Telescope Selection

[ANDYB (Andy)]

Hi folks. This is my first post.
I am seriously looking at a CPC 11 xlt as a scope that will last me for a few years. I would love to hear reports from people that have them.

Cheers

[Harb]

G'day,
Just brought one a couple of weeks back.
So far I am happy with it.
I brought it mainly as my travel scope. as the sky align feature means you can point it at any 3 bright stars (you don't even need to know their names) and away you go.
The Goto system is great and if you hook it up to your laptop it will even talk to you and give a quick explanation of the various objects.
It is a little bit heavy, but not to much to handle on your own.
I would say a great all rounder for observational astronomy and not to bad for imaging either, although an EQ wedge would be a good addition to it.
As said, the best thing I like about it is you just plonk it down, less than 5 mins later you are goto 'ing targets!!

cheers
John

[Astroman (Andrew Wall)]

ooo dive into the deep end, I like it The CPC11's are very nice scopes, have used one a couple of times and the skyalign on them makes any beginner look professional. The only thing with this type of scope is the accessories you will need to get later on if you wish to take up imaging will cost a bit. Still its a great performer on planets, and DSO...

Nice choice..

[ballaratdragons (Ken)]

Here's a beginner who is waaayyyy past the thought of the usual dob beginnings.

Great start with good gear. Good luck.

[iceman (Mike)]

Hi and

The C11 appear to be great scopes. Louie had one for a while, he may still have it. He's taken some great images with it and the few chances I've had at looking through it were good too.

Whether it's a C925, C11 or C14, the Celestron SCT's generally don't seem to have a bad word said about them so I don't think you can go wrong.

[Rigel003 (Graeme)]

I have an 11" Celestron Nexstar, the predecessor to the CPC. It's a great all-round instrument with decent planet views and satisfying deepsky. For the latter you'll definitely want to take it to dark sky sites where it does a great job on nebulae and clusters and shows quite a bit of detail in the brighter galaxies too.

Good for webcam imaging of planets too for which you don't need an equatorial wedge. Here's an example:
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/s...ad.php?t=10578

It's very stable in the altaz setup, and as Harb said, quick and easy to get aligned and viewing. Quite heavy - for me it's the maximum weight that I could possibly manage as a portable setup. If this is an issue, you should consider the 9.25 which is less bulky and many say has better optics for planetary (slightly longer f/ratio on the primary) and is still good with deepsky. This might well be a better purchase for a first telescope. The 9.25 will have quicker cooldown too. When nighttime temperatures are dropping substantially the 11" can take 2 hours to cool down enough to give its best images. Not ideal if you just want a quick look.

[casstony]

Be sure you're OK with the weight of the ota and fork assembly. Carry 65 pounds of weight around for a minute or two to get an idea. If you have a flat run from a shed to observing spot these scopes can be shifted on a trolley.

[ausastronomer (John Bambury)]

Overall it's a pretty good scope. A couple of things to consider. It's a big mother of a thing. You may well get sick and tired of carting it around and setting it up. Be aware that it can also take well over 2 hours to stabilise temperature wise and deliver it's best images.

CS-John B

[ANDYB (Andy)]

Thanks folks for your advice and comments. I will let youknow what I buy and how I go.
Cheers

[sejanus (Gavin)]

I owned a CPC11 until recently - it is an awesome bit of kit, but I'd strongly recommend you checking one out in person before buying as they are seriously heavy!!

great views through it though!