buying quality telescope

I hoping to invest in an 8" meade, celestron , orion teleccope with good accessories. I know the basics but want to invest in a good scope for life. Budget 1000 to approx. 2000euro. Where can I shop for quality cassegrain at a good price. Either web or shop in uk Ireland is fine. I tried USA but manufacturer won't cover warranty for goods that leave their borders. Help. Astronomy ireand have celestron but over priced. Would ebay.co.uk be a good investment if suitable scope was up for sale.

Eamonn,

I'm selling my 10-inch Meade LX50 - see For Sale message just posted a few minutes ago.

Gordon

Hi Eamonn, First of all, you are very welcome to the boards
I've just had a quick look around: there's Andy McCrea in north down:

www.mccreaa.freeserve.co.uk/

and David Hinds in the uk:
www.dhinds.co.uk/

Also, SCS Astro in very good:
www.scsastro.co.uk/
Ebay is not bad, but make sure of the quality of the scope first, I have a Celestron C8 myself and use it all the time, one thing though, It's field of view even at low power(x50 mag) is quite small, you'll have to buy what's called a focal reducer f6.3 to get a bigger field of view. Damn good optics though, motorised also for tracking the sky...Good Luck,
Keith..

Hi Keith,
Thanks a million for the web sites. I don't feel confident enough to take chance on 2nd hand scope , new for me is best. dhinds.co.uk is excellent. I looked at celestron G-9.25" FOR £1299 APPROX. 1910EURO. has equatorial mount C-G-5 HD, SCT , 8mm eye piece-31.7mm (81x), optic. spec. 235 aperture 9 1/4, f ratio/10.0 wt. 27.0 kg. I m into manual more than computer mount, but hope motor addition is poss. Do you think this is a good deal. Thanks,

Eamonn O'Brien

And Andromeda Optics in Dublin

www.andromedaoptics.com

Hi ctr,
Thanks for andromeda web site. Have been in touch with them by phone but have no show room as such. I think guys are happy to set up a scope of my choice. Was impressed with dhinds web site. thanks,


Eamonn.

Eamonn
are you looking for a reflector in particular or would you consider a refractor?

The reason I ask is that I know there's a few folks on astromart selling 2nd hand refractors from Europe (France, Poland, Italy) and there's also TMB who manufacture in Germany. This has advantages regarding VAT and Import Duty (which you will have to pay if you import from a non-EU country - even if its second hand).

As regards warrenty, I guess second hand astro gear, if you buy from a reputable person, has already had any faults identified (and fixed hopefully) and is unlikely to 'go wrong'. That said, its always a case of buyer beware.

Hi Dave ,
I might buy new cause I 'm not very familiar with scopes really. A dealer is my best bet and also safe one. I had a look at astromart but could'nt find my way around. Went into auctions but v little on sale. TMB, is that a web site or do they have a ph. no . to contact ?
thanks,


Eamonn.

Of course, if you choose new from a dealer, you get that piece of mind of a warranty but to be honest, as long as the research is done, 2nd hand is OK. Also remember that precision instruments are (usually) taken good care of and rarely have been mishandled to the point of serious damage.

Best of luck - let us know how you get on.

Dave McD

Hi Eamonn, First of all, you are very welcome to the boards
I've just had a quick look around: there's Andy McCrea in north down:

www.mccreaa.freeserve.co.uk/

and David Hinds in the uk:
www.dhinds.co.uk/

Also, SCS Astro in very good:
www.scsastro.co.uk/
Ebay is not bad, but make sure of the quality of the scope first, I have a Celestron C8 myself and use it all the time, one thing though, It's field of view even at low power(x50 mag) is quite small, you'll have to buy what's called a focal reducer f6.3 to get a bigger field of view. Damn good optics though, motorised also for tracking the sky...Good Luck,
Keith..

Hi Keith,
Thanks a million for the web sites. I don't feel confident enough to take chance on 2nd hand scope , new for me is best. dhinds.co.uk is excellent. I looked at celestron G-9.25" FOR £1299 APPROX. 1910EURO. has equatorial mount C-G-5 HD, SCT , 8mm eye piece-31.7mm (81x), optic. spec. 235 aperture 9 1/4, f ratio/10.0 wt. 27.0 kg. I m into manual more than computer mount, but hope motor addition is poss. Do you think this is a good deal. Thanks,

Eamonn O'Brien

Hi Keith,
Its eamonn here again, that 91/4 scope I mailed you about before I was thinking of investing in an eyepiece kit with it , seem to be much cheaper to buy as a kit. thanks again.

Eamonn.

And astromart if you want to get a second hand scope,
some scopes go for nearly half the new price.

www.astromart.com

Hi Dave,
Went onto astromart website , found it hard to locate 2nd hand scopes, maybe there were very little on sale at the time. If you are familiar with the site I would be delighted to get some directions as to locate the right page for the 2nd hand scopes, many thanks,

Eamonn.