New Telescope, budget 2000 euros. some advice please.

manic_dave wrote: Ok i think its the Dob for me, this is what im thinking, am i missing anything here ? is there anything i dont need?

Skywatcher Skyliner 300P SynScan - 12" GoTo Dobson Teleskop
Tele Vue Nagler 17mm - 2" - 82° Feld - Typ 4

Just a thought here. The scope has a focal length of 1500mm, so that 5mm eyepiece will give a magnification of 300x. In my 10" f/4, 300x does not give a useable image, even with decent skies and the scope collimated I rarely get a useable image much above 200x. I using plossils rather than a nagler though so I'm open to correction on that.

As Nerro said add a decent cheshire to the list; personally I'd go with the cheshire rather than the laser.

Well it's the same as comparing TS EP's and Nagler ones,they are both good but baader is better.

Thanks Albert, I thought i had my homework done with the eyepieces.

I read the spec of the telescope and read a lot on line about magnification, eye relief and FOV.

I got 300X as the magnification for the 5mm, but seeing as the telescope is rated at a theoretical 600x i thought that getting to half that under Irish skies would be ok?

Im taking a loan of a 12" Dob soon and I have a 6mm plossil and Ill see what i can do with it before i make the order. Will be at least August before i put the order in.

In terms of the Cheshire, is this a suitable one?

www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_inf...ns---Refractors.html

manic_dave wrote: Ok i think its the Dob for me, this is what im thinking, am i missing anything here ? is there anything i dont need?

Skywatcher Skyliner 300P SynScan - 12" GoTo Dobson Teleskop
Tele Vue Nagler 17mm - 2" - 82° Feld - Typ 4
Baader Hyperion Eyepiece 5mm - 1,25" - Wide Angle 68
TS ED Barlow lens 2x - 2" - ED Element - BIG BARLOW
12V Powertank - 17Ah - rechargeable - with searchligh
Astrozap Straylight Protection - Skywatcher 12" Skyliner Flextub
TS Optics 2" Premium UHC Filter - more Contras
2" Premium O-III filter by TS Optics
TS Optics 2" Newtonian Telescope Coma Corrector from f/4
Universal contrast filter 2"
Crosshair eyepiece - 1.25" - 12mm focal length - illuminated
Dobsonian tube balance weight system, for 12" GSO / Meade
TS Newtonian Laser Collimator - 1.25" connection - full metal

Comes in not far off budget

The lads told me I'd never use my 5mm Hyperion aswell back in the day It was the 3.5mm that didn't see much use in the end but the handful of times I got to use it when the seeing permitted.....Oh Mamma!! ie. I felt even the 3.5mm was worth having for those few nights when I was able to view Saturn at 428x. I found the 5mm got plenty of use. Sure the seeing isn't generally great in this country but that said a lot of whatn people think is bad seeing is actually often boundary layer thermals on the primary mirror that hasn't reached ambient. Fit a cooling fan and a baffle deflecting ring above the mirror to blow off the boundary layer and I am sure the 5mm would be worth having in your kit. However, if I was only getting those 2 eyepieces for the time being then I'd probably go for the 13mm and barlow it to 6.5mm for the time being until you get around to filling out your EP set.

At f4.9 you probably don't need a coma corrector. Its really at F4.5 and faster that coma really starts to become obvious. Its there at F6 too but for most people it doesn't really become bothersome till you get to F4.5 mirrors. I'd wait till you've spent time using the scope before deciding on that one. I never felt the need for one using the 68ºAFOV Hyperions in my old 12" F4.9 Orion. (Definately needed one with my 16" F4.5 using 100ºAFOV Televue Ethos though)

I'd get some Bobs Knobs for your secondary holder to replace the philips screws. Much easier to collimate your secondary and safer too.

I'd save up for a Howie Glatter laser and Blug. Well worth the money. I went through the cheap laser thing and they are a false economy. They are forever going out of collimation themselves and its a pain to recollimate them. Glatters are built like a tank, come gauranteed collimated and won't loose collimation even when dropped from a height onto concrete. He tests every one by walloping it off the rubber trimmed edge of his work bench!! The Blug (Barlow 45º target) attachment means you get cheshire level primary collimation and can collimate the primary from the back of the scope without having to keep going back and forwards to the focuser like a cheshire. I think he is prepared to mark invoice values down IIRC

I'd leave out the universal Contrast Filter aswell as the crosshair eyepiece. I assume you would be using that for your two star alignment routine for the Goto? Do't bother. Just defocus your alignment star in an ordinary eyepiece till it nearly fills the FOV and then its easy to centre accurately.

Calibos wrote: The lads told me I'd never use my 5mm Hyperion aswell back in the day

I need to get a look through your scope sometime! :laugh:

Just defocus your alignment star in an ordinary eyepiece till it nearly fills the FOV and then its easy to centre accurately.

Thats a handy trick, hadn't thought of doing that.

Ok, so after much, much reading, and some more readying, and pestering Michael ( thanks for your Patience mate! ). Im still no closer to what I really want to buy.

I have made some decisions ( or some made for me )

Ill be relocating to a shed by the end of the Summer, the boss wants my stuff out of the way of the kids. I have to agree my 2 year old did a cracking job on a Barlow i left in the sitting room!

I have a slightly bigger budget than i first thought, but i still want to get as much as i can for my euro.

I currently have the Nexstar 4, which Im having great fun with, apart from the mount which a, is not very good and b i think might be slightly broken.

I have seen some great images online taken from modified SE mounts, and that made me think that i could get some good planetary photography if i had it on a good mount, maybe with a faster Refractor.

I was thinking along the lines or a NEQ6 mount with the Nexstar 4 and a

www.teleskop-express.de/shop/product_inf...-Deluxe-Version.html

This would leave me with a nice few quid to get a Dob and some nice eyepieces. And to my mind cover everything.

any thoughts ?