need telescope that is good for me, but also able to use for a small seven year old.

[dweller25]

Thanks. I thought so too. It will give daughter her own scope to learn about and love and the same for dad. They both get a scope that they can handle and share their passion for the hobby side by side.

Celestron do a smaller 76mm Heritage scope but the SW Heritage 130P is a MUCH sounder investment. It used the same optics as the regular SW 130P which is a firm favourite as a starter scope for MANY people and is highly recommended.

But the Heritage is wrapped up in a smaller yet as powerful package (truss tube design).

Yup, that little Heritage is a good performer and it looks great too. Any little Astronomer would be proud to own that - a few big ones too :-)

[LukeSkywatcher]

Yup, that little Heritage is a good performer and it looks great too. Any little Astronomer would be proud to own that - a few big ones too :-)

Paint it white and it would be like that movie "Twins" with Danny De Vito and Arnie..............

[OzDave]

Just an idea, and apologies if someone else has already said this (I haven't read all the replies yet), but one thing you could try relatively cheaply is get your daughter a pair of binoculars to look at stuff with while you deal with the scope. I have an 8yo boy and if he's not doing something (because I'm adjusting the scope, he's bored or making trouble). Giving him a pair of binos and teaching him where stuff is gave him something to do in between 'scope-time, which was a win-win situation for us both really.

On the scope side, my kids tend to want to touch the lens and eyepiece glass despite being told NO a thousand times. Also, I don't necessarily recommend a Newtonian scope on an EQ mount because of the contortions you sometimes have to go thru to look thru the eyepiece. For that reason, I have personally found a small Maksutov scope relatively cheap and child friendly plus with GOTO+tracking it keeps objects in view while my boys clamber to look. And they don't always manage immediately, it takes them time to figure out where exactly to put their eyes and if I leave tracking off, its a pain because I have to find the object again and again == fast track boredom.

Dave

[Capricorn]

Drawback of a small dob for daughter is that she has to find things. I have read many posts of adults failing to locate objects in the sky so I suspect that a 7yr old could well get frustrated. They do after all want to point it at the sky and see things, and want to see whatever NOW! Especially the first night.

One person on this forum swapped from a 10" dob to a Celestron goto and posted that he had seem more in one night then the previous year. Never heard a person happier.

Dob's are fine if you want aperture as that is their forte, after that it is all down to the person for everything else. A big scope is fine but if you cannot locate anything then it's a paper weight. Yes, I have also read the many screams from people with goto's that cannot get them aligned as well, so they don't see anything either.

Actually it is something that Lennox needs to be aware of, if he bought just a Dob (200) could he locate anything so that his daughter can swap places and look herself? When we look up at night there are very few DSO's easily visible.

Have to remember that the purpose of the scope isn't just "Which scope", it is "Which scope to locate objects, show a 7 yr old and keep them interested".

Although the separate scope idea is good, if getting two is affordable, perhaps a small goto for daughter now and a 200 dob for dad in 4-6 months. Then they have a choice, and the goto can be transported to dark site easier. Just more money.

Still say no panic as the sky is light until 10:00-11:00 at present so almost no real observing time.

[lennoxlude]

How about a nice little SW Heritage Dob (5.1") for your daughter and a nice big 200P for yourself. I'm sure they would both still come in on or even under budget. Infact i think you would get a bit of change back out of £400.

I say "little" SW Heritage but it is a reference to its size and portability. It really is a powerful scope for its size. It would be ideal for a child of 7yrs old. She will have it and use it for yrs to come.

i've just had a look at this telescope. i think this one could suit her down the ground, and also keep me entertained for a few months before i buy a telescope for myself. seems quite a nice telescope, and very easy to use, which at her age is the key really. thank you for this, and thank you for everybody posting their opinions.

[cap603]

I'm new at this also. I like Astro Baby's solution of two 'scopes: one for you and one for you daughter. I just got an 8" dob, which would not work for a seven year old. However, I was reading in Sky and Telescope that the International Astronomical Union has sponsored a very nice refractor for only $30 US. Typically, something that cheap would be junk, but they claim this is not. The whole point of it is to introduce astronomy to more people, so they kept the price low. It's very simple, e.g., you have to mount it on your own tripod. It would be great for looking at the moon and brighter objects and your daughter could say it's "her telescope." I'm actually getting one for myself. Here's the website and stats: https://www.galileoscope.org/gs/content/specifications

Objective diameter: 50 mm (2 inches)

Objective focal length: 500 mm (f/10)

Eyepiece focal length: 20 mm

Magnification: 25x (50x with Barlow)

Field of view: 1½° (¾° with Barlow)

Eyepiece eye relief: 16 mm (22 mm with Barlow)

Eyepiece barrel diameter: 1¼ inches (31¾ mm)

Good luck!