Some advice on Celestron or Skywatcher N 200/1000

Hi All,

I am currently in the market for a scope and would like some advice on the two below if possible. While I have made an offer on a second hand scope I can't quite reach the asking price and so need to look at other options based on my revised budget.
I definetly need a GOTO as I have various nieces and nephews from ages 3 to 18 (24 in total, so far) who will more than likely get thier introduction to the stars and planets through this scope.
I will also be hoping to take some photos for them (and myself) to keep as mementos of their visits.

Celestron Telescope N 200/1000 Advanced C8 AS-GT GoTo
www.astroshop.eu/celestron-telescope-n-2...631#tab_bar_1_select

Skywatcher Telescope N 200/1000 PDS Explorer BD NEQ-5 Pro SynScan GoTo
www.astroshop.eu/skywatcher-telescope-n-...167#tab_bar_1_select

Any advice or comments from the more experianced members would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Mark

the celestron go to is easer to set up, but the mount on the skywatcher is a better mount. the scopes are much of a much, you get two eyepieces with the skywatcher. for me it would be the skywatcher, even if it is just a little bit more expensive. I must point out that i dont own either of these but i have done a ton of research over the last 6 months on these type of scopes.

Thanks Dave, I feel much the same as far as the mounts go but with not having used either I had hoped to hear from someone that had.

Hi Mark, I have a 200 mm reflector on a CG5 mount (the same one inculded in the Celestron Advanced Series setup) and am very happy with the combination, both for visual and imaging. It is quite portable, the alignment is straightforward, and the GoTo accuracy is good. My scope is a GSO, which is lighter than a SkyWatcher and better matched to the mount. I have no experience of the SkyWatcher mount. You might also be interested in the comments of a very experienced observer at the following link:

uncle-rods.blogspot.ie/

Good luck with your purchase.

Mike

If you are planning to hang around the AP end of things (or even general observing) for a while, the HEQ5 is the very minimum requirement I reckon.

It will future-proof your setup for a lot longer than an EQ5, as inevitably the AP end of things will take on a life of its own at some stage, and you might need the insurance of being able to put a bit more payload on it.

Just a note as well, esp if you have younger people looking through it - the reflectors often end up with the ep in odd places. From personal experience I know the family will look through the sct much more readily than the reflector, when they see where the ep has ended up :laugh:

Thanks lads for your advice. I have had my offer on a 2nd hand Celestron NexStar 8 GPS accepted so no need to go down the road of an N 200/1000 happy nights ahead. Just have to arrange to pay and collect :woohoo: