14" Skywatcher GOTO or 16" GSO with Argo Navis??

[Gem (Grant)]

Hi all,

Wonderful Christmas here. I have a card from my wife saying that she is going to get me a big dob once I find where to put it in the house. She says she was looking at the 14" GOTO Skywatcher, but when I spoke about Argo Navis the other day is now unsure which way to go (i.e. 16" GSO with Argo Navis is a similar budget scope to 14" GOTO Skywatcher).

Is there any opinions out there as to which is better? Is there a big difference in portability/weight or optics? I know Argo Navis doesn't track but I have plenty of experience with moving dobs around the sky (albeit with 10" of aperture).

Any help appreciated!!

P.s. I have a great wife...

[Kevnool (Kev)]

Yes you have a champion wife but that decision is ultimately your own.
I cant comment on one without seeing the other.
But in the end you should have one beauty of a scope.
Cheers Kev.

[DJ N]

Easy fix.........get the 16" Skywatcher Goto

[Waxing_Gibbous (Peter)]

If the 16" SW is over-budget, I'd opt for the 14 SW.
The 16" GSO is a bit of a handful IMHO, I found it's bearings to be nowhere near strong enough to hold it in position and it was always whirling around.
The Skywatcher's motors and gears (I'm informed) are at least adequate to stop any unwanted movement and the go-to is pretty accurate.
Plus I would think it's re-sale value as a % of purchase price would be higher if you want to go up in aperture..

[Gem (Grant)]

Thanks for the info/advise!

[Kevnool (Kev)]

Grant

Either scope will be a great investment.
But as peter says about the whirling around you will find that happens on most newts on a dob base but as time goes on you will find these little gremlins and modify you scope to suit like just about every other newt owner.

When your scope arrives set it up take a photo of it then 3 months later take another pic and no doubts the will be some mods fitted.

Cheers Kev

[icytailmark (Mark)]

it all comes down to whether or not your gunna be moving the scope around alot. I had a 12" SW Dob with argo navis and it was pretty hard setting up by myself because i dont have a dome i was taking it in and out of house.

[barx1963 (Malcolm)]

All below comments make sense. I'd go the 16". Aperture always wins IMHO and I don't use GoTo now.
The GSO base can be easily fixed with 3 little felt floor savers (the little felt pads to go on chair legs to save timber floors), worked a treat on my 12" The alt motion adjustment on the GSO dobs is also a beaut. Though I have found once I added a laser finder and a handle it was still a little front heavy with larger EPs and I needed a couple of counterweights.

Malcolm