Haha excellent thread Renato, I have enjoyed reading about everyone elses experience. I'm not the only one then!
My first scope was a bushmaster 3" reflector or something of the likes... wait for it... for $200!!!! This was about 8 years ago when money went alot further. Needless to say, the views of the moon & planets were atrocious. My barlow was a plastic kaleidoscope and the moon was a purple haze indeed!
Though all being said, I owned it for 2 years and loved the views it gave regardless of how bad they were. Made me appreciate the stars for what they were, not what they looked like
Upgrading to the skywatcher 8" newt on the EQ5 kit made me realise what I was missing out on though! It's sad because everyone expects to see pictures like in the magazines and often are turned away from the hobby. We must continue to educate and spread the word!