Hello Everybody,
I am new here, my name is Robert and I am a 39 year old guy from Melbourne Australia.
Today I obtained a BinTel BT-202 Premium 8" Dobsonian and put it to work right away. I managed to get a good view of the moon, in partial phase (Waxing Crescent 14% of Full) which allowed me to see all of the moon and what I consider to be spectacular views of craters casting shadows in the lit area.
Impressed with the moon I went on to look at several stars however I was not in a very dark area and although I was able to see some bright objects I think I will get more satisfaction when I take myself off to some dark sites.
To be honest I do not know what I will be able to actually see with my new telescope however I am excited at the prospect of finding out.
Fortunately "Arthurs Seat" , a small mountain on the Mornington Peninsula, is close by which will provide me with a good oppotunity to put my new scope through it's paces.
This is the first real telescope I have owned, as a kid I had numerous Tasco refractors, but I realise now what toys they were compared to my new 8" Dobsonian.
When I started looking at telescopes, I was intially tempted by a Celestron PowerSeeker 127mm Reflector on an EQ mount. I then considered a 6" Dobsonian. However after a little reading I came to the conclusion that I may outgrow a 6" too quickly. Starting with a $225 AUD price for the Celestron, moving to a $399 AUD price for a 6" dobsonian, I actually ended up with a $549 8" dobsonian.
I have included a photo of my telescope below.
http://rjk.melb.org/images/stories/bintel-8-dob.jpg