Scope comparasion comments please

[Skuppy (Chris)]

Hi
I am still looking for a scope

I am looking for comparsion comments on these scopes :

1. Bintel BT302-B 12" Dobsonian - $899

2. Meade LS 6" ACF LightSwitch - $1899

I like the convenience of the meade in setting up , built in camera, goto and size
But will I see more with the 12" DOB without all the luxuries ? and save $1000

please advise

thanks a lot

[frolinmod]

Personally I hate DOBs, but I'd get the 12" DOB instead of the 6" Meade - in a heartbeat.

[stephenb (Stephen)]

Chris, a non-GOTO scope is great for learning to find your way around the sky. I personally I have always enjoyed a non-GOTO/tracking scope, for their simplicity. But the big decider for me would be the 12" aperture but you need to take into consideration if you want to transport it? Or just wheel it out into the backyard. I know first hand that a 12" Bintel/GSO Dob tube alone just squeezes across the back seat of a VT Commodore and the base on the front seat. That's how awkward they are to transport. Just food for thought. Having said that, once you look in a 12" you'll never go back

The other consideration, which I have also personally experienced, and witnessed in the IIS classifieds over time, is the reasonable demand and resale value you get from selling a BinTel/GSO dob, whether that be 6, 8, 10 or 12". That certainly helps when it's time to upgrade.

[astrospotter (Mark)]

For $1000 less and 12" instead of 6" there is no decision for me, the Bintel 12" dob wins. BUT scopes must match the user and the best scope is the one you will use a lot which depends to a large extend on your goals.

I was impressed with a 12" Bintel f/5 dob used for several ORs posted to IceInSpace around mid March of 2010. I cannot find the Bintel part number. It was smooth in movements and held position well even with fair sized eyepiece. (important for a dob). The mirror was of very good quality although this with some vendors can vary so I cannot speak for all Bintels. It had a telrad finder and I had used my own orion 9x50 right angle finder as well on it.

This is a big scope so you need room to bring it in your car and you need room to store it between uses.

You will unmistakably get better views of the deep sky objects in a 12" scope than a 6" by a huge margin. So it is a question of portability VS aperture. I generally feel that 10" or larger is a great size in this tradeoff of scope size VS what you see in the field.

There is no right answer as you have seen, some people don't like DOBs and want an equatorial mount for tracking. There are many factors.

If there is any way you can go to a star party and sneak views while talking to the owner you may find the best fit for your needs.

[Waxing_Gibbous (Peter)]

The 12" Bintel dob is a pig of a scope to haul around. Its a fine instrument and a relative bargain, but boy, is it a beast!
A 10" will show you almost as much detail without quite so much hassle. I would suggest a 10" Skywatcher "go-to" dobsonian. You'll get the important bits although there's no camera and no talky-thing.

I have no experience with the Lightswitch scopes, but there seem an awful lot of used ones on the market for a scope that's been out for 2 years.

[wavelandscott (Scott)]

Apples and oranges...depends on you interest. If purely visual and you can handle the size, get the 12 inch. Good scope but only if it is used. Most likely you will need to "tinker with" the scope to get the movement that you want (this is normal). The other scope should work pretty much out of the box and maybe easier to transport.

Is this a first scope? If so get to some viewing nights so you can see the differences under the stars. You will be in a better position to decide after seeing the differences first hand.

Clear Skies!

[Skuppy (Chris)]

A big thank you to you all
Some fantastic advise and experience sharing which will help me make a decision

cheers

Chris

[norm]

Hi Chris,

Like others have said, the best scope is the one you will use the most.

Both are like apples and oranges for comparison. The 12" is a beast to lug/transport around, make no bones about it. Probably not so much in weight (although the base could be a tad heavy), but just awkard. The good thing though, its literally just 2 pieces.

I'd consider a 10" dob - a minor compromise to the 12" dob, but practicality wise, probably more manageable.

For the price of a 10 or 12" dob, with the $1000 left over you should considerthe Argonavis. It will locate objects for you, the only difference being, you then need to manually move the the scope yourself based on co-ordinates....more of a push to than a goto.

Cheers,

Norm

[Gem (Grant)]

Good advice by all.

Get the scope you will use most. 12 inch dob is heavy and hard to fit in some vehicles.

Try an 8 inch goto dob. If you want a compromise between the two!

Either way, have enough money to buy a good star atlas!

[Paduan (Brett)]

i am not a dob person but i think with the difference in price you would almost buy the dob and the best part of an argo navis to go with it, maybe some second hand encoders and steppers depending how resourceful you are. then you have aperture and goto (eventually) sorry i forgot to add Synscan goto as well there are a few i have not really looked into it as i love my SCT and HEQ but there are horses for courses and there is a large price difference between your selections

[RobF (Rob)]

If you look at a 10" and 12" side by side in a store, you'll realise why so many here are saying you should go 10", particularly for what sounds like your first scope. A 6 or 8 inch scope used to be considered a wonderful instrument only 10-20 years ago. While you're learning things be conservative - there will be times you may well put off observing if its cold, dark, wet and you have to lug the 12" about.

As to the 6" Meade, do you want the scope to show you brighter objects easily and point to where the faint ones are OR do you want to learn how to find everything by charts and finder and actually see something when you get there....
(mind you, you'll probably find less objects in a night with the dob of course)