need help buying a telescope

[david b]

Hi im new to this and need some help picking a telescope for beginners, i've seen the skywatcher 127 syn scan az goto and was wondering if this is a good telescope, will i be able to see galaxies and nebulae with this scope also can anyone recommend a good online resaler, i have heard bad things about telescope planet. Thanks you for your time

[Bizibilder]

Hi David B

The synscan 127 is about £350 as far as I can see (First Light Optics - they sponsor this site - I have no connection with them apart from being a satisfied customer). For deep sky objects - galaxies and nebulae APARTURE is king! ie you need to collect the most light possible - these objects are faint!! So have you considered either a 200mm or 250mm Dobsonian? - these fall either side of your price (go for the 250 -you won't regret it!).

They dont have the goto but this is no real disadvantage - as a beginner most of the fun is learning your way around and gaining from the excitement of finding some of these elusive "faint fuzzies". Dobs are portable - which may be important - even if only to bring it indoors after use!

You can (if you get the bug you will!) always upgrade to an equatorial/goto type mount at a later date.

Hope this helps.

PS There are lots of posts like yours from beginners - and very welcome they are!! - have a look in the beginners section of the forum - there is so much advice that you will soon be really confused!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Keep asking - thats what we are all here for.

[jimhaleysscomet]

David,

In the ideal world one would see a few scopes in action before purchasing one. Local astronomy clubs often have public star gazing nights for just this reason. One public night is worth far more than all the reading you can do both online and in books.

In the less than ideal world (or ideally in conjunction with the public night) , one can learn a fair amount by reading books. Nightwatch by Dickinson is my favorite. You will need to read some books and/or map atlases to figure out where to point the scope anyway (most of the sky appears blank). Binoculars can be cheap (£25) and 8x40 or 10x 50 can be used to learn your way around the night sky before getting totally lost with a scope. Skymaps.com offers a free monthly map and observing list download.

Now, if neither of the above is practical, then an 6 - 8" dob is often recommend as the best beginner scope because for visual use aperture is everything and the dob gets you the most aperture for the least money (and they are about the budget at which you are looking). BUT, it is not the best beginner scope for every situation. That is why many other designs are sometimes chosen. But the dob will give you the best views for the money.

[pvaz]

For ease of use and having ability to see nebula/galaxys I would go for a dobsodian telescope. (In fact I did! ) When I started I was afraid finding things would be too dificult so I bought an expensive dob (Orion XT8i) that haves goto. Not a usual feature for dobs. Later I installed a telrad finder (kind of a rifle aim that makes the task of pointing the scope and finding things much more easy) and I barelly used the goto system cause it's more fun to learn the sky and finding things for your self. With less cash I could have bought a scope with more aperture.

Another thing to take under consideration is that galaxy/nebula are very faint so if you live under light polluted skies you may find it hard to find most of them even with a decent aperture. In that case a more portable scope, witch you can take to a dark site may actually allow you to see more then a large scope you can't take outside your backyard.

If you need a more portable one with goto and can be content with seeing only the brightest galaxy/nebula then the 127 seams a good option.

Before you jump to it, the binos and a star wheel or a decent beginners book will help you learn your way around the sky. You'll need that knowledge! Even with goto you need to at the very least find a couple of bright stars to point at so the computer can then make the processing needed to find other objects for you. You'll also need power packs for the motors. A dob is manual, easy and fast to setup/use and doesn't need external power, just your knowledge and a star atlas to tell you where things are.

[david b]

thanks for the great advise it was really helpful i will take all your points into account. Thanks again have a happy new year.