Quote:
Originally Posted by Marclau
Thanks John,
I'm 6'2 and 100 kilos........so not sure if this makes any difference??
As for the Collapse DOB, is there any light interference between the gaps.....(if that makes sense)......I'm a total newby with regards to these....
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Hi Marcel,
I am 6'9 and 120kgs and my 12 inch collapsible Skywatcher dob is even a handful for me when fully assembled. It IS possible to move it around with the tube on the base as long as you retract the secondary cage first (VERY easy to do and convenient, by the way).
When I move it from the backyard up 4 stairs (about a metre in height) to the back yard fully assembled, there is the risk of back injury, but I have done it a few times. The main problem is the 64cm diameter base which bangs on your legs or shins.
Its much easier to handle as the tube by itself and the base by itself (using the handle).
With transport, I have a HIGH roof ute canopy and the tube when collapsed JUST fits under the canopy when I put it on the supplied foam OTA circles that came with it (for protection). I havent tried lying it down in the back of my bouncy leaf sprung ute yet (too scared) so for now it is strapped in with bungy cords to the side of the tray using the foam OTA bits from the box.
Also, because of your height, it may be a good idea for you to make a box for it to sit on when observing like I did as your back gets sore bending down to look at something thats not at zenith (straight up) and when it sits on my dob box, i can stand straight up and look around which is GREAT. Sitting down and swinging the scope around is annoying to have to shift the seat constantly.
As for the light getting in the tube, I havent had this problem at all as its VERY well baffled because of the size of the secondary cage and the height of the main tube stops most of the stray light getting in. A quick knock up light shroud in the gap would fix this anyway if I feel the need later on.
I hope this information helps, in a nutshell, the collapsible design of the Skywatcher is VERY well made, VERY convenient (compared to a Meade or other) and saves on set up time and ultimately makes the whole thing a whole lot more portable to move around and transport.
(FYI - and for anyone else reading, I noticed that Andrews has dropped their prices on collapsibles to $399 for the 8 inch, $799 for the 10 inch (BARGAIN) and $1199 for the 12 inch -GRRRRRR I bought mine for $1499. So they are a STEAL at the moment, especially for the 8 inch!)
Cheers
Chris