Reflectors vs. Refractors vs. Catadioptric

[Mr. Subatomic]

Hey guys,

I was wondering whether the three different designs of telescope are best for different purposes, e.g. specifically for planets and the moon, specifically for DSO's or all-round ability.

The reason why I ask this is that I am considering replacing my 10" Dob with a telescope that is more suited for my needs.

Thanks.

[h0ughy (David)]

well what are your needs?

[netwolf]

Cat's specifically SCT' s are considered to be the all round scope. Based on what I have been able to find out the C9.25 is perhaps the best example of an all round scope.
Are you looking for a visual or imaging setup.

Regards
Fahim

[Starkler (Geoff)]

Originally Posted by h0ughy

well what are your needs?

Yep that question needs to be answered as in the opinion of many, a 10" dob already makes a good all rounder.

You wont get a 10" refractor, so for dso viewing the refractor loses big time in light grasp. They do excel in low power wide field viewing though and present stars as sharp points of light.

A cat such as a lx200 offers a shorter ota and convenient tracking, but imo a chinese newt offers better views than your typical chinese made cat

[MortonH]

If you check out this thread

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...ad.php?t=20064

on how many scopes IIS members have, you'll see that many have more than one. One of the reasons for this is that there is no one type of scope that does everything well. I find my 8" Dob gives me pretty good views of the planets and deep sky objects, although more aperture would always be nice. I also have a small 90mm refractor for low-power, wide-angle viewing, and for times when portability is important.

Morton

[ballaratdragons (Ken)]

I agree with Morton. You'll find that you will prefer different scopes for different slopes.

I use my 12" Dob/EQ for mainly visual, but I occasionally (rare now though) for Lunar imaging.

Whereas for DSO imaging I only use the 80ED, but never for visual.