Thinking possible upgrade?

[Esseth (Alan)]

Ok, currently I have an 8" dob and it's been great, but I understand now that the term "light bucket" was quite accurate.

I live in a one bedroom apartment in the city and a big dob is great I’m thinking if you have a permanent or semi permanent set up. There is also the few issues I am having trying to hook my dslr up to it... without cutting the dob in half...

So I was thinking of selling up the dob, and putting a few hundred extra into a new scope. I am thinking something that can track and is a bit more manageable for transport, with possibilities for a few snaps of the brighter things in the sky.


So suggestions? I know this forum is great for them, i have used it for my bino's, my scope and my arguments to convince the other half to buy both of the former lol

Just a quick follow up question, are dobs the only scopes that can handle 2" eye pieces?

*edit* woo, 200 posts

[mithrandir (Andrew)]

Originally Posted by Esseth

Ok, currently I have an 8" dob and it's been great, but I understand now that the term "light bucket" was quite accurate.

I live in a one bedroom apartment in the city and a big dob is great I’m thinking if you have a permanent or semi permanent set up. There is also the few issues I am having trying to hook my dslr up to it... without cutting the dob in half...

So I was thinking of selling up the dob, and putting a few hundred extra into a new scope. I am thinking something that can track and is a bit more manageable for transport, with possibilities for a few snaps of the brighter things in the sky.

A moderate size refractor like an ED80 or ED100 on an HEQ5Pro SynScan mount?
A moderate size SCT or GSO RC - say in the 200mm range on an EQ6Pro SynScan?
The refractor will give you more FOV, is probably cheaper, and you won't be pulling out as much hair in frustration.

Just a quick follow up question, are dobs the only scopes that can handle 2" eye pieces?

No - I can put 2" eyepieces on my SCT because I have a 2" focuser.

*edit* woo, 200 posts

Getting there Esseth

[Crusader]

How important would astrophotography and portability to you?

If you really want to take long exposure images then a APO refractor and a EQ mount would be the best option. If it's a secondary concern and you want to go the mostly visual route an 8" SCT on an Alt-Az is an option.

I have the Celestron 8SE and it's extremely portable and doesn't take up too much space. It's easy to setup and tracks well. The downside is that it isn't suitable for long exposure photos, although some people do wonders on DSO's using stacked 10sec exposures.

Something else you need to keep in mind is that unlike the Dob, these setups will require power. So you need to leave room in your budget for a suitable portable power supply.

[Rockah (Zal)]

Originally Posted by Esseth

. There is also the few issues I am having trying to hook my dslr up to it... without cutting the dob in half... [/SIZE][/FONT]

What kind of dob is it (brand)? I have skywatcher 8inch Newtonian and I couldn't achieve focus with a dslr, but instead of cutting the tube, try adjust your primary mirror as far up as possible using your collimation screws - it worked for me!

[rcheshire (Rowland)]

Taking a few pics is more involved than first meets the eye.

astrophotography: opportunity / time - mount - scope - power supply - camera - setup - alignment - cool down time - focus - tracking - take some pictures - pull down - pack up - download - software - processing. don't forget filters - did I forget anything

Visual: Opportunity / time - take telescope outside - place eyepiece in holder - look - enjoy - remove eyepiece - take telescope inside...

Exponential increase in cost and time, which is inversely proportional to opportunity

But it's immensely enjoyable and a great learning experience.

[acropolite (Phil)]

If you're still interested in visual then a refractor really isn't going to satisy.

If your aim is imaging then probably the easiest/cheapest way is to utilise your dob tube on an equatorial mount, an HEq5 or Eq6 is really entry level.

You may need to make some slight mechanical adjustments to your Dob OTA to achieve focus with a camera.

You'll need a small cheap refractor for a guidescope, some form of autoguider, a simple webcam will do the job and something like a Baader MPCC for coma correction.

Then you'll need a Camera of some sort, if you already have a DSLR then you're half way there, a modified DSLR or dedicated Astro camera will be even better (at a cost).