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Old 07-08-2018, 04:14 PM
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sil (Steve)
Not even a speck of dust

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Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Canberra
Posts: 1,474
Honestly, I'd say for you to grab a 6" dob. Based on your living uncertainties, commiting to a good mount or ota right now >for you< would not be a wise choice. A 6" dob will open up a lot more sky for you to enjoy and satisfy the blood lust for new gear hopefully until you have a more certain living situation. So if you get stuck with only a balcony a small dob is still usable and should Always be usable too (get the wife looking, or if your main setup turns into an astrophotography platform a dob to keep busy while imaging is handy.

Then aim for a good mount (even if you only use the 80mm on it for a while). Ive got a celestron cgem dx which is much beefier in the legs than the cgem was at the time, so first i guess try to get a look in person at the mounts/tripods available, the current cgem and vx look to me no sturdier than the old cgem mounts. They maybe be good, i dont know, but if you get something that is slightly wobbly it'll drive you nuts (buyers remorse). Better to save for a good mount and worry about the ota later (or just aim for a package). if you relocate to somewhere with consistently poor seeing a high magnification sct might never get its capabilities appreciated. you may get stuck with poor sky views and hot bright light neighbours. My advice is grab something to tide you over until circumstances and budget allows for a better decision. Will save money in the long run and gear will only improve in the mean time, my gut tells me anything you buy now from your list won't quite live up to expectations and thus not worth the money. Again <for you>, given your epic first post this is purely an opinion. Those options I think anyone will be happy with, but for how long? and considering the costs are they end game setups for you? I'm guessing not. Good luck deciding
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