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Originally Posted by Ben
My plan is to get a scope, wack it on my Manfrotto photo tripod for a bit and search the skies for a while
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Ben, I wouldn't suggest trying to put any of the OTA's listed on a Manfrotto tripod, while Manfottos are excellent photography mounts, they simply aren't sturdy enough for the job.
A bare minimum for the OTA's you have listed would be a Vixen Porta mount or the GS clone, even they are only just acceptable for those OTA's. Even with a sturdy mount the OTA's in your wish list will disappoint for visual use.
If you want to have a look about the skies and intend to get in to Astrophotography, it wouldn't be a bad idea to get an 8 inch dob (you'll pick up one second hand for under $400) and hold off until you have the money for the basics, OTA, mount and guiding extras.