First telescope

[debs]

Hi, I'm hoping I can get some advise. I'm looking at buying a telescope for my boyfriend for his birthday. He's after something fairly portable that he can use when camping, down at the beach & also use in the back yard.
He's not easily frustrated, loves gadgets & is technically minded. I know he would mainly be using it for celestial viewing but also for terrestrial viewing.
My budget is around $250 - 300.

Thanks:)

[Starkler]

Hi debs, really your budget is too low for an all rounder that is anything better than a toy scope that will be an exercise in frustration anytime he goes to use it.The issue is more the mount/tripod than the scope itself. Cheap ones are wobbly and not very stable.

If it is for celestial use only, you could go for a dobsonian mounted reflector such as a 6 or 8 inch Guan Sheng or Bintel.

http://www.andrewscom.com.au/site-section-10.htm
https://www.bintelshop.com.au/Product.aspx?ID=7381

Please do check back with us before you spend your money as cheap scopes are a minefield with many ways to waste your money on scopes that are pretty much rubbish.

[dannat]

if that's your budget why not consider some good binoculars - 10*50 are good all round . take anywhere - on the andrews link below they have some 10x50 MB (military binoculars in your price range that could probably last a lifetime.
daniel

[charsiubau]

I agree binoculars are a good idea if you don't have any. However Andrews in Sydney sell a Skywatcher 70 x 500 AZ3 for $229 (see http://www.andrewscom.com.au/site-section-10.htm) which is quite a good scope, definitely not a toy. My husband gave this to his sister for a birthday present a few years ago and she has used it a lot. It is only 70mm aperture which is small for an astronomical scope but it will still give you good views of the moon, planets, open star clusters and brighter nebulae, and it is great for land use and portable. If your boyfriend decides he wants to get more serious about astronomy he can upgrade to a larger scope later and still keep this one for land use. Larger scopes, especially the dobsonians/newtonians people here usually advise for first scopes, are not suitable for land use.

[cahullian]

Save another $100 bux and get him a 8"Dob and he will be your slave forever. Guaranteed...

Gazz

[omnivorr]

..or a 6" newt' on Eq for 350, and a diag' for terestrial, bout 30 to 80, dependin' on quality u need/want...

[Screwdriverone]

Hi Debs,

Boil the kettle, put your slippers on and make a cuppa, because I go on for ages!!! :P

Charsiubau has some excellent points regarding your boyfriend's intended use of the scope. Dont buy him a Dobsonian (not really portable, and not able to be used for land viewing - goes for EQ mounted Reflectors too).

I have only been using a telescope (the details of which are on my signature below) for about 2 months now and have found the following summary of information from all of the experts on this site and talking to lots and lots of telescope shops;

1) Aperture is KING, Aperture is the size of the opening on the telescope. The bigger the better, as more light gets in, therefore you can see more things that are not visible to the naked eye!
2) Binoculars are the absolute BEST item for someone who has nothing, needs portability and you are not sure of their impending addiction to stargazing (it probably will happen). If they get bored of looking up at the night sky, they can use 'em at the footy or down the beach quickly and easily.
3) If he gets hooked, you will lose him to the backyard on clear nights for hours at a time or maybe even to the local park where there is no streetlights so he can get a better view of the objects he has been dying to see. Simple solution to this, YOU join him too as it can be great fun.
4) No matter what the magazines and telescope boxes are trying to make you think, you WONT see much colour in most things. Everything is a sort of grey / black and white / or red / blue colour depending on what your looking at. This is because of human night vision, but I wont go into that here.

My First Time Buyers guide for you is therefore this;

1) An ALT / Azimuth mounted telescope. This is one that can be used for land viewing as well as stars. It is uncomplicated, simple, stable and easy for anyone to use. An equatorial mount is not as easy (even for my gadget/technical/crazy mind) and cannot be used for land viewing without a lot of yoga lessons. Let him buy one himself later if he gets the bug and knows whats-what.

2) Buy as big an aperture scope as you can get for the money. Once he gets the hang of finding things, he may be disappointed at the view if the scope is too small and / or things are too dim to see.

3) You will see more stars / nebulae / clusters of stars and planets in dark skies away from street lights, houses and city glow. Simple as that!

4) DONT get ripped off by buying from the wrong people, even if you are in a hurry. There will be a surprising amount of stuff he will want to buy afterwards and if you bought something overpriced to start with, you will never forgive yourselves later if you havent done your homework. Waiting 2-7 days by buying interstate is worth it if you can save $100! He will even get intrigued if you tell him its being couriered over special delivery for his Birthday!

You mentioned your budget of $300 max, with this in mind, I have two options that fit(ish) the criteria. I have checked the best telescope sites and found the best price / size / ease of use compromise (in my humble opinion)

Option A - Telescope

Skywatcher (SK909AZ3) 90mm x 900mm Alt Azimuth telescope (5 YR Warranty), comes with 2 eyepieces of 25mm and 10mm.
It has a larger 90mm aperture than the one suggested by Charsiubau which means he will see more, and it also has a 900mm focal length (FL) which is MUCH longer than the other one. Magnification is worked out by FL divided by eyepiece FL in mm, eg. 900mm / 10mm = 90 x magnification. Add a barlow later on to boost this 2x to 180x which is the limit of this scope. The other one had only 140x maximum. Bigger magnification = bigger image.

Go To Andrews website here (http://www.andrewscom.com.au/site-section-10.htm) and scroll down the Skywatcher telescope page to find this listing 90 x 900 AZ3...A$329 - Yes, I know its over budget, but its a great buy for the extra $29!

Option B - Binoculars

You can buy some quite decent 70mm High contrast 11 X 70 binoculars which are superb for Astronomical and Land viewing and only cost $129. For night viewing, I recommend an optional binocluar tripod (arms get VERY tired) for $129 (Medium duty, handles up to 80mm aperture binoculars) and a Binocular tripod adaptor for $15.
All up $273 (plus freight?)

These items are also on the Andrews website link above under Binoculars and Andrews Telescope accessories.

The reason I suggest Andrews Communications over anyone else is simple. Best prices, best service, best support. Did I mention best prices? If you can find the same scope somewhere else at a better price, its probably not the same scope. If it really is....buy it, because I have never seen a price that beats Andrews Comms.

The reason I chose Skywatcher is because of the quality, price, they have a 5YR warranty which is 3-4yrs better than any other brand in this bracket and Andrews Comms have FREE FREIGHT on Skywatcher telescopes for a limited time. Shipping a telescope to Perth could cost up to $100 dollars or more extra.

FYI.
My scope cost $450, everything else except the 20mm and 10mm eyepieces cost $317 all up so I have spent $767 total. If I had bought my telescope from Andrews, I would have saved $90. :mad2:

Ahh, yeah, you must also buy him a round planetarium thingy (about $15) and an Astronomy 2008 magazine ($20) as these are fabulous references for finding stuff, without them, you wont know what's what.

There ya go, my opinions on what to get and where to get them. Do your shopping and compare the prices, and good luck. Sorry for the massive essay. I told you I can kinda get carried away.:sadeyes:

Maybe I am biased because I have this sort of gear, but its from my beginner's experience.

OOPS - almost forgot, sign him up to Ice In Space!!!

Cheers for now! :hi:

Chris

[Kokatha man]

Hi Debs - respondin' t' dese sorta questions aint my normal styles lassy, buts dis young screwdriver fella is givin youse wun helluva staight-laced bit o' advice: especiallies considerin' ya don't knows if'n your fella's even gunna hang in dere wif starin' at da skies!

Course, "screwie's" only a nipper an 'e likes to go on an on (I tink 'es tryin t' outdos me wif da wafflin on an on.....) but I reckons 'es tinkin like someone similars to yer boyfriend; even tho's 'es gotten da bug nows, an will winds up ownin' harf of everyting wots evers bin made for star-gazin'!

From an ol' codger, rigards.

[Screwdriverone]

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!:lol:

Kokatha Man knows me very well!

As he said I am only a "nipper" but he's right, its like an addiction where you "have" to go to the local Astronomy shop/website, just for a quick look and you end up coming back with $200 more of stuff!

I am hoping to curb mine and not buy anything for a while now. Where is that AA website again? Oh, that's right, we are on it.

My name is Screwdriverone and I have a problem.....

Chris

[Stephen65]

I agree with Chris, for that budget and portability requirement either a refractor like the Skywatcher 90mm or a pair of binoculars.

PS: whatever you do don't buy him one of the small telescopes (or indeed any telescope) that camera stores and department stores sell - those scopes are pure junk.

[Kokatha man]

Hey screwie - weze tryin t' get udder people's addicted - err, sorries, I meants interested - youse tellin that sweet young Debs dat sorta stuffs an she'sa jist gonna buy him socks 'n undies an all dat sensible stuffs!

[Screwdriverone]

Yeah KM, you are probably right, but I think that Debs is gunna buy him some socks and undies and go out and by HERSELF a telescope now. Stuff him, she has all the info now! :D

Isnt that right Debs?

Chris

[Screwdriverone]

Ahhh Debs?

You there?

I think I may have scared her off.... or she has bought him a footy jumper instead.

Oh well.:rolleyes:

[Jen]

:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:
i think u scared her away hahahahahha
Hey Deb i have a skywatcher for my first scope and its my baby, she is a beauty get him one of those he will love it but... (theres always a but.... ) be warned he will want to go bigger later on down the track ;):whistle:

Oh and by the way Chris i love reading your long waffly essays in here you crack me up keep up the good work :thumbsup: cheers :P
:lol:
:cheers:

[h0ughy]

good advice from all. I would go with a set of 20*80's or the 8" dob. then next year give him a camera........

[janoskiss]

A Dob will give you best bank for buck by far. Worth spending the ~$100 extra and getting the 8" with all the extras. But if you cannot a basic 8" is a very capable scope too (and you can buy the extras later if you want).

[Screwdriverone]

Thanks Jen, I appreciate the fact that you and Darryl (Kokatha Man) laugh at my jokes and sit through my long winded opinions on everything!

Its good to know that someone enjoys my warped sense of humour and my verbose writing style!

How do you like the 150mm Skywatcher? Does it have an EQ drive motor for tracking?

Chris

[Jen]

Your welcome, :thumbsup:
even though you confuse the hell out of me :screwy: :lol::whistle:
keep up the great work :D
Hey my scope is great im having a blast with it even though it has a big dent in it :mad2: it still works great saturn is so beautiful i can see the cassini division and i just wanna see so much more :eyepop: but its a little out of wack at the moment :shrug: im getting it finally fixed in 2 weeks woohoooo
Ummm EQ drive motor :screwy: i didnt think i could get one for it, now ya gonna make me go and spend more money :D:lol::lol: ok im going shopping hehe ;)