First time equipment~

[vSanjo (David)]

Hey guys,

As my first post here, i'll probably give some little background (none of which will be relevant to my question, I guess - but i'll tell anyway).
From an early age, i've always read books and watched shows into the early hours of the morning looking at planets and stars, the information we can gather from them - and dreamed of being able to see it myself one day. As an eager 5 year old, I would go through countless books trying to find any granule of information my young mind could decipher.
My earliest memory of astronomy is my uncle's telescope tragically falling out of his van on a corner. At the time I laughed, but that thing was (to me,) massive.

---

Anyway, my problem~

I'm currently looking to buy my first major telescope. I've never owned one, but rather relied on books and internet for images and information. Now i'm slightly more independent and sure I can care for such an instrument, i'm willing to take the dive into the astronomy-world.

My real issue is price.
I don't have a definite price at the moment, but a few weeks ago, $500 was my limit. That can be raised to $700-$800ish, but only if i'm going to see a great reason for it, I suppose.

I've had my head in the clouds over the whole ordeal anyway, so i've been skimming through some sites here and there over the last few nights to get an understanding of what people think is best.

I would love to view DSO's - colour being a big deciding factor for me. I don't want to sound 'noobish' about the whole thing, because I know the excitement will be more on viewing smaller, smudges in the sky late at night - however I really do want to see a bit of colour from my sky.

Like I said earlier, i've not dug too much into buying yet, but what set me off was this. I figured it's best to get an opinion on it first. Whilst im sure the book, DVD and light are useful, they're not necessary for me at the moment. I have others. I've read around and the main 'review' on 8" is that whilst it's a good 'beginner' one, it doesn't harness much in terms of views. Is it worth spending more for something bigger, and if so, which? ):

It's a little late right now, and i'm certain i'm missing some things, but i'm working tomorrow so it might give some time for some replies on questions to build up for when I get back. (:

Thanks alot,

David.

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

David, I hate to disappoint you but you won't be seeing any colour in your DSO's, our eyes just aren't sensitive enough. Shades of grey, that's it.
But you will see colour in the Stars and Planets though, if that's any consolation. (you should see the range of colours in the stars, they are just so beautiful)
For your price range, I'd suggest a 10" Dobsonsian. With that much aperture, on a new moon night, under very dark skies, you may be able to see a tinge of green to the Great Orion Nebula.
May I suggest, first, to try to get to an observing night with one of the Astro Societies. Get a feel for the hobby, look through a few different types of scopes, and ask as many questions as you can think of.

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

Oh, and welcome to IIS.

[adman (Adam)]

some people say they can start to see hints of colour in big reflectors (>20") when looking at very bright DSO's (eg M42), having never looked through one myself, I am not sure whether its true, or just good imagination.

Adam

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

Originally Posted by adman

some people say they can start to see hints of colour in big reflectors (>20") when looking at very bright DSO's (eg M42), having never looked through one myself, I am not sure whether its true, or just good imagination.

Adam

sometimes I think it's a case of "I want to believe".
But hey, if my brain decides it wants me to see imaginary colour in a nebula, who am I to complain.

[vSanjo (David)]

jjjnettie, thankyou for the welcome and your advice!

In answering me, you've made me realise I really shouldn't post on a forum so late. :3
I guess I needed to explain a little more. I was half-aware that I wouldn't be seeing colour with no tools - when I said I wanted to see colour, I was more leaning towards the astrophotography side of it. I've read a few reviews and those say that 8" Dobsonians aren't capable of seeing colour? I didn't understand if that meant with cameras or not, but it seems from your answer (and adam's), that they very well could with a camera?

Could you recommend a nice-quality 10" Dobsonian?

And with visiting a society, i'll see which and when they're available once my schedule frees up~
I'm not looking to buy a new telescope until late-feb ~ late-march anyway. (:

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

Astrophotography is a whole different ball game David.
this link here will give you an idea of the equipment and costs involved.
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...ad.php?t=71301

My first dob was a 10"GSO bought online from Andrews Communications.
I really do miss it at times. And am looking forward to purchasing another one in the future.

[vSanjo (David)]

Thank you for your advice, jjjnettie~
I think I'll stick with viewing the stars and planets without photography for now. It's no less amazing to me, I just had an idea of what I wanted. It gives me a chance to get used to my equipment, too.
My first purchase will be 10" Dob sometime next month, once I find the notable retailers in WA. I prefer buying online, so I'll have to look around at where sells. (:

Again, thanks for your help!
David.

[jjjnettie (Jeanette)]

You'll find that all the east coast telescope dealers will deliver just about anywhere in Australia. I'm sure we have a list of dealers here on the forum.
Here we go.....
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/links.html

[barx1963 (Malcolm)]

Hey David
Bintel, Andrews, Star Optics and Sirius optices are all companies I have dealt with here on the east coast with no probs. Being from the country I have little option but to deal online or over the phone. I bought my scope from Andrews, just rung them up, asked a couple of questions, then ordered it. They did it all via my credit card and took about 1 week to get the scope.
Being such a small market here in Australia they really do have to give good service!

Oh and the 10" dob is a great choice, try to get a look at one as they are fairly large instruments. If you feel it is too large the 8" is still an excellent choice.

Malcolm

[vSanjo (David)]

I'm simply amazed at the level of support and dedication on this site from the members~
Whilst my question has been asked and answered hundreds of times, there's no hesitation to help me with my similar problem!

Thank you very much guys. I'll update here when I purchase my Dobsonian in a few weeks.

[Osirisra (Ken)]

Contact Shane in Perth, he on here too.
go to http://www.theastroguy.com.au/telesc...obsonians.html and grab on the dobs, Shane has awesome prices (the best I've seen so far.) and will even set it up and give you a lesson in ya live in Perth!

[NewinWA (Brendan)]

i do know that shane is / was in bali so im not sure if he is back in town yet but he needs to hurry up as i want my new scope as well hehe

i need it