Choosing a scope

[jacksonwarrior]

hey all,
Ive narrowed it down to a choice of these to scopes,

-Celestron AstroMaster 130eq
-SkyWatcher SW500

Just posting to find out if anyone has had experience with the both of these.

[mental4astro]

Hi JacksonWarrior,

:hi: and :welcome: to IIS.

Is this your first scope? Do you have experience with eq. mounts? What would you like to do with the scope?

The reason I ask this barrage of questions is the selection of scopes you've narrowed the field to.

If this is your first scope, I feel you could do better. The eq. mounts these scopes use are on the lite side of things. You'll find that the scope wobbles for a considerable period on moving or dumping. Eq. mounts are also quite complicated contraptions to get used to, and can leave the eyepiece in an awkard position on occasions as it you move it.

For the same price you can get an 8" dobsonian mounted reflector. Larger scope, sturdier mount and much easier to use. You will get a scope with more than twice the light gathering capacity, giveing a much more satisfying visual experience.

You can check out the Bintel and Andrews Communications sites for good prices (see under Guan Sheng in Andrews):

http://www.bintel.com.au/Binscope.html

http://andrewscom.com.au/site-section-10.htm

If astrophotography is in your agenda, the scopes you nominate are not really the best tools either. Yes, they are capable, but again their mounts will let you down.

[jacksonwarrior]

I've checked out all the sites and all the scopes, I'm only looking around the $450 - $500. I like the sounds of the celestron, but i can get the skywatcher cheap and its bigger. I just want one for general observing.

Ive only had one experience with an EQmount, Ill work it out.

thanks..

[mldee]

I'm a newbie too and have made all the mistakes. I'll back Alex's comments 100%. A dob is the best (most cost-effective) visual starter scope by far.

If you want to do visual (looking at the stars), then get a small dob to start. They're easy to sell later when you want to move upwards, too.

That will then give you more time to work out if you want to do photography through the scope, and to ask more info here on that aspect when you're ready.

[jacksonwarrior]

I think ill just go with the SkyWatcher. Dobsonians dont look very stable to me, it doesn't look like one you could take camping.

[mental4astro]

You obviously know more than everyone else. Knock yourself out.