Please help me decide

[wakey]

Hi all,

Well i finally after many years of thinking about it have decided to buy a telescope so i can enjoy looking at the night sky.As you are all aware OMG there's so much to choose from:icon_scratch:. But after much time online looking i have shortlisted 2 in my budget of around £400. My 1st choice was the Skywatcher Skymax 127 Synscan for portability and the fact it will find objects for me. My second choice is the Skywatcher Skyliner 250px Dob which to me is like wow so much for the money, i could still transport easily as i have a big van and learning to manually find objects doesnt really bother me.

I want to be able to look at most things not just planets.

So this is my problem maybe i am looking at totaly the wrong gear so please any help tips and advice would make this alot easier.

Thanks for Reading

[Nexus 6]

Hi Wakey,

I think you will find most people on this forum would advocate you buy the dob. I am using go to myself and have found that choice has suited me but I can understand why more light gathering power is important. By taking the dob option you may take more time to find your way around the night sky but the benefit is when matched to some decent ep's the dob will let you see more (dso's) deep space objects.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

Alan

[david o]

Hi wakey,

First a very warm welcome to the forum.

You've narrowed it down to two really good 'scopes. Out of the two I'd go for the Dob, but get the 8" 200P, instead of the 250PX.

In part because it's smaller and more easily portable, it also leaves you more of your budget to spend on other things - eyepieces, planisphere, sky atlases, books, red light torch & warm clothes.

Another advantage is that at f/6 the 200P will not be as demanding on eyepieces as the 250PX at f/5 - you'll get good results with affordable, mid priced EPs. Nor will collimation be so critical.

Other advantages of the Dob are that it's easier to set up, intuitive to use and doesn't rely on batteries or a power tank/pack to work.

HTH

[Rusty Strings]

Another vote for the dob here, for the same reasons. I prefer simple scopes and a dob doesn't get much simpler.

[ollypenrice]

Me too for the Dob but I would go for the ten inch any day. You have a big van and you will find the cash for the EPs!! The Dob will inspire you.

Olly

[russ]

Another vote for the dob. The 10 is not as big and heavy as you would first think. I was surprised just how easy it was to move around as a whole. And there's nothing easier to use than a dob. Accept you have to find the objects yourself off course.

The 127 is a great scope, will show beautiful views of the planets and moon. But it's no deepsky wonder by any stretch of the imagination. So having a huge database of faint deepsky objects seems a bit pointless. For me the 127 makes more sense on the EQ3 with dual drives.

[wakey]

First off i would like to say a BIG thankyou for the replies.

I have decided to go for the 10 dob . I will find the extra money for ep's and accesories (once ive convinced my wife:)).

One more question could you please tell me which ep's would i need to get and where is the best place to buy them.

Once again thankyou great site and forums.

Thanks for Reading

Wakey

[ZOG]

The scope should probably come with a couple of EP's, usually 25mm which is ok and a 10mm which is usually pretty poor TBH.

I'd say invest in a decent widefield EP something 32 - 40mm for galaxies, nebulae and the like, and maybe something around the 8mm mark for planetry and lunar work.

If you can run to it a 13 mm fits in the middle and these should give you a decent starter set.

[russ]

I agree with Zog. A 2" 32mm 70deg widefield makes finding some of the faint fuzzies a lot easier as it gives a huge true field of view. And they don't cost much on the secondhand market.

Something around the 14mm-16mm mark makes a great workhorse eyepiece. While something around the 6mm-8mm region makes a good standard planetary eyepiece.

But the 10mm and 25mm will get you started.

[david o]

First stop should be The Warthog's guide to choosing EPs: Eyepieces - the very least you need.

For the time being go with the EPs that come with it. Spend time using and getting comfortable with your new equipment, you'll get a feel for what size EPs you're "missing".

Then as time goes on and you grow into the hobby start slowly building a collection of quality EPs that fit your observing needs.

Remember that the 250PX is a fast f/5 'scope (it will be demanding on EPs, treating cheaper ones harshly, showing up their aberrations), so get high quality EPs that will be sharp across the FOV in your 10" 'scope.

They'll also be an investment, moving with you between 'scopes, working well in anything that you get. You can usually get them 2nd hand, on here or UK Astro Buy & Sell, at reasonable prices.

HTH

[wakey]

Thanks for that link David o very helpful.

Thanks again all this has made getting what i need so much easier.

Wakey

[PaulG]

Snip.........

The 127 is a great scope, will show beautiful views of the planets and moon. But it's no deepsky wonder by any stretch of the imagination. So having a huge database of faint deepsky objects seems a bit pointless. For me the 127 makes more sense on the EQ3 with dual drives.

Russ

That is a very good point about the GoTo version, which I have never given much thought to before.

Paul

[russ]

Russ

That is a very good point about the GoTo version, which I have never given much thought to before.

Paul

Hi Paul, that wasn't to say the 127 can't do deepsky. I had some good times with my 127s and some really nice views of globs, doubles, M42 etc. Played around with a Celestron 0.63 reducer to make it a little faster, which worked. But i know i tried a few of the fainter galaxies and the 127 was seriously struggling.