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Originally Posted by slime
Great replies, thanks. Please keep them coming.
The portaball definitely fits into the interesting category, but might be a bit too much scope and assembly. Not quite the quick and casual I'm looking for this time. The openness could also be an issue with dirt and dust where I'm travelling though. Certainly a great option for home though and something to keep in mind.
I have to say I'm quite shocked at the prices for good quality spotting scopes. More than some premo triplets! Cost is also an issue with potential theft or damage. Security is a real concern when travelling and staying at more public places. Might have to check used prices.
Not having owned a Mak, what are realistic/usable cool down times for casual use? I've been eyeing off a 127 MCT anyway for portability and solar system. A Mak or shortish tube refractor should be easy for the kids to take a peek too.
In general I have been researching the well in fashion grab 'n' go option as a complement to the dob, which I still find a pain to setup in my particular backyard with several sets of steps to traverse. 4 trips for base, tube, chair and accessories. I'm really hoping a grab 'n' go style solution is what I can also take away on these and other trips with an understanding of the aperture and power limitations.
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Many terrestrial spotting scopes are weather-proof / water-proof / dust-proof, which is obviously a nice feature for a travel scope, where it may not always be treated as carefully as your home-based astro scope. The weather-proofing costs money, and it also has a drawback that you are generally limited to the fixed eyepiece (often a 3x zoom) that it ships with.
You will find some much cheaper spotting scopes at places like Australian Geographic or eBay than the premium BinTel offerings, by the way! Given the issues of potentially harsh treatment, and risk of damage or loss, it might make sense to sacrifice a bit of quality for affordability when shopping for a travel scope - second-hand or bargain shopping can be a good choice. (In the case of my TwinStar Mak, I think I got lucky - the price was great, but the optical quality and build quality are genuinely far better than I expected.)
A Grab-and-Go astro scope (short-tube refractor or Mak) can open up to let the dust and moisture in (but they are much easier to keep dust-free than a Newt) - this shouldn't be a big problem, unless your passion is star-gazing during dust storms, or whale-watching while surf-fishing from a rocky headland!
As dannat says, Maks may not be the best choice for primarily terrestrial use because of their long focal length, but a 40 mm Plossl works pretty well for me - 1.3 degree FoV, which gives about 25 metres FoV at 1,000 metres. (That's about the same as his Nikon 82 mm Fieldscope.) That's pretty tricky for close-up wildlife observation of anything other than stationary targets (koalas and sloths are fine!), but it gives a nice view of boats and whales etc at a distance of more than half a kilometre or so.
A big plus for Maks (compared to refractors) is that because they are so short, and typically mounted right at the primary mirror end, they have a very short "lever arm" from the focuser / eyepiece to the pivot axes of the mount, so they are very tolerant of being touched while focussing etc, and vibrations damp down quickly, as long as you have a reasonably stable mount - great for teaching the kids how to use a telescope, because the target will still be in view unless they give it a really solid yank.
As for cool-down time on a small Mak - half an hour to an hour is generally plenty. At home, I just take my scope outside while I am having dinner, and it's ready to use when I go outside. (Note: I live in sub-tropical Brisbane, so the temperature differential from inside to outside isn't as big as it can be in colder climates.) When you are travelling, simply unpack it while you are unpacking the car and setting up your camp site, or moving into a motel room - as long as you leave it out of the sun, it will be equalised and ready to use as soon as you are.
My Mak lives on its tripod at home - I can carry it outside in one trip, complete with motor drive, battery pack, and a couple of eyepieces, so it's hard to beat for convenience and quick set-up.