Advice on what scope(s) I should get rid of

[Tony.S]

Having had yet another nagging off the wife about how much room my scopes take up, & I suppose I have to agree with her that at least 2 will have to go

Now heres the problem, I like each scope in its own way but as my refractors take up sooo much room at least one,if not both have to go..

I love the look of the classic refractors, My Vixen is a real stunner with very sharp images & I find the alt-az mount a dream to use.

The Towa also looks great & is very original but I do find the eq mount a bit of a pain after the ease of the alt-az of the Vixen.

The little 5se, now this thing for its size is fantastic & its so portable I even took the scope & mount to Portugal with me last week, with the scope fitting in my hand luggage..I was so impressed with this little SCT, I think I will be selling this one & upgrading to a much larger SCT or Mak as they will not take up anymore room.

Now onto the 12" Dob...What a scope, it can be set-up & collimated in 3 or 4 mins, fantastic views & it is actually easier to store than the other scopes...But as I want to upgrade to a large SCT or Mak, this scope will raise more cash.

I will be sad to any of them go really but I need to be practical.

I will be interested in anyones views on which they would get rid of & any advice on what 8" or larger SCT or MAK to go for.

Tony

[arad85]

Dob + your fave of the two refractors.... (to keep that is )

[Nexus 6]

Tony

Some lovely scopes there!

Although I am using an sct, I am still really a beginner and don't really feel qualified to advice you on your choice but I will say one thing big sct's are really heavy,going by the weight of my 925.

Good luck with your new purchase ,whatever you pick.

Alan

[Brunty12345]

nice collection you have there =] same as the bikes

[david o]

Keep the Dob and the 5se.

The light bucket for deep sky, the SCT for planetary and grab 'n' go.

My tuppence worth.

Just don't let her even try to convince you to sell one of the bikes.

[omneferuss]

sounds to me a strong case for getting rid of all the scopes... from the house and into a ROR obsy !!

[Andrew*]

You may have a buyer for the Towa already, if that helps

Seriously, a very tough decision - each has their own great merits, but the refractors kind of overlap each other in use.

If you really do want a larger cat, sell the dob, sct and one 'frac, and get the largest you can from the availablel cash...

My 2p

Andrew

[franticsmurf]

From a purely practical point of view it's easy - which ones do you use the least and/or which ones are less suited to your interests (Solar System or DSO)?

But it's never that easy. I've experienced a similar dilemma in a past life when I played guitar in a band. "Why do you need all those guitars/amps?" "Because I like them and they have their specific uses".

I ended up with one main guitar, a spare for gigs and an accoustic guitar. I'm not sure how that translates into telescopes. Re-reading your original post, it looks like you've decided on replacing the SCT - so there's one to sell. I'd be tempted to wait until you've identified the replacement for the SCT and then see if it will also take the place of the Dob. If so, two scopes gone (including the big one) and job done!

Dave

[arad85]

PS. as to which SCT/Mak to get... I have a 12" dob and C9.25. If I didn't do any planetary imaging, I'd sell the C9.25. It's not as good visually as the dob IMHO... I think you need a 12" or 14" to better it (I've looked through a badly collimated Meade LX200 14" and was pleasantly surprised )

[DarkerSky]

Super collection. I'd buy that Dob off you! I'm looking for a mid-ranger between my 8.5" and 16" scopes

[Andrew*]

That's two sold already!

[Macavity]

Perhaps if you weed the patio, they'll ALL get a reprieve?

[Teasing - Just got in from toiling 'neath the blazing sun]

[Doc]

I would sell the refractors and SCT and buy a really good set of eyepieces and maybe pimp your dob with setting circles and a wixey and use your dob to seek out all those little fuzzies.

[brianb]

The CPC925 is a silly price at the moment (end of line I think); I never heard of anyone who was dissatisfied with the optical performance (except people who miscollimated theirs or refuse to give it time to cool down), the mount works well & if I can manage a CPC1100 you should be able to manage the 925. Assuming you don't have a bad back.

In your position the two scopes I'd keep are the Vixen (grab'n'go altaz) and the Dob (light bucket). In fact I'd go further, dump all except the Vixen & get a CPC1100.

You don't seem to like GEMs but the C9 or C11 on the CGEM mount is actually more portable than the CPC (because the tube & mount seperate for carriage), however the storage space is bigger & the set up time is longer.

[AztecastroMcJ]

Great collection of scopes

must be a difficult decision

as for which scope to go for here's my suggestions

SkyWatcher Skymax 180 PRO Maksutov Cassegrain Optical Tube Assembly

SkyWatcher Explorer 190MN PRO Maksutov Newtonian Optical Tube Assembly

Harrison Telescopes Ltd Meade 8" LX200 ACF Optical Tube Assembly

Celestron EdgeHD 8" Optical Tube Assembly

or larger 2nd hand Celestron or Meade upto maybe 14"

tough decision again

James

[Mr Spock]

Simple solution: get rid of the wife... ;p

[Moonshane]

I'd extend the shed and hide them all.

Seriously, I love my dob and will never sell it. I'd keep the dob and the vixen and sell the other two. you could with the money buy a short refractor and use this with the Vixen tripod as a travel scope. this seems to cover all the bases to me. you mentioned space as the main issue and the reduction in space taken would be quite dramatic. the additional refractor could be hidden under the bed!

[Tony.S]

Thanks for all of the replies..They really have helped me to "sort of" make up my mind.

The Towa & 5se are definatly going & proberly one of the others,its hard to choose though,they are both great scopes & I know that I would really miss either of them..I am slightly more attactched to the Vixen though as I just love the way it looks & it was my 1st telescope.

@ Mr Spock.

Great idea & if my scopes could do the washing & ironing I would choose your suggestion

@ AztecastroMcJ.

I think I would go for a used one,as the cost of new ones are restrictive.

@ Brianb.

I like the look of the CPC 1100 & 925 very much..A new one is out of my price range but I'll keep them in mind if I see a used one.

@ Doc.

I've considered selling all & keeping the dob but sometime in the future I would like to try some imaging (if I ever get any spare time) so I would need somthing motorised,this is part of my reasoning for a large SCT.

@ Macavity.

Its the wifes job to weed the patio

@ DarkerSky.

I am undecided whether to sell the dob or not,its something I'm really going to have to think about but if I do,I'll advertise it on here first.

@ franticsmurf.

Your completely right..I like looking at both DSO's & planets but proberly spend more time on planets.

@ Andrew

I think the Towa is going for sale & what you have suggested is proberly going to be what I will do, if I can just get myself to part with the dob.

@ omneferuss.

I would love an obsy & it has crossed my mind to build one but due to work, I just dont have the time.

@ David o

Bikes are staying for the moment

@ Brunty12345

Thanks mate

@ ajfdab

I dont mind the weight of the scope but what I do like is the idea of something that can be carried fully built up quite easily. My refractors on their tripods are quite long & wide, so getting them through the doors takes a bit of doing.

@ arad85

If I do decide to go for a large SCT I think the dob will have to go to help fund it.

Thanks again for all the suggestions

[Tony.S]

Cheers Shane.

I have also thought about keeping the dob & Vixen & am very tempted but I have this thing in my head about a big SCT...Proberly something I will end up regreting

[Astro_Baby]

I;d sell the Towa but only to me and at a very good price

[Nexus 6]

Hi Tony, well if you can handle the weight the CPC1100 may be worth considering, if the optics are as good as a 925 ,which I know are exellent,then current prices should be taken into account making both these scopes good contenders.

Alan

[Moonshane]

Cheers Shane.

I have also thought about keeping the dob & Vixen & am very tempted but I have this thing in my head about a big SCT...Proberly something I will end up regreting

Ha ha - I doubt it!

my view is always that if you buy used (sounds like you do this a lot like me) you can always change your mind and sell for not much less than you paid, then buy something else.

for me one thing's for sure, domestic harmony is worth more than a new scope

with the 'spare' dosh, earn some serious brownie points and buy a star in her name (can you still do this??).

sorry, must have swallowed a happy pill!.......or if you're being cynical - making it impossible for her to complain that you are looking at 'her star':D

[albedo0.39]

"you can never have enough 'scopes"

Nice collection ! I'd change the light on the shed and be done with it.

[sean]

If I had a collection of scopes like yours, although I'm only a beginner there would only be course of action. The wife would have to go

[RobH]

If you end up buying a 12 inch or above SCT, you will need to factor in an observatory too....my 14 inch meade weighed 140lbs, and was certainly not portable.

Keep the dob

Cheers

Rob