Hi all,
After following closely some members experience with the Skywatcher goto dobs, I am very close to ordering one for myself. I must admit lately I have really started to miss the visual aspect of our hobby.
Now to my issue! Ever since these goto dobs have been announced, I was determined to wait for the 14 inch. Now that they are available, I am getting quite concerned by the size of the base. Last night, I even cut-out a couple of templates (out of newspaper) to give me an idea of the footprints of the 12 incher compared to the 14 ..........HUGE difference. Makes me want to almost consider the 12 as a compromise. But, after having a bit of a think (and of course permission of the chief commanding officer
), I have a spot at the side of the house where I could build a little 1 metre by 1 metre insulated storage shed where I could store the scope on a trolley/buggy or something similar, and roll it out into the yard when required. For transport to dark skies, I reckon the base would fit into the back of the Captiva, and I could make a ramp for getting the base into the vehicle. Besides that, I am led to believe that the base on the 14 inch can be disassembled. Another idea I have is to possibly duplicate the base out of 3/4 inch plywood instead of the particle board it is constructed from.
So in summary, I am torn between being totally overwhelmed by the size of the 14, or, if I "settle" for the 12, I will be forever wondering "shoulda got the 14"...........
Looking for thoughts..............experiences of 12 versus 14........ and so forth.
Cheers,
Daniel