thanks for more replies.
Yes, I do give the impression that I'm ready to open my wallet and I know how that looks. Like an 18 year old shopping for a ferrari, right? what a young idiot. He is going to kill someone
That said, I'm actually quite cautious when it comes time to committing. Naming equipment and budgets in forums is very different than actually spending the money. I'm still 50:50 on buying anything at all.
The logic that is driving me to admire refractors is that they repeatedly get named as a grab and go scope: something that cools down faster, doesn't need collimation.
I'm a bit computer mad and the idea of having an EQ mount with low tracking error that I can bolt a DSLR to, and stack images is attractive for the sheer complexity of it plus it also is a sort of virtual aperture bump: even if the viewing isn't amazing, the image might end up being so.
ALL THAT SAID, ZeroID you are absolutely right and before spending a lot on a fancy mount and a fancy refractor or mewlon, if I can get some kind of a taste by buying a decent 80mm and a tripod, perhaps secondhand to get more bang, for less than the price of a few tak accessories I'd be a fool not to do that. And plus, if I don't take any further steps, that little setup would be perfect for kids to look-see on weekends out of town. So that's what I'll do.
Actually the ferrari comparison isn't really a perfect parallel. When you get your first car, it is enjoyable even if it is a junker. No young man gets keys to something crap, drives for a bit, and thinks "well, this sucks, I'm not gonna drive anymore". But plenty of people buy a telescope that doesn't wow them either in manufacturing quality and/or viewing quality, and then give up. I'm an old guy it takes a lot more to wow me - to make me want to put in the hours. Also, mass produced engineering, where you can feel or see the large tolerances and cheaper materials, makes me sad. So there is some of that too.