#1  
Old 14-06-2019, 03:39 PM
Jeremy123 (Jeremy)
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Any good for first scope?

Hi all,

My name is Jeremy and I reign from a small town called Garfield, about 80km east of Melbourne

Recently, I have become obsessed with astronomy and all things space.

For the past few months I've been exploring the solar system with a pair of Saxon 16x50 bincoulars and I've been having an absolute blast.

I think its time that I make the jump to a telescope and I've been shopping around.

The household financial controller has given me a budget of $550 so I am somewhat limited to what I can buy...

I think I may have narrowed it down to one telescope, but I'd love some expert advice...

I'd like to look at solar system objects and also some brighter DSO's.

I also have a Nikon D5600 DSLR, would I be able to take photos of the moons and planets with this scope? I'm not really interested in Astrophotography but if the scope allows it, I'd probably take a photo or two.

Anyway, enough rambling on. Here is the link

https://www.astronomyalive.com.au/pr...tor-telescope/


Kindest regards,

Jeremy
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  #2  
Old 14-06-2019, 04:06 PM
brian nordstrom (As avatar)
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Jeremy , that's about as perfect a scope as you will ever need for many many years !

Buy with confidence mate .

Brian.
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  #3  
Old 14-06-2019, 04:30 PM
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Outcast (Carlton)
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Agree with Brian,

Best bang for buck scopes on the market are the Dobs...

Regarding AP, you'll be very limited in exposure times & in what you can take images of with a non-tracking mount but... don't despair.. you should be able to get some captures.. Lunar & maybe some short video captures of the brighter planets as it slides through your field of view...

I'm very much of the view of ring what you can out of what you have.... so whilst you might not be able to capture pin point, razor sharp images of faint fuzzies you should be able to get some acceptable images with this... if you do, chuck em up on the beginners imaging thread, tell us what you used, your settings, etc.. & invite comment... don't worry about the naysayers who say it can't be done.. it can.. there are just limits...

My first ever image of Saturn was through a Meade APO on a non tracking mount with an iPhone pressed against the eyepiece... I was as impressed as hell...

For video processing for lunar & planetary stuff, have a look for Autostakkert & Registax.. both free downloads & essential for processing & stacking video frames to produce sharper images...

With this scope, you'll be able to grab plenty of good stuff visually... I have an 8" SCT, different design but, similar light capture characteristics and I've seen down to Mag 9.4 galaxies from my backyard here in Cairns (which doesn't have quite as pristine skies as you'd expect but, they aren't bad) & down to 11.5 mag galaxies under dark skies...

I'd imagine where you are, your skies should be pretty good... ask tonnes of questions on here mate, there are so many people who are generous with their experience... I've learned most of what I know about astronomy & AP thus far (& it's not much really) from this forum & some long distance friendships I've made through the forum...

to one of the most addictive pastimes there is...
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Old 14-06-2019, 04:59 PM
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Atmos (Colin)
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When you mentioned your budget the 8” F/6 dob was what jumped to mind as being the perfect one
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Old 14-06-2019, 05:04 PM
Jeremy123 (Jeremy)
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Great, thanks for your input so far guys!
Is there anything else I should be looking at buying? accessories etc?

Jeremy
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  #6  
Old 14-06-2019, 05:37 PM
croweater (Richard)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeremy123 View Post
Great, thanks for your input so far guys!
Is there anything else I should be looking at buying? accessories etc?

Jeremy
Great choice of scope mate. I'd recommend a telrad finder (or something similar though I reckon telrad is best). Used in conjuntion with finder will make finding objects a lot easier and less frustrating. One of the best accessories I've ever bought. Fairly cheap too. Cheers, Richard
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Old 14-06-2019, 05:39 PM
Ukastronomer (Jeremy)
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I think you have made the perfect choice also it takes 2" eyepiece which is all I would suggest you buy from now on
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Old 14-06-2019, 09:38 PM
Zuts
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Hi,

Lucky you, 80 km from Melbourne and probably i guess, dark skies. That 8 inch would perform like a 10 or 12 inch in Melbourne. Good choice

Cheers
Paul
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Old 14-06-2019, 10:01 PM
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Outcast (Carlton)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeremy123 View Post
Is there anything else I should be looking at buying? accessories etc?

Jeremy
Definitely get yourself a star disk or download a planetarium type app for your smart phone so that you can figure out where things are & where to point your scope to find things...

I use Sky Safari myself; there are three versions (priced accordingly), you will only need the basic version & it's not expensive at all..

Cheers
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Old 15-06-2019, 06:53 AM
Jeremy123 (Jeremy)
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Thank you so much everyone, you have all been more than helpful!
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Old 15-06-2019, 06:55 AM
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Welcome to Iceinspace Jeremy.
You are on the right track.
I expect your sky is reasonably dark so I suggest the following for a little fun. When you are familar with your new scope dont be in a hurry to leave your binos behind but use them to search the sky to detect things to look at with the scope..a sort of discovery mission... I would do this but not only look for regions of brightness but also regions that appear rather dark☺. And then when you find yourself looking at a globular for example reference your star chart and identify it. Of course also set out with a list of targets to find via a star chart. Sky Safari is most handy. Also keeping a note book to record your night is handy...date, time, seeing conditions and notes on what you saw and your impressions. I find a section to record problems is handy...little notes to remind you of things to attend to for future sessions and remember sometimes one may be tired so not relying on memory is a habit to get into...particular good prepatation for old age as well☺. And on that note a proceedure list is a very good idea. That may seem odd in the begining but believe me as the game becomes more complex you tend to overlook basics that will bite you during a session....so if you one day get to narrow band imaging you dont forget small things like check all bolts are tight and the mount is on stable ground.
As to accessories...avoid them as a first approach☺ as with any hobby you think you must have this or that but rarely are most things needed or will be used long term...I recall thinking I must have a filter to correct for atmosphere correct to view Venus...sure it would give a marginal improvement but I probably only observed Venus two or three times ...and that was ten years ago so that filter could be sitting unused now but at the time all I could think about was getting one...I could still open a store with the odd things I saw as a must have...and folk will get things and tell everyone they are great so you get on the wanty wagon...
Probably the best accesories come in the form of warm functional clothes☺.
And I hope you can let us know when you get your scope and share you experiences.
Alex
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Old 15-06-2019, 07:30 AM
Startrek (Martin)
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Hi Jeremy
Welcome
An 8” dob is a fantastic first telescope to start your journey in this amazing
I would at suggest at some stage you will need a collimator and maybe a moon filter. Beginners at first tend to head for the moon as it’s an easy target with so much to explore, without a moon filter you find it to hard to explore detail and your eyes won’t like the glare
When you get more experienced down the track maybe some better eyepieces
A Coleman hand torch CT-15 mc would be most helpful as it has red and white led light, Ive used this one for years and fits in your pocket
Most importantly keep warm, being cold can mean a short night
So much more to tell you but just go out and have fun and enjoy this amazing hobby
Oh and don’t be afraid to ask questions, we are all here to help
Good luck !!
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Old 19-06-2019, 06:43 PM
Jeremy123 (Jeremy)
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Well I ordered the scope today. Picking it up on Friday after work!!

Keen is an understatement
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  #14  
Old 19-06-2019, 07:55 PM
Ukastronomer (Jeremy)
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Best viewing

Jeremy UK
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Old 20-06-2019, 12:27 AM
Renato1 (Renato)
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I used to go viewing in the dark parts of Pakenham. You will have incredibly great fun in Garfield with that telescope.

The only issue I can see is the 9X50 finder. For finding objects near bright stars, it will be easy enough to locate them in your finder to start star hopping from them - though it will help if you keep both eyes open, rather than try aim with just one eye.

But for places in the sky with few brightish stars, you may get frustrated. If so, a cheap red dot finder or more expensive Telrad will quickly fix that issue, since you'd aim the red dot at a star you are looking at in your atlas, and it will immediately be in the field of your 9X50 finder.

The other thing you may want at some time is a narrow band filter (e.g. UHC) which you use to identify the tiny planetary nebulas - by either moving the filter in and out the front of your eye, or just twisting it up and down 45 degrees in front of your eye. The planetary nebula either appears and then disappears, or is dim and then is brighter - which is how you spot it.
Regards,
Renato

P.S. With our current weather, you also need a way of getting rid of dew from eyepieces and finderscope and red dot finder. Plenty of ways to go about it. Simplest for me was a Projecta car starting powerpack from Bunnings and a 12 Volt hair dryer. Cheaper powerpacks may work, but a lot of them cut out when trying to use the hair dryer. My Projecta has a double use - for astronomy and for starting our cars every now and then.

Last edited by Renato1; 20-06-2019 at 04:16 AM.
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  #16  
Old 20-06-2019, 01:50 AM
Ukastronomer (Jeremy)
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Never liked telrad too big, but I agree a decent rdf is what I prefer
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