Dobs - Decisions, Decisions, Decisions!

[rusty]

Hi. I have a 70mm Meade refractor but looking for bigger aperture. It would seem the Dob is the way to go.
Two questions:

1) are the more expensive dobs (Celestron, Orion, Meade) really that much better than the cheaper ones (Bintel, Sky Watcher, etc) and

2) if i was looking to spend $1000 or less on a 250mm Dob is there a brand that stands out in terms of value for money or is it really a matter of personal choice (ie: they are all pretty much the same quality at this price).

Thanks in advance.

[iceman]

Hi Rusty.

For $1000, you can even get the 12" (300mm) dob, deluxe model. You do not need to spend big money on big name brands.

The GSO dobs are extremely good value for money, and the optics, although not premium quality, are very good for the (non-premium) price and many people have enjoyed very good views through these scopes.

You can get the GSO dobs from Bintel and Andrews, or the SkyWatcher brand from MyAstroShop.

Good luck, and welcome to IIS!

[janoskiss]

:welcome: to IIS, Rusty!

1) There are no more expensive and cheaper Dobs. They are all either Synta (Skywatcher, Saxon, Celestron) or GSO (Meade, Bintel, Orion?). They are good scopes.

2) I like the Saxon or Skywatcher 10" the most. The friction lock on the alt bearings is very handy and the white enamel finish on the tube is probably more durable than the single grey/silver layer of paint on most GSO tubes. Optically I don't know how they compare when pushed to their limits. I guess they would be similar. I don't think you can go wrong with either scope (GSO or Synta).

[janoskiss]

12" is a beast. Make sure you are comfortable with the size first! It's a bit cumbersome to use. I think the 10" is the best all-rounder.

[davidpretorius]

10" is a great start, but if you are not driving it around, 12" would be very nice!

[astro_nutt]

Hi Rusty..I agree with janoskiss...I own a saxon 10 inch dob..good optics.. very well balanced..and easier to transport!...
The Bintel 10" dob retail for about $680...with the change left over..you could buy some widefield EP's, laser collimator, comfy chair, and maybe even a planesphere!
If you can get down to an astro party somewhere...try one out and see for yourself.
Cheers!

[janoskiss]

Davo & Rusty, by saying the 12" is a bit cumbersome to use I was not thinking about moving the beast around but actual observing in the field. The EP height is such that a person of average height it is too high when you're seated and just a bit too low when standing. With the 8 or 10" you can observe seated with your feet on the ground. It's a big difference in comfort level.

[rmcpb]

With the uniform quality available these days in the brands mentioned I think it comes down to the little extras included in the deal like Crayford focuser, collimating eyepiece, etc.

My advice is not to go too big too soon an 8" will blow your little eyeballs out of their sockets after the 70mm, a 10" would be dangerous :) If you stayed in this range then you would have heaps for some of the little extras that just make life that bit easier.

Cheers

[ving]

1> thye share optics mostly as steve mentioned, so you are paying for a name and sometimes a few odds and ends.

2> go a GSO from bintel or andrews comunications (a bit less $$ for them) and get some accessories to go with it :)

[robagar]

from my research while buying a dob earlier in the year, the key points seemed to me to be:

mass produced mirrors are all good
get the best eyepieces you can afford
learn to collimateSo I'd say, get the budget dob and blow the savings on ep's, then save up for the laser collimator :)

[janoskiss]

I would not go that far. There are some real shockers out there. I have a Meade LXD75 6" Newt and the mirror is a complete lemon.

btw. I just remembered that Saxon 10 and 12" Dobs have pyrex mirrors, which is why they are more expensive, but for visual astronomy you certainly don't need pyrex up in Rockhampton.

[GrahamL]

I went with a 10 " a couple of months back .. and was really giving some thought to getting the 12" instead .. both come in under the 1K budget you mention .. the 10 " while not overly heavy is a slight handfull to move around if you have to go to far.. Its 1250 mm length is a little friendlier to fit a sedan also .. that was the decider for me in the end the extra length
of the tube was prolly not going to get in my car without a major
wrestle .. best of luck with your choice :)

[glenc]

I suggest an 8" or 10" dob. The 12" is OK if you are not planning to move it around but it is too long for the backseat of a car. My Andrews 10" f/5 dob is easy to move and the optics are fine.
A 10" f/6 is too long to fit on the backseat.

[ving]

if you look inthe buy,sell, trade secion of this forum, theres a 12" dob for sale for under $800 :)

[dhumpie]

I agree with all that has been said. A 8" to 10" GSO dob is the best deal out there. The 12" is a great deal as well but as mentioned is intrinsically heavier than both (the 10" is dead easy to move around and fits nicely in small hatchback's) and it taller too :)

Darren

[MicroFromage]

How long is a GSO 12" dob?

I'm assuming the diameter of it is around about 12.5".

[xelasnave]

I put little wheels on my 12 inch and now it is the easiest to use:D . If the least cloudy I never set up an equatorial mount (with 70mm thru to 150mm scopes for same) but will drag the 12 inch in and out as the clouds come and go.. I am near 60 years old that must say ease of use I recon. Go 12 inch they are great:) , but I must also say the 6 inch scopes do a fine job also and you probably wont see much more thru a 12 over a 10 inch:shrug: .
Just get one you will end up owning more than one scope anyways so why fight it??:lol:
alex

[AGarvin]

They're 145cm long and about 36cm in diameter. From memory they weigh in at about 19kg.

Big suckers, eh ....

[rmcpb]

Go to a local viewing night and look through them and even move them if the owner agrees just to see what you are likely to use more often. It would be great to have a monster BUT if it is not suitable then it becomes a paperweight.

[casstony]

I vote for the 10" for the observing comfort when seated. The 10" would also make a nice 'grab and go' companion to the 16" GSO due out in a few months :-)

I've laboured over the 10" vs 12" for the last few months and decided to purchase the 10" for the convenience of its shorter tube. Just waiting on Bintel to get them back in stock.

Tony

[dhumpie]

I find the 10" to be just the right weight and length for my Hyundai Excel. And I agree that it is a great sit down scope :)

Darren

[ausastronomer]

I would recommend the 10" dob as well.

Any dob over 10" needs to be in truss configuration IMO for portability, which adds significantly to its cost and basically goes way over your budget after allowing for a couple of reasonable eyepieces.

In terms of optical quality IMO the GSO scopes are a little better. Unlike many people here, I had exposure to some of the early Synta/saxon scopes which had pretty average optics indeed and pretty poor quality control. Since Orion USA became involved with Synta about 5 yrs ago their influence has improved the quality control and standard immensely so they are now both very good. I have used a large number of GSO scopes and apart from one 8" sample, they have all been good (at worst), with a couple excellent. The GSO scopes have BY FAR the better focuser, with the Crayford thats offered on the deluxe version and IMO this is important. It's a pity the silver paint finish on the newer GSO scopes leaves something to be desired, that's easily fixed. My GSO scope is one of the early ones which has a Black Baked Enamel finish with a grey metal primer underneath. I have had this scope almost 5 years with no signs of rust spots. Obvious this quality of finish was discontinued because of cost. I also got VERY LUCKY with the optics in my scope. The mirror is outstanding, several forum members who have looked through my scope could confirm this.

CS-John B