Thoughts on a new scope

[wolfthun]

Hi All,

Been lurking here for awhile now trying to pick up ideas on a what scope to get next.

Currently have an old (30 + year old) Tasco 4 1/2 inch reflector and am now in the market for a new scope.

At this stage I'm looking for something around the $2000 - $2500 mark and am tossing up between two Skywatcher scopes: the 8" on a Pro5Mnt with Skyscan; and the 10" on the motorised EQ6 mount.

I think I've all but convinced myself that the 8" will be a better scope for myself as the goto function will go a long way to me getting it out on a regular ocassion, as I expect that utlimately I'll spend less time hunting for DSO then with the 10" without the goto.

I do however like the idea of the benefit of the extra stability of the EQ6 for future astrophotography capabilty.

Any feedback appreciated particularily on the stabilty of the Pro5Mnt and the amount of stuffing around searching for DSO without a goto?

Cheers

[Miaplacidus]

Just a thought, but you might get better bang for your buck getting a larger OTA on a dobsonian mount, and adding something like an Argo Navis to help you find things. Won't help if you're serious about astrophotography, though.

Oh, and welcome.

Cheers,

Brian.:)

[iceman]

Hi Wolfthun.

They're 2 pretty good choices to start with. The 10" will always be better due to increased aperture allowing you to see fainter stuff, however the EQ6 is bigger and heavier, and the 10" OTA is longer, wider and heavier.

If you're not worried about transportation (around your back yard, in your car, etc), then go for the bigger!

The GOTO on the EQ5 is also great, but you can add that to the EQ6 as well.

Speak to Steve Massey at MyAstroShop (http://www.myastroshop.com.au), as he sells SkyWatcher gear at great prices, and he's a very knowledgeable bloke!

Keep asking questions if you're unsure about something! Look forward to hearing your next step.

:welcome: to IceInSpace!

[rmcpb]

I think I would go for either scope on the EQ6, especially if you are interested in astrophotography in the future. Like Mike said you can add GOTO to the EQ6 later if you need to.

Cheers

[wavelandscott]

If astrophotography is your thing (or going to be) then by all means get the best mount/scope combo you can...by all accounts bigger is better...

[iceman]

It also depends what sort of astrophotography.. for planets, bigger is better!

For deepspace, sometimes smaller is better (in terms of scope) and bigger is better (in terms of mount).

I've seen many great Deep Space images with a small ED80 refractor on top of an EQ6, G8 or G11 mount.

[casstony]

A word of caution: the goto equatorial mount/astrophoto setup will require a far greater time commitment than a dob with or without argo navis, especially if you have to set up the mount each session. Wheeling a dob out of the shed takes barely any effort and doesn't present any disincentive to observing. You could start with the dob and buy the eq. mount later or add argo navis later.

[wavelandscott]

Thanks for adding the clarifying statements...I meant mount but can see how that was not obvious from my comment...Thanks!

[wolfthun]

Thanks to all for the great feedback.

I think I've all but ruled out the dobsonian mount due to the probability in dabbling in astrophotography. I dabble in this already in a limited fashion using the TASCO and an off the shelf Web Cam blue-tacked to the scope :thumbsup:. The images aren't real pretty (blurrey as buggery in fact) but it certainly has driven home the need for a stable mount.

I'd be interested in more info on the comments casstony made on the setup side of things. My understanding of the goto systems is that you basically (in very simple terms) need to level the scope, set it it up to roughly point to SCP, add some time (GPS or otherwise) and do an alignment based on three or so stars :whistle: . Probably way off the track, but if that is somewhere near what's involved then with my background in surveying I don't expect that there will be too many issues in understanding or carrying out the steps involved.

I guess I'm still leaning toward the goto mount as I feel once it is setup, jumping from object to object will be far simpler than having to locate the object without the goto and if I'm out there doing a bit of gazing I don't imagine that I'd have to be looking at too many different objects before the time taken to find object without the goto would be greater than initial set up of the goto. But hey, I'm making some really big assumptions here:whistle: .

Re. getting the EQ6 and 10" OTA and then getting the goto down the track, even though my other half is pretty supportive, I think the chances of spending an extra $1200 down the track are somewhere between buckleys and none ;)

Anyway thanks again for the feedback and appreciate any further comments.

Cheers

[ballaratdragons]

Wolfthun,

Welcome.

I spent considerable time (and drove everyone crazy in here) deciding on which mount to get for my ED80.

The ED80 is a very light scope (great for DSO pics) and yet I was convinced by many to go for the EQ6 over an EQ5, CG5, etc.

Best purchase in a long time. I can put heavier scopes on it at a later date (I have a 12" dob but scared to put it on it :eyepop: ).

Also, the 10" will give you better views visually than the 8".

[casstony]

Wolfthun, understand I'm not trying to dissuade you at all from going the whole hog - if you're keen, go for it. I imagine there's a high level of satisfaction to be gained from producing nice images. I've only dabbled a little in imaging, just enough to get a glimpse of the effort needed to get good images and decide it was not for me.

I'm a lazy observer and quite like to roll the dob out on a trolley and just wander along the milky way. Takes 2 or 3 minutes to set up. As simple as the goto LX90 is, it still takes more time to set up and get aligned, only a few minutes more but more just the same.

I don't own a goto eq. mount so I'll let others provide details of set up and alignment, but there are more pieces to carry and assemble and the alignment procedure is more involved than my LX90. Imaging requires more than just a rough alignment too. Then there's the laptop and image processing. Focussing. Guiding. Just more effort than I'm interested in.

P.S. I do like GEMs, but I haven't owned a goto GEM.

[wolfthun]

Hi All,

Back again and still no closer to a decision. Had a look at both scopes together in the shop and I'm starting to lean toward the smaller, lighter and more manageale 8" setup. Seems to me to will be able to most things for me for a long time and the GOTO functionality now seems almost a given.

However, just to make muddy the waters even more had a look at the LXD75 with GOTO, at a similar price. Had a read of Weasner's report and seems pretty good.

Anyone care to comment on the pro's and con's?

Cheers,