Celestron L70AZ starsense, for the license and at the moment that's become the easy grab n go, so light and easy to cart it outside. It will however be finding its way to my daughter at some stage in the near future. Oh I also picked up a vintage 3-inch drawtube focuser, hard not to for £20 and it'd likely have ended up skip'd had I not taken it on.

Do I really need all these tho? Nope, and I should whittle down a touch, probably the SW130, defo the little NatGeo tabletop as it's not all that useful really. The TAL's to me are the core and keepers, so solid and other than some paint issues you'd not know they are all from the mid 90's.

So no real method to the madness for me, more getting something to use then slowly getting the one(s) I'd wanted to have. As for camera lenses and bino's, don't go there, seriously just don't 😄 

[Les Ewan]

Its a little difficult to quantify because does a telescope in bits count? In theory I have seven telescopes. One is totally dismantled a 6"Reflector  dating from the 70's with tarnished mirrors which will probably never be used again, Revelation 12 Dob which is in a similar condition a f5  8" Helios Newtonian TA which is sevicable but with no mount  a 6" Russian f8 TAL 2 from the early ninties which I plan to get back into use when I have space for it(its being stored at my sisters house at the moment complete with wooden crates) but it needs its mirrors re coated.

I also have a 12" f5 Newt on  a EQ6 mount which is can be assembled at any time. My two other scopes are in constant use now a Skywatcher 400P  16"on a driven Dob and finally a Skywatcher 90mm f10 refractor on a driven EQ2 which I use for Solar work.

[Ags]

Zenithstar 66 - grab and go and astrophotography.

C6 SCT - Solar System photography, with a .63 reducer its a nice big grab and go too.

Long Perng 90 - visual observation of planets and double stars, still learning how to use this one.

Solar Scout SS60-ds - for the Sun naturally.

Long term plan is to get a Combo Quark and replace the SS60-DS with the LP90. I don't quite think the LP90 can replace the ZS66 for astrophotography but maybe it could. It can never replace the C6 though...

[RobertI]

Over the course of many years I’ve acquired the following scopes for the following reasons:

- Celestron C8 - had always been my dream scope since a teenager

- Zenithstar66 - I wanted a ‘super finder’ for the C8

- Megrez72 - Because I wanted a 2” focuser for some imaging  

- Tal100RS - because @Chriswas selling one nearby and I thought “why not?”

- RC6 for EAA

- Heritage 130P - because at £90 used, it was just so much bang for the buck!

- 150PL because I wanted to re-live the experience of my first ever scope I had as a teenager 

- 102ED because I wanted to see what a 4” refractor with FPL53 glass could do - a lot, it turns out. 

I still have them all except the Megrez72 which I immediately regretted selling.

They all get used for certain objects or in specific situations or sometimes just for a change. 🙂
 

 

Edited November 5, 2022 by RobertI

[JeremyS]

I find I only need one scope these days. Trouble is it’s a different one each night of the week 🤔

[badhex]

I have a number of scopes in storage in the UK and some here with me in Berlin.

In storage I have:

A Charles Frank 6" reflector that I inherited from my grandad and was the first scope I looked through as a child, so has sentimental value. 

A Skymax 102 which is the first scope I bought myself and I really miss. 

A Bresser 6" rich field achromat which was completely in bits and I refurbished but never got chance to really use. 

 

Here in Berlin I have:

A Skywatcher 80ED which I bought when I first moved here for a different experience from my previous scopes. It has never seen that much action, as I ended up having a few years break from astro for various reasons, including not having a mount at the time which could really take the 80ED well. 

Some years ago on a long holiday I bought a Celestron Travelscope 70 on a whim to take advantage of the darker skies which jolted me back into the hobby. It's a surprisingly good scope. Since then I have picked up a number of scopes. 

I got a C5 for planetary stuff but have never really got on with it. I keep meaning to give it another run this year.

I have a William Optics ZS73 which is my primary travel/grab and go scope and I absolutely love. Incredible rich-field views. 

I have a TS-Optics 102ED F7 (same as the Starfield) which is essentially my main use scope, and a fantastic all-rounder - good for planetary and can get 4 degrees of sky at the other end. 

I recently bought an EvoGuide 50ED to embark on a project converting it for visual as a super lightweight travelscope. 

 

So, mostly all different use cases, although the 102ED is so similar in size to the 80ED but better, and so has meant the 80ED gets less use. I do currently have it set up on my balcony for quick sessions however as I recently figured I should give it another run. 

[mikeDnight]

Currently I have six refractors of different flavours just to prove to myself that I only need one. 

[cajen2]

To answer your original question about the Heritage 150p, yes, it's definitely worth getting. I have only two scopes: one of those and a StellaLyra 8" dob. The SL is my everyday scope (or should that be everynight? 😄) but the 150p does make an excellent grab&go job. It's light enough to carry in one hand yet gives superb views. If you had one, you might well find the Startravel or even the 80ED redundant.....

[Sunshine]

For the same reason golfers have several sets of golf sticks, there are many different kinds for different purposes. One for fuzzies, for planets and moon, for astrophotography, grab and go etc.

Which begs the question, why do golfers have so many sticks ( I like calling them sticks as a club is something cave men used) 😆 if they all hit the ball? you can tell I'm not a golfer. 😂

Edited November 6, 2022 by Sunshine

[LukeSkywatcher]

I have a Celestron 8Se, a Skywatcher Heritage 130P, a Bresser ARxs 102.

One is for trousers, one is for shirts and one is for jackets.

My bedroom floor is immaculate.

[col]

1 hour ago, cajen2 said:

To answer your original question about the Heritage 150p, yes, it's definitely worth getting. I have only two scopes: one of those and a StellaLyra 8" dob. The SL is my everyday scope (or should that be everynight? 😄) but the 150p does make an excellent grab&go job. It's light enough to carry in one hand yet gives superb views. If you had one, you might well find the Startravel or even the 80ED redundant.....

Ah yes, that had crossed my mind if I did get a heritage 150 off Santa, as my main scope is the same as yours being the Stellalyra 8" Dob. 

My reasoning is the heritage would give me a look up if i was umming and ahhing  about weather to take the Dob out, so not missing out altogether.

Is that convincing? Or should i just tell the truth, i just like the look of it too 🙂

[cajen2]

30 minutes ago, col said:

Ah yes, that had crossed my mind if I did get a heritage 150 off Santa, as my main scope is the same as yours being the Stellalyra 8" Dob. 

My reasoning is the heritage would give me a look up if i was umming and ahhing  about weather to take the Dob out, so not missing out altogether.

Is that convincing? Or should i just tell the truth, i just like the look of it too 🙂

It's a stunning little scope for the money, as long as you can put up with the helical focuser. Great for taking with you on your travels too.

Edited November 6, 2022 by cajen2

[paulastro]

2 hours ago, mikeDnight said:

Currently I have six refractors of different flavours just to prove to myself that I only need one. 

Well Mike, you're well known for licking telescopel lenses.  So I presume you choose them by flavour rather than aperture  Anyone for a raspberry telescope?  😊.

[Guest]

I have a 10 inch Orion Skyline, the wife has a Stellina.  Do we really need a other scope, not really, but it hasnt stopped me from ordering something else anyway lol.  After the new one comes in I think there will be one more that will be more of a grab and go kinda scope. Just something handy. 

[Astro_Dad]

I was worried I had a telescope “problem” to start with until I realised many other passionate like minded folk are the same! I currently only have two though - similar to @cajen2 its the 8” SL Dob and the Heritage 150p. Mine is the Virtuoso GTI version and it’s literally my go to for a quick grab and go session - as a visual astronomer in the main I find it’s balance of decent aperture and ease of deployment makes it very hard to beat - especially given the low cost. I don’t think you’d be disappointed with it. 

[Franklin]

I'm all refractors, the SD103 is my main scope but I found I was getting more use out of the smaller SD81 on the Porta as a quick G&G set up. The 4" is a touch too big for the Porta for my liking and so I use to set up with the GP2 but that's all a bit of a faff really. Now using the 4" on the APZ with half pillar and SXG HAL130, with the full counterweight arm and weight it all balances lovely and the slo mo's are like silk. Very impressed with the Vixen AP mount range and the APZ is apparently good for 8kg, so fine with the 5.5kg SD103. This new APZ mount, along with some SSW 83deg eyepieces has recently turned me into an alt-az fan and no longer seem to be bothering to set up the GP2. All of this is great because I'm taking the "Big Gun" (for me) out much more often and have been rewarded with some fine lunar and planetary views recently. I got the little FL55SS to use as an ultra-light, ultra-portable, quality scope to get out under dark skies on wild camping trips. Only had it in the garden so far but it seems very special, the optics when used with the Vixen HR eyepieces perform beyond what I'd expect normally???? Don't know if that makes sense to anyone but the clarity and definition is just superb and holds up even at silly mags for the "finderscopelike" 55mm aperture. Not cheap and probably a bit wasted on me being just visual, an imager would get loads more use out of this little gem.

Bit of a Vixen fan/nut, but I'm very happy with all my kit at present and don't really see me wanting to make any more major purchases 🤞.

[Swoop1]

My current crop of main armaments is a Celestron C6 SCT, a Skywatcher 150P Newt and a pair of Meade 7x30 bins.

As for how many scopes do I need-it is a simple equation.

n+1 where n is the number of scopes I currently own or, in other mathamatical language s-1 where s is the number of scopes that would cause my wife to leave/ kick me out.

[bosun21]

I had five but I donated the Celestron LT70 to the local scouts after I removed the Starsense unit, which was the sole reason for buying it. I rekindled my teenage love of astronomy with a 127 Maksutov go to alt/az, followed by an 8” Stella Lyra Dobsonian. I then contracted a dose of refractoritis, which caused me to add a 120 Evostar on an AZ4/stainless. This only semi cured my affliction and necessitated the purchase of a 102ED Starfield on an EQ5 pro synscan. I thought that i was finally cured, but I am developing symptoms of apertureitis. I have my eyes on the 12” Dobsonian which I will probably have to make room for in the next few weeks.

[badhex]

11 minutes ago, bosun21 said:

refractoritis

I am similarly afflicted.

The struggle is real

Edited November 6, 2022 by badhex

[ONIKKINEN]

2 scopes at the moment, a mainly imaging 8'' newtonian and a visual only half-achromat refractor. I have to say i have taken a liking to the ease of use of the 90mm frac on a manual alt-az mount, i just wish the scope were a little bit better corrected and sharper, and apochromatic, and you know where this is headed now . I could also use a bigger aperture planetary/lunar scope so maybe one day some 10-12'' scope could sit on the AZ-EQ6 for planetary stuff.

Thankfully(?) my wallet disagrees with getting more scopes at the moment, so these will do for now.

[wookie1965]

3 for me 2 4" refractors 1 is a loanee and my 10" Dob that will do me. 

Unless I win the lottery 😁

[allworlds]

Just two at the moment, a Heritage 76 and an ETX 105. They actually pair up nicely since the Heritage does widefield and the ETX very much does not. A light bucket of a Dob would be nice but so far I haven't solved the problem of all the neighbours' insecurity lights at home.

I previously had a junky refractor, and a 4.5 inch Newt on an awful mount. They both ended up in the bin. That will horrify some but I'm one of two people in the house with a hoarding problem. Selling or donating them would just have given me too much chance to change my mind, I needed them gone.

[Space Hopper]

Just my 140 refractor presently. Its been a pleasure to own and use so far, and even though it can't really compete with big aperture on DSOs, its still no slouch in that department.

I may at some point get something a bit smaller ; something in the 80 - 100mm range.

I quite like the unusual : something rare that not many others have. That goes for mounts too.