One thing I never, ever, want to do is not respect people's different $$$ they have available to spend. There's plenty of good but expensive gear, and rattling off those Brand names is easy. I try a different approach, to find those gems hidden among the modestly priced gear, and discuss those. Not everyone can afford to drop $1000 on an EP, but with some thought given to the scope/scopes you have, there may be $200, $100, or even $50 eyepiece options that will do a stonking good job.
My quip of getting a big SCT was meant tongue in cheek. There is a huge price difference between a 16" Skywatcher dob and a 16" Meade SCT...
Not to mention logistical.
Hemi, if you ate considering a light bucket, then of course a big Newt/dob is a special beast. I have dobs from 114mm to 17.5", and each fulfills a particular niche for me. Tonight for instance, I'm going to my dark site at Katoomba Airfield (first time in 3 years
) and I'll be taking my 17.5" dob & my 8" f/4 dobbie too. There are things the 8" can do that the 17.5" can't, so I will exploit both.
Is there an astro association in Darwin you can join? I know the weather systems of the tropics plays havoc with astro, but hopefully there is a modest astro group happening. Maybe someone there has a big light bucket you can look through before laying down your money, and also come to see what it takes to wrangle it from set up to take down.
As Jeremy said "Buy in haste, regret at leisure" - great line!
Alex.