our 8" Dobsonian

[timewarp]

Hi everyone. We are first time users and first time purchasers of a telescope. We bought one at Xmas at Yorkoptical in Sydney. It is a Skywatcher (made in China) and it came bundled with 2 eyepieces- a 10mm and a 25mm. From what I have gathered from looking at this site these would be less than optimal for viewing, but being first-timers we didn't know any better. We went back to the shop today and asked about a Barlow and were advised not to purchase this but rather a 5.2mm eyepiece (it doesn't seem to have a brand name). After looking at the forum we are new totally confused as to what eyepieces to purchase. Should we dispense with the ones that came with the telescope and start from scratch? Should we keep the 5.2mm or are we better off having a good quality 10mm with a good Barlow? We are confused! Any advice much appreciated!! :)

[acropolite]

I suggest you let your eye be the judge. It's easy to become obsessed with eyepiece quality, however if you're contemplating purchase of another EP there are many of good quality at very reasonable prices for example Burgess optical, University Optics and Orion Stratus are all reasonably priced and perform well. Also, If you can, arrange to meet with others in your area and try their EP's before making any decisions.

[wavelandscott]

The best advice I can give is to use your scope with the supplied eyepieces for a while until you get some viewing experience under your belt.

There are a wide range of choice at a wide range of prices...It is very easy for first time buyers/viewers to feel pressure to jump into the expensive end of the hobby. Resist the urge and use what you have for a while.

If you have not done so, join a local astro club/society and get out to some viewing nights (or try and hook up with other people from this forum...it is a pretty friendly and helpful bunch here).

No doubt you will have many questions and be a bit unsure about what you are seeing and what you are supposed to see...until you get some eyepiece time I would discourage you from adding to you eyepiece collection...there will be plenty of time for that later.

The eyepieces that came with your scope are no doubt not "the best money can buy", but as a newbie to the hobby there is no need for you to have the best just yet (and depending on how active you become you might not ever need the best...which is a relative term anyway). I'm sure that they are pretty usuable and compared to what was available to the masses 25 years ago most likely are pretty good.

This hobby is supposed to be fun and enjoyable...while tempting for many of us, it is not a race to see who can spend the most money and get the most gear.

Once we get rid of these Sydney clouds get your scope out and start looking up...there are many wonders available to see with the stuff you already have.

Good Luck and Clear Skies (soon I hope)...Oh and Welcome to IIS!

[ausastronomer]

Hi,

I couldn't agree more with Scott's advice.

A further piece of advice. Next time you plan to go astronomy gear shopping, come here for advice before you head out. Most dealers will tell you what you want to hear and sell you what they think you might buy.

As things now stand with a 25mm, a 10mm and a 5.2mm eyepiece, I think you have enough to get going and enjoy and learn the sky.

Cheers,
John B

[rmcpb]

My standard advice to "newbies" is going to be recycled again. Use your scope native for quite a while, forget the 5mm as it will not be much use most times. On my 8" the 9.7mm is my workhorse "high-power" lense so your 10mm will be great and your 25mm is a great starter low power lense.

Try to get to some astro society nights and talk to the others there and even try some of their lenses in your scope, if they are comfy with this. Make haste slowly in the eyepiece department otherwise you will end up with a LOT of expensive paperweights.

[Gargoyle_Steve]

I still consider myself a comparitive newbie in many respects, so I hope my thoughts here are of help.

If you stick with this new hobby, at some point down the track you almost certainly will replace those standard eyepieces with more expensive models..... However until you know what you like about the ones you have, and especially what you DON'T like about them, it's way too early to rush out and spending good money on something that simply may not suit you.

Observing preferences are a very personal thing, and while some eyepeices are pretty much recognised universally as being great these tend to be the VERY expensive ones - read $400 to perhaps $900 each! For many of us it's a matter of balancing preferences against each other, and always balancing these against price.

If I can draw an analogy for a moment - if you were buying a car what kinds of factors would you consider about that car? Something economical, something new or 2nd hand, something comfortable, something with a Name and Prestige, something that REALLY performs and turns heads (price not a factor)? Ok, you get the idea.... You wouldn't buy a car without knowing what you want it to do, consider your eyepiece purchases the same way.

One more thing - it can take some time peering into that scope to teach your eye and brain to receive and interpret properly the scant few photons that the scope provides - this will make more sense down the track. Other factors will have greater effect on your viewing that the kind of eyepice you use, in a reflector most particularly collimation (ie optical alignment of the mirrors) so read up and practice / learn this skill well too before chasing more eyepieces, the ones you have now will do fine while you get a handle on all these other new skills. You will know when you are ready to upgrade / replace your existing eyepieces.

Cheers! :thumbsup:

[iceman]

Hi and :welcome: to IceInSpace! What type of skywatcher did you get?

[timewarp]

thankyou everyone for the words of wisdom. We have taken the advice on board. Hi Mike (Iceman) - we bought an 8" Dobsonian - it was around $450.