Once again, thanks for the reply..
I had not considered the skywatcher before it was mentioned here and is now looking like a great alternative - even from the pictures it seems a much better finish. I would like to make my purchase and have the scope delivered before the 20th of March as I am driving from Darwin to Kununurra and back again over a week and would expect the sky to be particularly dark in that part of the world - in the middle of 'no-where'. I will keep you posted of my final decision and perhaps even a first light report
Dan