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Looks Like The Dobsonian 150P or 200P

gordyb

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gordyb

gordyb

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should i get the 6" version with some quality eyepieces or the 8" with quality eypieces,what are the options regarding eyepieces and other accessories as the 6" is 12000mm f8 and the 8" is f1200mm f 5.91.and regarding accessories what would be excellent eyepices and finders for these 2 scopes.

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Ben Ritchie

Ben Ritchie

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At f/6 or f/8 these Dobs are quite forgiving on eyepieces (and collimation) so don't feel you need to spend a fortune. Of the two, I'd go for the 8" for the extra light grasp.

A red-dot finder (Telrad or Rigel Quikfinder) and a right-angled finder replacement for the standard straight-through are good upgrades, you don't need both but they make life much easier. You'll also need something to collimate with, I use a simple cheshire but lasers are an alternative (with the usual caveat about maybe collimating the laser too). And a red torch and star-chart help you find your way around!

As for eyepieces, depends a lot on budget, personal preference and what you're most interested in observing?

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darkly

darkly

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I took advice from the people here on SGL and ended up with the kit listed below.

To be honest I've been delighted with it ever since.

I bought a cheshire collimator (on advice) and it seems to be the biz

Must agree with the finder upgrade (above) although I haven't done it myself, just got used to the finder supplied

Cheers

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great_bear

great_bear

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I'd also say go for a Cheshire and NOT a Laser.

It's got nothing to do with the price either - the issue is that lasers are just beyond the mechanical tolerance of these scopes. If you've got a Takahashi or some other scope built like a tank they might be worth the effort, but for a rolled tin tube like a Sky-Watcher Dob, a simple cheshire will cause you a lot less bother.

Eyepieces on the other hand, well... erm... How long have you got to discuss this? :)

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John

John

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The 200P on the EQ5 that darkly has is an F/4.9 wheras the dobsonian mounted 200P is F/5.9 which, as Ben says, makes it more forgiving on eyepieces, collimation and a great all round scope IMHO - definately go for the 8" one if you can.

As Ben also says, your eyepiece options depend on your budget - I used Nagler's / UWAN's with my 8" F/6 dob when I had it and they worked excellently as you would expect - not a cheap option though !.

At a lower point in the budget scale, I've been trying some Hyperions out recently and they seem very nice at F/6.

The usual advice though is to get the scope and use it a few times before buying accessories (with the exception perhaps of the Telrad / Quickfinder which are "no brainers" in my book). Sounds a bit of dull advice but a bit of 1st hand experience will help you decide what YOU want to get next.

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Ben Ritchie

Ben Ritchie

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Sounds a bit of dull advice but a bit of 1st hand experience will help you decide what YOU want to get next.

Agree completely. With eyepieces especially there's no substitute for trying things out - there's a very strong element of personal preference involved, so there's rarely a right or wrong answer. People have very different tolerances for aberrations, coma, field curvature etc., so some people may rave about an eyepiece that's sharp out to 80% of the FOV while others consider it a dud because it's not sharp to the edge. Some love ultrawides, others don't see the need for anything wider than a Plossl.

Best thing is to try as much as possible, and try and figure out where your preference and budget overlaps.

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great_bear

great_bear

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Quote: "the crated 36" mirror will weigh about 300 lbs - you'll want a forklift"

So nipping out to a dark sky site for some lone observing seems to be out the question then! :)

[edit] - Hang on, that's only the 36" weight... I wonder where the 50" mirror tips the scales??

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Moonshane

Moonshane

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Where does one stop? :)

when you cannot carry it single handed (if you store in house) or roll it out single handed (on a dolly if you have it stored outside.

:p

personally I see the 12" dob as the ultimate in portability/light gathering ratio. BUT an 8" scope will be superb on most objects and is a fine starter scope.

I'd echo the other comments about the Telrad (my preferred option over the two), a right angled finder also makes a big difference as does a wide angle eyepiece. buy equipment (including eyepieces) based on what you need after you have some experience and that way you'll buy the right thing.

the best bet is always ask on here if not sure - you might get ten different answers but they will be genuine, unbiased (in terms of trying to 'sell you something' - although I admit that I am very biased towards Televue eyepieces and dobs!! ;)) and will give you some options. there's nothing like your own experiences though to tell you what feels right.

good luck and welcome to the forum (and hopefully, the 'dob brigade'!).

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gedmac

gedmac

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the 200p is fine and portable,buy first and try then build your ep collection as you go,sound advice given to me by the knowledgeable chaps on here:D an ra finder will be a good purchase at somepoint along with a telrad good luck btw a 200p dob on sale in for sale section :) ebay link here http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/skywatcher-200p-telescope-/260666146254?pt=UK_Telescopes&hash=item3cb0e9bdce

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haitch

haitch

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Quote: "the crated 36" mirror will weigh about 300 lbs - you'll want a forklift"

So nipping out to a dark sky site for some lone observing seems to be out the question then! ;)

[edit] - Hang on, that's only the 36" weight... I wonder where the 50" mirror tips the scales??

I was seeing that as more the home setup - I'll keep the 14" for the grab and go. Now all I need is a lottery win. :)

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Ogri

Ogri

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Something I immediately had difficulty with, on getting the 200p dob, was not having a low magnification eyepiece (it badly compounded not having a RDF with the 'scope as yet).

On the ST120, I get 30 x magnification with a 20mm eyepiece. It is an outstanding magnification to have for DSO's, PLUS, a great 'finder eyepiece'. Due to the ST120's 600mm focal length, I had concentrated on picking up eyepieces that were 20mm and shorter.

In the 200p dob, with its 1200mm fl, that translated into 60 x magnification. Not even close, let alone 'no cigar'. ;)

The supplied 25mm eyepiece, at 48 x magnification, was also far too high to help me find my way around.

So from the For Sale section here (thanks again Ian!), I managed to pick up a secondhand, unbranded 2" 38mm 70 degree afov eyepiece to tide me over (31.5 x mag is definitely close enough), and PHEW! back in the comfort zone (plus it's a pretty darned nice EP!), to the point even not having a RDF on the 'scope, is livable with for a while. :)

It looks very much like this one http://www.scopesnskies.com/prod/adler/wide-angle-eyepiece/38mm.html .

To be honest, an eyepiece that offers around 30 x magnification (ideally with a decent 60 - 70 degree field of view), for me at least, seems to be far and away the most important eyepiece to have with a 'scope. I reckon such an eyepiece is in the 'scope at least 60% of the time (I am admittedly a DSO fan rather than a Moon and Planets fan though).

HTH

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