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JJJ - For planetary work, Aperture is king.. Focal length alone won't cut it.. your ED80 with a 5x powermate will not produce highly detailed images. The 8" F/6 newt with a 5x powermate on the other hand should provide you quite nice images... I know mine used to or me.. You need to remember, 80mm is not catching much light to start with, when you then extend the focal ratio to F/37 with a 5x powermate, you will be choking the camera for light.. a 6 or 8 inch newtonian will surely serve you well for planetary work, and a little more aperture can never hurt when chasing DSO's either! Call bintel/andrews and ask them about the weight of the Newts, Im sure Luke will be able to weigh one of the OTAs for you...
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