Newbie from Liverpool, NSW

[Dutch H]

Hello all,

Brand new member just out of the box. I was wondering if you could point me to somewhere that would sell good quality telescopes near the Liverpool area in New South Wales. I have always had an interest in space and the planets and Astronomy in general. I am a complete novice in this area but would love to get more involved. I don't have any idea about brands or really anything else so go easy on me, :).

If you could let me know of details that would be fantastic. Looking forward to being a member.

Many thanks,

Glenn

[GrahamL]

Hi Glenn
welcome to IIS ,top of the page will get you started :)

enjoy your stay :)

[BerrieK]

Hiya and :welcome: to the forum!!

Andrews Communications have their storefront at Greystanes - see their website at http://www.andrewscom.com.au/

If you want to look at a particular scope or other gear it may be a good idea to phone before going to the shopfront - its only a small shop and most of their bulky stock is kept elsewhere, but Lee or Luke will arrange to have it at the shop for you to loook at if you want. Also they have great prices.

A little further from Liverpool is Bintel at Glebe or see http://www.bintel.com.au/

Enjoy choosing your gear!!

Kerrie

[Dutch H]

Thank you for the replies. Do you either have any suggestions on brands and specs? I know it is a big ask as there seems to be heaps out there but maybe just off the top of your head.

Thanks again.

[BerrieK]

Depends on what you want to do and what you budget is. There are heaps of threads and discussions on this site addressing just that question. And plenty of forum members WAY more knowledgeable than I who may have some good advice for you. Perhaps do a search of the site, or have a browse through other threads in the beginners section to give you some ideas.

[multiweb]

Hi Glenn, I'm just next door to you in Hoxton park. Best thing is to join a club and check out some gear, talk to a few people before buying. The ASNSW has a night out at Crago in bowen mountain. Why don't you drop by and have a chat. I'll be up there saturday arvro imaging.

[mental4astro]

Hi Dutch, :welcome: to IIS,

Before you do your hard earned cash, I highly recommend you get along to at least one, better two or three 'star parties'. This way you can tyre-kick at no cost, ask questions, see what gets you what & get the inside running on 'brands' (that way causing no offence). Look under the 'star parties' forum for what's going on, or look at the 'club & society listing' in the 'Our Community' heading at left.

There are two more on I know of around Sydney, to tag onto multiweb's, this saturday:
* The Pony Club is the favourite haunt of IIS members with alot of folk out there.
* At the Blue Mountains a least a couple of nuts will be at Hargraves Look Out near Medlow Bath.

And if you have a pair of binoculars, what ever their size, take them along, you'll be amazed what you will see through them.

Mental.

[Dutch H]

Yeah I would love to have a chat with a few people. This weekend is no good for me (sister's engagement party) but sometime in the near future would be good.

Once again thanks for the detailed replies.

[Dutch H]

Mental,

I have some binoculars. They are my old mans. About 20 years old but good quality. The image quality is impressive. Well to me anyway. I'll check out the 'star parties'. As I said this weekend is no good but sometime in the near future would be great.

[Benno85]

Hi Dutch:welcome:

Having started out as an eager newbie like you, one other piece of advice I can add is to steer clear of anything that's marketed as "high power" or "super sharp views" etc. The only super sharp things about these scopes is the packaging!! My first scope was one from a well known auction site, but after spending numerous hours trying to come to terms with the cheap and unsuitable equatorial mount I soon passed it on.

In terms of a first purchase, heed the advice of others here and try and check out a couple of different models before you decide, as each has their strengths. My suggestion would be to start out visually (ie, don't even THINK about astrophotography yet!!), and get yourself familiar with the common terms like RA and DEC, as well as a good star map (I use a program called Stellarium which is free and great at locating and identifying objects. Aim to familiarise yourself with the "main" stars and constellations, as these will help you greatly when trying to locate other objects such as star clusters and nebulas.

Eventually, you will however want to drop some coin on a shiny new scope, so remember that the BEST scope is the one which gets the most use. No point dropping a few grand (which is far too easy to do sometimes!! :D) on that you-beaut refractor with that kickin' super accurate mount if a few hundred dollar Dobsonian-style scope will get much more use.

The best thing you've done is join these forums. There are world-class amatuers on here with an absolute wealth of knowledge, ask away and you'll receive many a wonderful response.

All the best!!

Benno:thumbsup:

[Jen]

:gday: Glenn :welcome: to IIS :D:D

Tell us how much you can spend then we can take you shopping :lol:

:evil::evil:

:thumbsup:

[Lumen Miner]

Welcome Glen!!

I am about 2 months ahead of you. As someone starting out, I would advise, to keep hold of your money at the moment. Your bino's will out preform most scopes under $220.

Us new comers need to stick together... I'll give you a tip, but shhhhhh!!! or they might think twice before selling. Around these parts people get hooked quick, they blow $800 plus on reasonable dob's / refractors.

Unfortunatley there is also a downside to sinking that much cash into a new hobbie. It's called apeture fever. It is known to cause irrational (sometimes rational) bouts, of non-sensical sale prices, on old equipment.

Generally they will want to sell their old gear at a reasonable price to ensure a quick sale. This disease AF, doesn't go away until they have purchased their new equipment. A good way of finding out, what might be going soon is to attend an event. Check the forums here too.

I am saving my pennies now, to hopefully grab something half decent soon enough.

[Dutch H]

Thank you for all the informative replies. I am looking to spend up to $1,000 . By the sound of it however it seems that may be too much to spend for a beginner.

I am planning to attend a few astronomy social event in the near future to get an idea of where to head. I can't wait to get involved. Very exciting.

Once again thanks to all and I look forward to future of astronomy.

[gazza83]

Hi,

I would definitely go to as many sky party/club type events as you can before purchase. Then you can see how long it takes people to setup their gear and battle with their gotos vs setting up a dob etc, and what you can see through each of the different scopes, and maybe even what sort of astronomy you want to concentrate on initially. Some clubs even have gear you can borrow.

Cheers