Skywatcher 130p & 130m

[AwayWithTheStars]

Afternoon All,

Am hoping I can call upon your wealth of advice.

Have been getting into astronomy over the past couple of years, spurred by a love affair with meteor showers

Have been using my planisphere and the Philips Stargazing books as a guide and have had many fun evenings now learning my

way around the glorious night sky. I have been using some 8x30 binoculars and have now reached the stage now where i want

to see more!! particularly the planets in better detail. Jupiter's moons etc.

So am taking the plunge and looking to buy my first telescope.

Having done alot of reading it seems to me that i cant go too far wrong with the Skywatcher 130M. Have ummed and erred

between 130p and 130m, still am a bit.

But as both are at the same price, with/without motor drive, am thinking that although i may not do so immediately, i would

like to try some astrophotography at some point. So am thinking that as i will probably eventually want the Motor drive, better to get it

all as one now ?

Is this the right way to go?

I really just want to be able to have a more detailed view of the planets and a good overall view of the night sky. A step

up from my binoculars

I am also wondering about the size and weight of it, as i go camping and stargazing, does anyone know how much it weighs

and what kind of dimensions it is for storing? Saw somewhere weight listed as 12kg? I would like to be easily portable and

storable while travelling, and so i can use it as much as possible.

Any thoughts are greatly appreciated. Thx

[brantuk]

The tube and tripod are very light but the head and counter weights are something I wouldn't go backpacking with. But in a car the separate parts are easy to transport.

The "P" indicates a parabolic mirror which is superior for focusing. Ideally you would have one of these on a motorised "M" mount. Once polar aligned the motor will keep any object in the eyepiece by tracking it in the opposite direction to Earths spin.

Storing the scope in bits should not be a problem.

Hope that helps

[rowan46]

The tube and tripod are very light but the head and counter weights are something I wouldn't go backpacking with. But in a car the separate parts are easy to transport.

The "P" indicates a parabolic mirror which is superior for focusing. Ideally you would have one of these on a motorised "M" mount. Once polar aligned the motor will keep any object in the eyepiece but tracking it in the opposite direction to Earths spin.

Storing the scope in bits should not be a problem.

Hope that helps

what he said but I would add that if imaging through the scope the camera would show up the imperfections in the optics. The parabolic mirror should produce tighter more resolved cbjects

[RobSay]

I was in a similar situation a few months ago and ended up with the 130M - in hindsight the 130P would have been a better choice for me. (Not that the standard 130 is at all bad).

One thing that the two scopes share is the EQ2 mount. It is sufficient for the kit - but it is sold at a particular price point (cheap! ). It's stable enough but I can see that for photography I will end up with something more substantial. The EQ2 setting circles are not particularly useful IMHO - I don't use them at all, targetting is done with constellation positioning and star hopping - all of which I found familiar from the time with just the binoculars. I don't have an issue with thinking in GEM co-ordinate space - this can be a big stumbling block and is an argument for a DOB. The pro-DOB argument gets really strong if you drop the tracking requirement.

The 130 tube is ~1m long and lightweight, the 130P tube is smaller (615mm). The 130P is however I believe heavier - the specs for the 130 have gone from skywatcher site (but 130P is there). Take a look at this thread for relative sizes - the first post has a picture of a 130P (the smaller one)

http://stargazerslounge.com/beginners-help-advice/128173-look-size-thing.html

Either will fit easily in a small car but you aren't going to be carrying ether far (bulk and weight)

I store mine with OTA in box and tripod assembled with tube rings - think metre square floorspace. Dismantle it when we have guests in spare room.

The 130P will by reputation (and design) produce better viewing/images but is less tolerant of eyepiece quality - One of the reasons I went with the 130 was that I thought I could get more out of/survive longer with the supplied eyepieces. This proved incorrect as within a month I was replacing and expanding.

I haven't even got the motors fully running yet but to be honest it's an irrelevance - I won't be using the motor with this kit except to practice and work out how it all works. If I enjoy the learning curve and get the hang of it, I'll work out a different set up for photography - but that's a job for next winter at the earliest after I've listened to a lot more people. I've also followed a variety of topics and you definitely need to add a powerpack to your budget for any motor - the battery wastage rate is eye-wateringly bad.

Oh and whichever one you go for expect to re-collimate - it's not that scary (the second time!)

Hope this helps

Rob

[AwayWithTheStars]

Thankyou so much for your help guys, have been thinking alot about your advice.

Once again it has helped me raise a few more queries before i make a decision

Hmmm am still thinking about the weight and size. (-Thanks for the Look at the size of that thing...... link Rob, Fantastic thread, just what i needed to help me get a better guage on size.)

When i say camping I mean to say that i have a small campervan which we go away in at the weekends. Sometimes we stay at sites but we also do a fair bit of wild camping. So "packed away in the van storage size" is something i really have to consider closely as i need

to be able to store it within the limited space i have in the van. Not such an issue when we are just going stargazing, but when away for longer periods, i have got to consider how much space I actually have after camping supplies and clothes etc!!

The other side of it is, living here, my local spot where i often just go at the spur of the moment is Beacon Hill.

Brantuk, knowing the walk up to Beacon hill, do you think its light enough for me to be able to handle the walk from the van to the top of Beacon Hill? or is it going to be too hefty for that?

The "P" indicates a parabolic mirror which is superior for focusing. Ideally you would have one of these on a motorised "M" mount. Once polar aligned the motor will keep any object in the eyepiece by tracking it in the opposite direction to Earths spin.

Hmm, this has got me thinking. I cant find Skywatcher 130pm on first light optics to get an idea on price. Am i being dopey??

Scope'n'Skies have them listed for £200.

However, as my budget is really at the moment up to the £155 mark... Wondering if i should be getting the 130p, or waiting untill i can put the budget up that little bit to get 130pm...

RobSay, Thankyou sooo much for your thoughts. To hear your experience of the 130m is invaluable.

From what you have both said I am thinking the 130m is not

really the way to go.

Seems the 130p would be the way to go within my current budget, or 130pm ideally if I could raise budget a bit.

I haven't even got the motors fully running yet but to be honest it's an irrelevance - I won't be using the motor with this kit except to practice and work out how it all works. If I enjoy the learning curve and get the hang of it, I'll work out a different set up for photography - but that's a job for next winter at the earliest after I've listened to a lot more people. I've also followed a variety of topics and you definitely need to add a powerpack to your budget for any motor - the battery wastage rate is eye-wateringly bad.

Thats really helped me, in no way am i expecting to be able to get fantastic photography with this set up. I am not buying the scope specifically for photography, i just thought if i could get a scope that has the potential to make a start in photography, i would get more out of it for longer before i end up looking for my next scope in years to come.

In fact what you have said is really what i am looking for.

For me, i think that firstly i want a good beginners scope that i can enjoy the sky with. And secondly, if i can get a motor drive , which i can use to get an idea of how it all works and have some fun learning the basics of astrophotography then great!

Regarding storage size and camping Rob, if you lay flat unassembled all parts together, what kind of floor space and height do you think that takes up?

Thankyou again guys, you have been a massive help in getting my head around this.

Very much appreciated

[brantuk]

The walk from the carpark to the top of Beacon hill is maybe 100yds ish. If you have a long strap you could easilly arrange for the tripod to go over your shouder and carry the mount (with weights) in one hand. The tube can go in the other hand or under arm.

But the mount/weights are quite heavy and you wouldn't want to slip or you can kiss the scope goodby on that ground. It's a fair angle up the hill. Better if someone else is with you to take the tube separately - or risk going back for it.

Better still - join EMS at Sawley for observing and set up right next to the car - it's only one junction up the M1

[danielson23uk]

Hi AwayWithTheStars,

I recently was in the same position as you and nearly fell into the trap of getting the 130. I was trying to cut corners and basically get a bargain. I was fortunate enough to discover this site first and these guys know their onions. There's no way you'll be happy with a 130 that's not parabolic. In addition to that, it's longer. Forget the 130m You'll be unhappy with it in weeks.

The 130P, once broken down takes up little space. The problem with it is that I'm just too lazy to keep breaking it down so it lives in my shed. If you are the type that will happily spend half hour setting it up before leaving it to cool for an hour then fine.

You don't need an EQ mount for viewing and I myself struggle with it constantly which is detrimental to my enthusiasm. I got the Explorer 130P with the EQ because I wanted to start astrophotography. I soon found out after buying it that the 130P doesn't have direct DSLR connection and many people say it is nigh on impossible to get a focus on anything other than the moon with a dslr connected.

So given that space is at a premium and astrophography is not your priority, I'd recommend you go for a Dob like the 130P Heritage Flextube as a minimum.

For the sake of brevity I need to say that I haven't used one. But I think you'd feel better about ad-hoc constellation jumping and relaxed stargazing on a Dob than spending all that time and energy setting up an EQ mount to do the same.

Sorry to urinate on your fireworks but I think it's imperative you have all the options for the right reasons.

Maybe someone will shoot down the 130P Heritage Flextube. I just think that if your priorities are space saving and ease of use, you need to consider this option rather than needlessly messing with an EQ.

[LukeSkywatcher]

I have the Heritage 130P and LOVE IT.

If its portability and storage that you are concerned about then the Heritage is IDEAL.

IIRC it weighs about 6Kg and will sit stored away in any small corner. Can be carried with one hand (it has a handle on the base) and is set up and ready to use within a couple of mins (not allowing for cool down).

[AwayWithTheStars]

Just wanted to say a big thanks for all your help and advice.

Having considered all the options. I am now the very proud owner of a Skywatcher 130p.

Decided that i will add the motor at a later date and just get used to and enjoy my new scope first. That can all come later.

Had my first night out with it on Monday night for an hour or so before the cloud came in. Then was out again on wednesday and had my first view of jupiter and its 4 largest moons.

WOW! Was absolutely blown away. Truly awesome. All that deliberating about which scope, and ahh! this is what its all about.

Absolutely breathtaking. This was one of the first things i wanted to see and what led me to getting scope, and it truly didnt disappoint.

Was seriously impressed and know i have made the right choice.

Cant wait to get another clear spell and get a chance to have a look at Saturn, which im sure will blow me away aswell. -(hmmm, thinking i may be a planets girl?! lol)

Had a good mooch around the moon and was equally impressed. Managed to take a snap of it with my mobile camera, just for a play really, was quite chuffed with how it came out. Can see any sort of serious astrophotography will be a thing for the future, just want to enjoy the scope for now.

Am just really excited now for my next viewing. Checking weather reports every 2 hours lol. Just gotta ditch these pesky clouds now lol.

This is going to be sooooo much fun, cant wait to get out there and explore again.

Although having just bought new scope, i understand is par for the course to have cloudy nights forever more?? If only you could purchase clear skies in a shop eh! LOL

Thanks again for all you help. Will no doubt be back asking more questions in my quest for knowledge

[Simms]

Hi, I only recently purchased a 150P model (not hugely different to yours) and I agree, instead of getting tied down with worrying about photography ( like I did) just enjoy finding those DSOs and using the scope.. Congrats on your purchase - now lets hope we get some clear skies!!

[brantuk]

Congrats AWTS - glad you're enjoying it

[AwayWithTheStars]

Thanks muchly, am loving it

[red dwalf]

i had a 130p and loved it, very capable little scope tracks, easy to set up and use, i used to leave it on the mount and just carry it outside and use, it was so simple i sometimes still kiss it.

a great buy and works well for imaging with webcams on planets, also my first view of m42 with it was one of the best i`ve seen.