5" skywatcher vs 8" meade lightbridge

[ashenlight]

Hello

I went out observing tonight....

...I need a bigger scope. This is a long term goal, I'd hope to have it within a year and use my current scope to continue learning the sky until then. But I want something to aim for and, crucially, start saving for.

How much better is this scope going to be compared to the one I have (skywatcher 130PM)? Are Meade optics generally considered *better* than Skywatcher optics? The info on the site sounds really impressive but can anyone give me any first hand experiences of the views they have had through this scope, or a scope of this size?

Would it be worth the extra money to get the 10" for 2" more aperture?

I'm getting so much more excited about deep sky observing than I initially thought I would be I really want to look into getting something bigger for the future. Do you think 3" more aperture is a good upgrade?

Just looking for opinions and experiences really

[GazOC]

To me the "sweet spots" for medium sized Dobs are 8" and 12" at either end. The 8" is a small, light and easy to transport while still giving good views, the 12" is quite a bit bigger but does give noticably better views than the 8".

I know people in the other thread on 8" and 10" Dobs disagree but I think a 10" tends to suffer from falling inbetween the 2. Its slightly larger, more expensive than the 8" but isn't the significant improvement in views over the 8" that the 12" is.

As for the Meade vs. Skywatcher optics, the mirrors were probably made in the same factory to the same specs. Its not really a factor where the two companies Dobs/ Newts are concerned.

[Astro_Baby]

I went from a Sky-Watcher 130PM to an Sky-Watcher 200 - its not a dob (its mounted on an HEQ5).

The difference is quite a bit in terms of DSOs - less so with planets.

A 12" is even more striking as I found out looking down Astronuts 12" Sky-Watcher Dob. FOr me I prefer the viewing conveniance of an EQ and that limits me to no bigger than an 8" tube really.

Much of course depends on portability and an 8" is as big a tube as I could manage on my own.

I dont think you'd be disappointed with an 8" but as ever aperture is king as you know.

Depends what you can afford and what you can lug about.

[Whippy]

I agree with Gaz on this one. Having briefly owned a 6", 8" and a 10" reflector all at the same time (don't ask!), the jump between 6 and 8 seems bigger than between 8 and 10. I've looked through a couple of 12"'s and the jump becomes more apparent again especially on brighter galaxies. But of course the jump between 5" and 8-10 would be pretty apparent for you Amanda!

Personally, I can't see why you can't have an 8" on an EQ mount and have the joy of tracking. They're not that bulky and pretty quick to set up (I can get my Mak-Newt and driven CG5 mount up and running in less than 10 mins), dob mounts come into their own from 10" and up IMO.

Tony..

[Mark at Beaufort]

Amanda

For many years I had a 5" SCT with goto and during that time studied and got to know the night sky really well. I then bought a 4" APO refractor for planets/double stars and a 6" SCT mainly because the offer of a CG5 mount with the scope was too good to miss. Then I purchased a 10" Skywatcher Flextube and the difference on DSOs is incredible. The Dob is easily carried in two parts and although I appreciate the comments about the 8" and 12" and falling between two stools I find that the weight is just right for movement and for the little extra cost the additional 2" is worth it.

Mark

[alfingido]

I cant give advice on the makes and models that you are looking at, but I can give you an opinion based on my own experience.

I started ( seriously) with a 5" sct. It was great because I didnt know what to expect, my previous, long time telescope was a 6"newt that was really rubbish, so anything was better!

Then I moved up to an 8" SCT, the difference was enormous. Everything seemed brighter and clearer.

So, having aperture fever by now, I sold the 8"and bought a 10" SCT. Well, there really wasnt much in it. Sometimes the 10" seemed better, other times, no better. Certainly, the cost didnt justify the difference.

Now I have just bought a 12" Dob ( Skywatcher Flextube) The difference is in another league! Everything is so much bigger, brighter and sharper.

The jump to 12" is well worth doing if you can manage the size of the scope, and my Skywatcher is pretty easy to manage in its two pieces.

Allan

[Doc]

5" to 8" isn't going to give you the Wow factor Amanda.

Aim for either a 10" or a 12" then you will be wow'd.

[ashenlight]

Mick, I had a feeling you'd say that

Thank you for all your replies, everyone. I'm going to give them a proper read now

[johninderby]

Don't get fooled by the "Meade Speak" as used in their ads. It can be misleading.

SkyWatcher mirrors are NOT made in the same factory as Meade (GSO). SkyWatcher's quality control in mirrors is better than GSO's so The SkyWatcher optics are consistantly very, very good. The Meade (GSO) mrirors are a bit more variable, so you may get a mirror that's as good as the SkyWatcher or one that's not quite as good. This is because GSO only tests a few samples from each batch of their mirrors, not every one.

A 12" dob is a huge step up in performance compared to an 8" but it is big and heavy so make sure it's not too big to handle easily. The 10" may be a good comprimise. I have a SkyWatcher 10" dob, but then I also have a 14" dob so the 10" is almost a grab'n'go scope in comparison.

John

[ashenlight]

Portability is one of my biggest concerns really. I have to keep my scope(s) upstairs in the bedroom so now, when I go out observing, I break the scope down into seperate counterweight, mount and tube and take it all down and assemble it. It sounds like a faff I know but I really don't mind. It only takes 10 mins and the 'faff' is more than made up for by the views and experiences I get. My main concern is that whatever scope I upgrade to, I can break it into a few parts easily enough and put it back together without feeling like I am going to break it. I think this might limit me to the 8".

I don't want to make such a huge jump that I am overwhelmed by it all and don't use the scope much - perhaps 8" would be a managable upgrade. Although I can just see myself going "damn, Mick was right"

[Macavity]

I have THOUGHT (and been advised here) re. what would be a suitable increment for my present (4-5") scopes. Setup weight is a big factor for me (stature and health!) but I felt I could manage e.g. a 10" Dob - Provided I had some sort of semi-permanent site (Even a slab of concrete!). But I digresse...

One thing I have notice is the significant weight variations between manufacturer! [some] Orion versus [Other] Skywatcher - the former significantly lighter? Also some paradoxes, Skywatcher solid tubes are lighter than flextubes - I believe? Anyway some good rumours to start!

As another thought (and implied question!), I note that, whereas 8" and 12" Dobs seem to be conventionally F5 scopes, the 10" often drifts below this. But being rather fond of my Hyperions (unlikely to afford many Teleview!), I wonder how significant this difference would be? Simply, I "know where I am" with F5, but whither F4.8 re. overtaxing mid-range eyepieces? <wibble>

[Doc]

If you have to lugg it upstairs then forget the 12". It is pretty heavy piece of kit to to that.

Also if you are going for 8" of aperture don't go for a truss dob, there's no point. A solid tube will hold collimation really well compared to a truss.

A 10" well you are now on the border of is a truss worth it.

If I was you I would look at the 10" flexi tube dob.

[John]

I've done the 5" - 8" - 12" journey as well. The 12" I currently have is big on the "wow" factor but also the upper limit of what I can manage given my scopes are stored in the house and have to be carried (a short distance with no stairs) outside for use. I've yet to get it under truly dark skies but I've still been very impressed with the views from my back yard.

My 12" scope is the largest aperture scope I've owned in over 25 years in the hobby and it's the 1st scope I've owned that has given views of DSO's that approach the photos you see.

John

[SpookyKatt]

Well I have a Skywatcher 8" Newt with an EQ5 and have to lug it down two flights of stairs and before driving to a dark sky site and then lug it all the way back up stairs when I get home and whilst I sometimes wonder what it would be like to have a 10-12" I must admit I would dread carrying them about.

Kathleen

[ashenlight]

Going on Astro Baby's comment about the 8" being as big as she could move around, I'd be tempted to side with her and say 8" is as big as I could go - I can't think about creating a permanent base for the telescope. Can dobs be stored 'upright' - can the tube be put in a vertical position so that the base and tube all line up together, making it tidier to store away?

Also, does anyone know how big the base is for the 8" and 10"?

It's the simplicity of the dob that draws me to it too... I'm not too interesting in tracking at the moment.

I've got a long time to save I'm sure I'll change my mind by then!

The dobs looks so easy to just sit there and start observing. Any thoughts on this?

[Beulah]

With the 8" Dob stored horizontally, it takes up as much room as a small exercise bike (4 foot by 1.5 foot). The base itself is 20 inches in diameter and 30 inches in height. I have this superstition that storing the tube horizonally prevents stuff from falling onto the mirror, but hey, it's tilted during observing, isn't it?

I have a Skywatcher 200p Dobsonian, it can be hard work finding objects, but it's fun. Setup is pretty instantaneous as soon as you have your woolies on and the map at the ready. Wouldn't change it in the meantime, but am going to make the hop from 8" to 12" in the future, hopefully.

One minor disadvantage is that some of the positions you bend yourself into to view certain objects near the zenith can be a bit of a challenge, and low down objects I would recommend sitting on a garden chair. I'm trying to get round to making an observing stool one of these days. Can't find anything strong or big enough to support it to raise the height of the dob, so it looks like another trip to Focus for some MDF...

[ashenlight]

Hi SP, thanks for that I haven't got enough room to store it horizontally - it would have to be as vertical as it could be. The corner where I store my skywatcher is free from any possible falling-mirror-breaking objects, so I am fairly confident that it would be OK to store the dob upright.

Y'know, I don't know how long I can wait for this dob. My student loan comes through next month and then in installments every 4 months...

....

[Barryhunt]

Hi Amanda,

I used to have a 12" Lightbridge and used to sit it completely made up all the time, it was a grab and go scope for me! Stood in a corner upright it certainly didn't take up much room. It is quite a lump to pick up though but that bit of effort was well worth it. If you are serious about DSO observing a 12" will show a lot of objects. Aperture Fever it's bad I've only been on the forum a couple of days and have already done a deal which will see me trading in some bird watching equipment for a shiny new 12" Skyliner. Should get the scope in a week or so and will post on how it fares on those DSO's. Just one image that is etched on my mind is the Double Cluster in Perseus, through the 12" I could not begin to count the stars visible, thousands in the field of view an awesome sight. As you can tell I like these Dobs and my views are biased but whichever scope you decide upon I wish you luck.

Barry

[Astro_Baby]

Well a big part of the weight consideration for me is getting a tube onto the EQ mount. 8" is pushing it for me - a 10" would be vafguel possible - beyond that the weight of the scope and mount combination necomes too much plus I only have a Toyota Aygo to fit it all in.

Id guess a 12" Dob wouldnt be too bad but a few weeks ago I was offered a 16" Lightbridge and thought - 'whhhoeeeee' after all how heavy can it be ? Its mostly empty space and truss poles so easy peasy - no carrying counterweights and power tanks about. Then I tried to pick up the mirror box and eeeeeewwwwww - its VERY heavy. Like so heavy I cant pick it up - so that was that.

I think if I were to go bigger it would have to be an SCT - yeah I know theres more glass etc but its a smaller lump - an 8" tube isnt that heavy but its bulky.

For me I prefer an EQ mount cos I just like the the mount to get on with the tracking while I look.

[drummerp]

Hi Amanda,

I have a 130pm and a few months ago also bought the 12" dob but made sure it was a flextube for storage reasons as its much smaller when packed down which would solve your storage problems aswell. However, the 12" is quite heavy when its taken off its base and even more heavy if you try and carry it together but I have to lump it up and down 2 lots of stairs every time I want to use it as I live in a flat and its a nightmare every time.

The views through it compared to the 130pm are soo much better although a scope is only as good as your eyepieces as I found out. I was lucky enough to use a couple of other peoples expensive eyepieces, (Televue Nagler and WO zoom eyepieces) through the 130pm and this made a real difference.

I also had a look through a couple of different 8" skywatchers and the quality is really good, you will notice a big difference from the 130 to a 200 skywatcher.

You should wait until next year when you come along to the SGL5 star Party and then you can check out the difference of everyones scopes from the views, size and weights etc.

Cheers

Neil

[Andrew]

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet in this thread, but mirror cool down time is a factor to consider also. I have no idea how long an 8" mirror takes to cool (obviously it varies with conditions). With a 5" Newt it's not something you tend to think about (I barely see the need for cool down with my 4.5" scope), but when I got the 12" dob I began to appreciate it - c. 2 hours to cool, which can be a pain when it's kept inside. Fairly often clear skies don't last 2 hours so sometimes it will come in again without being used

[drummerp]

Yep, very true comment Andrew.

[albedo0.39]

Good comment on the mirror cool down time. One advantage you have now, is that your 130pm is a lot quicker in that dept. Of course (security pending...) you could consider putting the 10" (12"?) in the garden shed, then it's be ready for action and at the right temperature all the time as well as saving your back !

However, I think your main question is "what size of dob will give me the wow factor" and in answer to this, I feel you have to be looking at a 10" to get this feeling from where you are now.

Good luck - I don't envy your decision !