1st/new telescope

[axx]

Hi,

About to take the plunge, have read too much now on which newbie scope, and have now confused myself lol.

Bottom line is, have approx $700 to spend, need it to be portable due to outback trips in the bush. Have looked at 2001 saxon eq5 (2nd hand), celstron nexstar127slt (new), Celestron NexStar 4SE(new) I think the 8" dobs are out due to not having a table or flat ground to mount them on;

my travel compartment will be a set of outback drawers in the back of an 80 series land cruiser. Do not mind dis-assembly and assembly.

Mainly looking at planet gazing at this stage.

Cheers

Paul

[Harb]

The drawers are going to limit you to a refractor I would guess.....

[axx]

Sorry, should of said, the drawers are approx 1m long by 50cm wide by 21cm high; though, if it ends up being a question of transportability, I'm sure I can find/make space somewhere else :) I just thought the 8" dob would be too big?

[mental4astro]

Hi Paul,

:welcome: to IIS.

So, the draws you have are 1m X 50cm X 21cm high?

You might find this interesting... The box below contains a 12" scope, and is only 20cm tall. Sneak peak on something new, :)

155766

[axx]

Thanks man, that's great, what type of scope tho', Dob I presume? Any more pics?

[mental4astro]

Yes, a dob. No more pics for now - sorry about the tease. It has the be "watch this space" for a little while still... ;)

[cometcatcher]

You sure you got enough screws in that box Alex? :P :D

You don't need to go to the bush to see the planets Paul. Light pollution only matters for deep sky objects.

[Camelopardalis]

You might be surprised with an 8" Dob, might not quite fit in your storage box, but an 8" solid tube Dob isn't that big - if you have a scope shop or astro club/society/group nearby I'd suggest you go to a meet and look for yourself.

You'd definitely see more deep sky stuff with an 8" Dob than with your other options :)

[axx]

Thanks for the input guys, I'm not going bush specifically for gazing, me n the family regularly go 4wding/campertrailerin'; it has been the last few trips that me and the missus have been looking at the night sky wondering wouldn't be good if we had a telescope lol.

I was wondering if would be more worthwhile buying a maksutov cassegrain, due to portability, sealed unit, tripod mount etc..

[Camelopardalis]

Mak cass... great little scopes, but narrow field of view. If you want a small telescope, take a short focal length 80-100mm refractor :)

[axx]

How about this then,

Skywatcher Celestron 6" SCT OTA with Bresser EXOS2 (EQ5 equiv.) heavy duty equatorial mount/tripod from andrews, comes in at $1200, or the celestron nexstar es6 $1400.

Am prepared to spend almost double my original costing to get best of both worlds...almost lol.

If I wasn't camping so much I'd go the dob, however, I need to be able to pack it away whilst camping so that it doesn't get stolen (yes, it does happen out bush). Would a refractor be better?

Still am looking for more observational, but with the ability to do basic photos with my olypmus tg-2. Also, I do have a wife and kids that would like quickness of viewing lol.

[AG Hybrid]

No no no no no no no!

You do not recommend an equatorial mounted telescope to a beginner. Because I started with one and it drove me f****** insane! :screwy: A beginner has to start out with something simple. And the OP wants compact. That to me sounds like a 80-100mm refractor on a simple alt-azimuth tripod mount. "Point and squirt" simplicity.
Someone with their first scope is trying to learn their way around the sky. But, with an eq scope as well they need to try align the mount with the SCP. Which has no guide star. SO they have to eyeball it with a magnetic compass. Then the alignment still isn't good enough. So then they have to learn to drift align it to get their expensive setup to work as intended. By this point they still haven't seen Jupiter.

And then they just go. Bugger it and go back inside and do this...

:gamer:

[axx]

lol, thanks adrian, that's the kind of response I was looking for, I just wasn't sure about what you can see with a refractor compared to the other types. Unfortunately, it's the wet season up here in Cairns, so cannot go and try out other types of scopes.

So, a skywatcher swed80 az3 or there abouts?

[AG Hybrid]

An ed80 on an Az3 sounds pretty good. If you can stretch your money to AZ4. Even better.

[brian nordstrom]

:lol: To true , but Paul has about 4 months to learn how to drive one ,, sorry Paul , but I only receintly moved from 6 years in Darwin , I know how bad the wet season is ...:shrug: .
Good luck on whatever you deciede , lots of help to be had here .
oh yes ,,,, :welcome: mate .
Brian.

[axx]

Lol, cheers Brian, yes, a few months to dry run anything I get.....

How about in the iceinspace classifieds, a member is selling a 6" sct ota. I could then buy myself an alt anz, or not.......?

[chiaroscuro]

I'll put in my 2 cents worth - I bought a refractor on a GoTo equatorial mount (HEQ5Pro) in August last year - my first scope. Now, it's true that learning to use an eq mount is tricky, but its also fun, and it did not stop me from being able to see lots. This forum was an enormous help, and I'm still learning the tricks and traps of an eq mount.
Whats more, the views I've been getting of the planets have been spectacular with a 120mm refractor.
So, my advice is that if you like a bit of a mental challenge and you have patience, don't be totally put off an eq mount. But if you prefer a quicker path to viewing, a Dob sounds like the way to go.

[axx]

Cheers mate,

Yeah, same boat as you, I think a dob will happen at some stage, but at this point in time I need the portability. I don't mind the learning curve of difficult things, however, what has been the limits of what you have bought, wish you could have etc..

[cometcatcher]

Speaking of 120mm refractors, maybe one of these would be the go?

http://www.myastroshop.com.au/products/details.asp?id=MAS-042I

Highly portable, they are short, fast to setup, no collimation or adjustment needed. They are truly a grab and go scope. If you outgrow the AZ mount, no problem chuck the tube on an EQ goto mount. This is mine (a similar model from the same factory) on an EQ5 Pro.

The downside, they are an achromatic refractor so you will see a little blue fringing on very bright objects.

[jamespierce]

How about a big set of binos like the APM ones for sale in the classified (which I don't mind admitting I quite fancy too). Simple, quick to setup and quite versatile... Not going to be a planet killer - but to be honest you don't need to go bush for that.

[brian nordstrom]

:thumbsup: that 6 inch sct on say a GSO az4 mount would be a perfect set up , a great set up that will be ready for use in miniutes .
Good price as well , google Andrews communinations to see the mount .
Brian.

[Outcast]

Paul,

Where in Cairns are you located? The reason I ask is that is where I live & if you wanted to view a pretty good 'grab & go' setup that will fit in your outback drawers I'd be happy to show you mine.

I have a Meade 80mm ED scope purchased second hand from the classifieds here. I then purchased a GSO Skyview mount from Andrews & additional eyepieces from all & sundry.

Recently, we did a road trip & all of it (with the exception of the eyepiece box) fitted into one outback drawer mounted in the back of our Prado.

I managed outstanding views of Jupiter & its' moons. We could actually see the banding on Jupiter., Saturn with rings clearly visible & recently managed to see the Orion nebula (I think) from the relatively light polluted skys of Port Macquarie.

I'm only starting out & my biggest difficulty is navigating the night sky & finding the not so obvious stuff but, I am working on that. If I had the money I'd purchase a good goto mount but, only because I am lazy :)

Anyways, if you would like to see what I have to get a 'hands on' feel for what might fit in your truck, send me a PM & we'll arrange something. Even better, if this friggin rain goes away for a night or two we can take it out & you can see what is visible with a relatively small refractor for yourself. You'll be surprised.

Regards

Carlton

[Tropo-Bob]

Paul, PM sent.

Carlton, you may wish to do some observing with me when the clouds part. If so, send me a PM at that time. I am at Caravonica.

I did run an Astronomy Group in Cairns for 17 years.

[Outcast]

That would be fantastic Bob, thank you for the offer.

I'm hopeful the cyclone south of us might suck up some of this weather...

Cheers

Carlton

[axx]

Just wanted to say a big thanks to everyone's input so far; my wife comments that you guys are all so friendly:).

I'm gonna catch up with Tropo-Bob hopefully at some time, as he has a few scopes I can look at, and also gonna catch up with Carlton.

So far it looks like I may be heading towards either a 80/100/120 refractor or an 6/8" sct. Mount will probably be az3/4, or goto.

Of course, my wife would like the goto.....

[axx]

So.....telescopes have been acquired :D.

I have, after consultation with tropo-bob and mental4astro, now bought a 12" dob, and an 80mm ed refractor(2nd hand):rofl:

All I have to do now is get an alt-az mount.

Of course, it's cloudy now:lol:

Cheers

Paul

[Outcast]

Paul,

have a look at the GSO Skyview mounts; that is what I have for my ED80 & it works well & seems pretty stable. Breaks down easy to fit in your Outback drawer too; two hex bolts & the mount is separated from the tripod.

I suspect it's gonna be cloudy for a while sadly.... I got excited on Friday when the skies were clear & even planned some observations. By late evening the clouds were back & that put an end to any observing time I thought I might get. :(

If you wanna see the Skyview mount in the flesh, give me a bell & we'll arrange something.

Cheers

Carlton

[axx]

Righto Carlton,

will give you a bell tomorrow, then probably try and arrange a visit Tuesday day if thats ok.


Paul

[MortonH]

Hi Paul.

Congrats on the new scopes (even though you didn't buy my C6 :P).

Cheers

Morton

[axx]

Thanks Morton,

Sorry I couldn't get yours, but I scored an absolute bargain that was local and couldn't pass up.

Paul

[MortonH]

No worries. Look forward to hearing your first light reports :D

[barx1963]

Noice!
What 12" did you get?

Malcolm

[Outcast]

No worries Paul,

Tuesday should be good