Buying my 1st Telescope

[Mick Smith]

Hi all,

l am very new to all of this but have been interested since l was a kid

I have almost made up my mind what l want to buy.

Skywatcher Skyliner 200P FlexTube AUTO

8" which should do me for years to come.

1st Q is -- can a lap top plug into this? l saw the model above this and it showed a close up of the hand auto controller and there on the pad looked like a socket of some sort maybe for a lap top connection,? anyone know ?

2nd Q is -- If a lap top can plug into it then would the program called Stellarium work with it and be a sort of a go to ish

3nd Q is -- at 1st l want to just explore the heavens and learn my way around, but then l would like to try my hand at photography and web cam images. this model should be ok for this , wouldn't it ??

This is all l can think of to ask at the moment but if l think of out else l will post again.

Thanks for looking

Mick

[rowan46]

I can't help with the computer control bit, I am afraid. But yes this scope does look capable of webcam imaging. It will not be suitable for dso's however for a couple of reasons. Its tracking isn't accurate enough and most importantly it doesn't have an eq facility

[nightfisher]

sounds like a great scope, you will be able to dolunar planet imaging with a webcam, sorry cant help with laptop question

[malc-c]

Mick,

From what I've gleaned, it's the goto mounts that allow you to connect a laptop and control the scope from some software such as the one you mentioned. The auto by the looks of things simply provides tracking of an object once found.

The advice I got from members here was that for anything other short exposures an equatorial mount is required for astro-photography. So whilst that scope will no doubt be fantastic for visual observing, it's probably not ideal for your ultimate goal for astro photography

[brantuk]

The flextubes are smashing light gatherers and give great vfm £'s per aperture inch and terrific for observing. Whilst a dobson tracking mount may give the chance to snap some short exposure planetary/moon pics it won't be accurate enough for dso imaging.

Most motorised scopes are capable of computer control but it's not something you often see on dobsons, and it would involve a few electronic mods so you'd need to be comfortable with a soldering iron.

You could look at the 200P solid tube on heq5 if you're thimking about imaging, or a short tube wide angle refractor on an eq5 gt pro. Imaging is a very involved and expensive game. If you're totally new to the hobby I'd put it off for a while till you know what's what.

Read this book in the meantime "Making Every Photon Count" - it'll tell you everything you need to know about imaging

[malc-c]

Read this book in the meantime "Making Every Photon Count" - it'll tell you everything you need to know about imaging

LOL - you must be on commission. If I had a quid for every time I saw that recommendation in your post I'd have enough to pay for my scope

Joking apart - it's an excellent recommendation

[brantuk]

Lol Malc - I just got the book before Xmas which is why I recommend it - it's really good. Plus it was written by Steve (Steppenwolf) moderator here. He really knows his stuff

(wish I was on commission lol)

[rowan46]

lol, I have put it so many times in my posts lately i'm wondering whether it should be a sticky an excellent book though, put me off imaging as I realised I just haven't the funds in the forseeable future.

[Mick Smith]

Thank you all for your input and advise. At the moment if l did photography it would basically be snaps. As well as visual seeing the sky with my own eyes l would like to keep my memories as pics too, nothing special just a small log. Don't want to go to deep into it, not yet anyway

[malc-c]

Mike,

The good part about this hobby / passion is that there is always a market for good quality 2nd hand scopes, so if/when you choose to upgrade or move towards imaging you can always PX your scope or sell it privately. I've chosen to go a slightly different route by ordering a P200 on an EQ-5 goto mount. Ideally I would of loved to of gone to the HEQ5 goto mount but that was just outside my budget. So for me, I have a decent visual scope, it has the option of using a goto to show me where things are so I can learn the sky, and also can offer basic astro-photography (planetary and the moon) which is fine given the poor light polluted skies we have in Stevenage. For me at the moment and possible the next few years, this set up is fine, and no doubt your intended purchase is right for your intended program of observations and budget

[Mick Smith]

Thanks Malc.

Still pondering on waiting for my month is up and 50 posts so l can look at the second hand forum. l am trying hard not to jump in

[red dwalf]

do you have to wait a month ? i thought you just needed 50 posts to get the for sale section.

[G2EWS]

Yes it is 50 posts and a month.

Hi Mick,

Second for Every Photon Counts.

In fact I would not try and buy anything without reading it first. Second Edition which I received was out this week. Steve was very quick with his delivery if you order it now.

Best regards

Chris