Where to buy from? Purchasing a Celestron.

[ruins]

Hi everyone, I was just introduced to this forum from another forum... it's nice to know there is an Aussie forum out there for this stuff and I look forward to hanging out here a lot as I start this hobby!

After looking at both the Celestron 8SE and the Evolution 8, I am ready to order an Evolution 8 as it appears to be the better of the two and I have found the following prices.

Australian Geographic: $3,680 including shipping
ozscopes (http://www.ozscopes.com.au/celestron-nexstar-evolution-8-schmidt-cassegrain-telescope.html): $3,267 including shipping
telescopesdirect.com.au (http://www.telescopesdirect.com.au/Celestron-NexStar-Evolution-8-Computerized-Telescope?sc=304&category=-404): $3,099 including shipping

Problem is, as this is my first ever scope purchase, I have no idea about which shops are ok and which are not.

Obviously $3,099 would be really nice, but is telescopesdirect safe to buy from? What about Ozscopes? I know AG has been around for a long time but they are clearly overpriced - I don't mind paying that price if it's the smartest choice, but if the other places are safe I'd definitely rather go with them.

Any advice on this would be amazing.

Thanks!

[Atmos]

I cannot say anything in regards to Telescopes Direct as I have never had anything to do with them, Oz Scopes are fine though. I have never bought much off of them but I have met the owners and a most of the management, could have even got a job there a few years ago if my current job wasn't SO much closer to where I live ;)

National Geographic are just over priced because they can afford to be.

[MattT]

Try Andrews Communications. Many happy customers including me, not that I have bought anything so expensive.

http://www.andrewscom.com.au/optical-telescopes

Matt

[bugeater]

Optics central also stock celestron stuff. Only reason I mention them is they are literally around the corner and I see the Celestron boxes in their warehouse when I drive by. No idea what their service is like though. But worth checking their pricing too.

[MattT]

I suppose the question should be asked....
Why do you want an 8" Cassegrain Scope on a (I guess) GoTo mount?
$3K+ is a lot to spend straight up....for me at least. Have a look at the classifieds telescopes for sale here on IIS...there are a couple of scopes that are worth having a look at in the SCT area, and cheaper than new prices.

[ruins]

Thanks all for the replies, the help is really very much appreciated.



Well to be honest I'm completely new and clueless to telescopes, and I ended up making a thread on another forum that lead to that choice. The jist of my requirements that led to the choice was (quote from my original post):

I'm always open to other options and advice though! The Evolution 8 just seemed like a great scope that would be pretty easy/stress free to use.

[SkyWatch]

If you are set on the SCT 8" (and they are a very nice scope), Andrews have the Celestron CPC800 for $2999 at present: the same price as their Evolution8. The CPC is a fork-mounted scope, very solid (I would think much more so than the single-arm Evolution)- and at that price it is a very good buy.

I have had one for several years that I use for public/school nights, and it has never put a foot wrong. Very good optics and very easy to set up. It is quite heavy: but that also means it can cope with moderate winds and children banging into it...

I have always had good dealing with Andrews too.

All the best,

Dean

[Allan_L]

Hi ruins,
welcome to IceInSpace :welcome:

The Evolution sounds like a nice scope with some great new features.
I am not aware of anyone who has bought one of these locally, so can't give any more advice on that. But it does sound impressive.

I have owned several Celestron SCTs and was pretty happy with them in general. Easy to set up, easy to transport, and easy to use.

None the less, I have been more than happy with Dobsonian telescopes, producing better views than SCTs for a lot less. And they do have GoTo models available.

Where abouts are you located?
It would be good if you could get to a local observing session to see various scopes before buying. This is always the best option. Compare, contrast, discuss, and determine what is best for your situation.

[sil]

Ozscopes are great and easy to deal with. very fast delivery. i've bought a couple of scopes from them.

[ruins]

Hmm interesting. From my very quick (and I mean 5min, will be doing some more tonight) research on the CPC800 vs my Evolution 8 choice, it seems that the CPC is essentially the same scope, but the differences are:

1) It has a stronger mount
2) it has in built GPS (the evo 8 doesn't, I believe)
2) it doesn't have wifi (not a big deal at all to me)

But apart from that it's the same?



ACT at the moment.

And thank you for all the shop recommendations guys... Andrews seems to be the most recommended shop around from what I've read, not just here. The products they sell are new?

Thanks again, all of you, can't wait to order something soon :thumbsup:

[glend]

Yes, they are new products unless they specify otherwise (as trade-ins, etc).

I've always found them to be the most cost effective. Keep an eye on prices because it seems that recent AUD devaluations are now working their way through the system.

[Amaranthus]

I bought my 8SE package from Telescopes Direct. Was the best price, and arrived well packaged, quickly, and in perfect condition. So no complaints with that dealer.

[athua]

Optically, they are all the same as they use the same 8inch optical tube assembly (OTA).

Celestron has two types of OTAs, the regular one and the EdgeHD ones which are meant to reduce the field curvature around the edges normally found with SCT scopes. The EdgeHD OTAs are much more expensive (about $1000 more).

[ruins]

Thanks again everyone. I've been researching for a bit tonight. Finding it a pretty hard choice between the CPC800 and the Evolution 8.

As of this moment, I'm leaning towards the CPC800 because it has the stronger mount and I have no need for the wifi on the Evo 8 at all. Would rather use the remote.

But is one any better, or easier to modify/upgrade for astrophotography, or are they both about the same in that regard as well? :) Trying to find things to lean one way or the other, and I would like to try out some AP in the future.

[Amaranthus]

Neither are good for AP, if you want to go that route, you could pick up an SCT OTA and a GEM that would serve your purpose for a similar price.

[Camelopardalis]

If it matters, the CPC is substantially heavier than the Evo due to the dual fork mount, but ergonomically the CPC has handles in the right places.

Buying a telescope is never straightforward, especially if you throw AP into the mix...

[SkyWatch]

These scopes have an alt-az mount, which means they move up/down and sideways to track objects. When you use them for long exposure AP, they track the centre of the object, but over time the field rotates- and this mucks up the image. You don't notice this effect when you are using them for visual. A "GEM" mount ensures that the camera turns with the object and you don't get any field rotation.
You can mount an alt-az like the CPC on an equatorial wedge, which points the side-ways axis at the celestial pole. This stops the field rotation, and means you can take long exposure images. This is the same for both the CPC and the Evolution. You can also get an electronic "field de-rotator", but I think the mechanical way using a wedge is better.

Oh, and I don't know about the Evolution, but the CPC picks up the GPS satellites very quickly: ready to go usually in about a minute.

[sil]

ruins, before you ask, no there is no such thing as a telescope that does everything ideally. You can do astrophotography with any scope, big or small, AltAz or EQ mount you just wont be doing it optimally. It takes years of mistakes to learn what is best for your skills and budget. You said you'd made up your mind, so just buy and start using/learning.

[MattT]

For a thousand $ less than than the 8" Celestron you could get this...

http://www.bintel.com.au/Telescopes/Dobsonian/Orion-SkyQuest-XT10G/1472/productview.aspx

Will do everthing you could want on the visual GoTo/tracking front AND has more light gathering than the 8"...downside...it is bigger...much bigger, but managable.

As has been said as soon as you add Photography into it that complicates things. Keep it simple and do the visual thing first.

Just my 2 cents.

Matt

[DJT]

You need to seperate your 2 requirements...

1) something simple to take a 5 year old through our solar system
2) something you want to use for AP later on. Once you go down that rabbit hole it's actually quite hard to break down your perfectly collimated and well balanced scope and camera setup that you have struggled to get just so in order to do visual and add a diagonal and eyepiece ( there, I said it...eyepiece...)

Suggest a table top dob with sky charts ($130 ish) and accessory pack to help you both understand how this all hangs together and a secret stash of go-to AP kit you can commandeer for AP( sorry, I meant coach,etc with).

Best book I read when starting out was The Backyard Astronomers guide by Dickenson and Dyer. Hold on to your 3k until you have either read that or ploughed your way through the sage advice you get here. ( small happy moment when I immediately found my copy on my bookshelf.)

[ruins]

Thanks for the further advice guys, I've haven't been able to look at the forum since Weds...

...and I, uh... I ordered the Evolution 8 a couple of days ago. It arrived this afternoon. :D

I think it is the best option for my son, which is 99.9% who this scope is for - I will get a dedicated AP setup for myself later on, I was just looking for things to tip the scales and realized I was thinking about it too much. Also after thinking about it, I really think we will get a lot of use out of the internal battery alone.



Oh, I know, believe me, I really do. It's like camera gear (one lens isn't going to cover all of your bases etc) or any other similar hobby. I was just thinking too hard and trying to get the edge on one scope vs another in a ridiculous way. So I did the smart thing and just bloody ordered one.

But this:



Is the possibility I was curious about. That is extremely useful to know, thanks! I definitely don't expect this one (since this is 90% for my son and 10% for me) to be excellent at AP, and I'm sure I'll definitely end up buying a dedicated AP setup for myself later on :)

Anyway, I want to give enormous thanks to everyone here that helped out. It is truly appreciated and I am very excited to get going on this :) It was a tough decision for me, and I really wouldn't have been able to make it without the help of everyone here. My son is going to be so, so happy, and I can't wait until he sees it.

So... thanks!!



I will definitely check out that book, I had just started to look at some books yesterday actually! My son loves to read as well, so it will be good for both of us.

Again, thanks all.

[casstony]

I think you'll be very happy with your choice - a study, portable and easy to use computerized telescope.

[Somnium]

great stuff, i am sure you and your son will enjoy your new toy !