what shall i get for a beginner?

[Brunty12345]

hello and i am wondering what shall i get a skywatcher explorer 130 or the skywatcher explorer 130M this isnt the actual owner of this account im his mate im just using it for the min, what does the 130M actually do?

[inapottingshed]

I have the 130PM and its the motorized mount, which is used for tracking targets as the earth rotates. This is particularly useful for photography, if you want to make any exposures longer than a fraction of a second. That said, matching up various cameras, Webcams, etc. to a telescope is not always straightforward, e.g. due to difficulties in achieving focus.

I'd say if you think you want to do visual observation, and learn your way around the sky, the 130PM would be fine. There is, I think a 600mm focal length version, and a 900mm focal length version. I have the 600mm version, which is f5 focal ratio (600mm / 130mm) The longer focal lengths (ratios) are maybe more useful for planetary observation. If you want to do imaging, I would not recommend the 130, but a larger scope and mount.

Another very important thing is the stability of the mount, especially for imaging. In genaral, the heavier the better, though portability might be important if you actually want to get out and use the scope at a dark sky site.

In terms of cost, the 130/PM is excellent value for money. You can do better with a bigger budget, and you might find something suitable on the For Sale section.

I'm sure others can add more to what I've said, but it in a nutshell the 130 is a decent value for money scope for visual observation, as testified by the Sky at Night review.

[topdude]

Hi, the SW 130 is a great scope. As above i have the shorter focal length f5 version. It is not too big and heavy so easy to move outdoors / indoors.

The tripod and mount is fairly sturdy and excellent for visual work.

The 640 focal length is perfect for deep sky objects and i have had great views of Jupiter and it's moons.

I have not used the motor yet so cannot comment on it's photographic ability.

Overall a great scope for the price that could last you ages.

You can pick them up second hand for £100 / £130 quite easily.