THREAD TWO: Any Telescope Afficionados Out There?

1/13/02 | me

[AngrySpud]

I have The Fever, aperature fever, that is. After ten years of using a 4-inch refractor, I want a deep-sky scope. Problem is, I don't have deep pockets. The solution seems to be a Dobsonian-style scope. I've located four manufacturers of medium (10+ inches) aperature Dobs: Obsession, BlackKnight, StarSplitter, and StarMaster. I'm leaning towards a 15" Obsession. Any suggestions?

[AngrySpud]

Thanks one and all for a marvellous thread yesterday. I'm STILL looking, though, for some input from folks who have used and/or purchased a medium-aperature Dobsonian-style light bucket.

[CHQmacer]

When you go from a refractor to a reflector your taking a step up even without increased aperature. You can build your own 10" newtonian pretty cheap. The stand with a clock drive will cost more than the telescope. That would be the best reason to go with a production model.

[AngrySpud]

I've considered building, but after a bit of research I've concluded that building your own really doesn't save much money (granted, there would be a lot of satisfaction in doing it) ... I suppose quality mass-production and economy-of-scale keep the prices of commercial Dobs relatively low.

There's a lot to be said for letting the experts do it, anyway. I'm the kind of handyman who measures thrice, and still has to re-work :(

[strela]

Wow - a second thread? I posted one graphic in the first one but I didn't think it was THAT big!

Bump for bigger and better toys!

[AngrySpud]

Yeah, almost a hundred posts. Today I'm hoping to catch all those folks who spent Saturday way out in the woods with their toys. They should be waking up about now and taking their coffee with a spoonful of FreeRepublic.

[PMCarey]

On a related topic. I have a 6" Newtonian (It's a 1967 Cave Astrola that I inherited from my now deceased Father). I took it out to Estes Park, Colorado last year for some summer viewing. I was particularly interested in viewing Mars but when I looked through the scope I didn't see squat. Basically Mars was a featureless disk (I was using Televue Radian eyepiece ranging from 4mm up to 12 mm as well as a 32mm Televue Plossl.) The Estes Park nightime skies are quite good and the mirror has been recently resurfaced.

So, I'm figuring that I need to get some filters, but I would like to know what kind of filters and filter brands would work best. Mars is coming back in a few years and I want to be ready.

[AngrySpud]

I'm filter-challenged. Perhaps the quality of your viewing that night was affected by high-altitude atsmospheric disturbance?

[PUGACHEV]

I would say that the size of the aperature you could use would depend on the darkness of the sky where you're viewing and your tolerance for lugging a cumbersome scope to the viewing area. Don't take that last consideration too lightly. I'd imagine that you think nothing of bringing your 4" scope along to the beach or wherever, but you won't have that freedom with an 8 or 10" scope.

My son has an Orion 8" Skyview Dobsonian and we've been to several star parties with much larger and more sophisticated scopes: his has always done better than anything of the same size regrdless of type and has compared favorably with the 10" scopes. It's really a joy to use that scope because the silky smooth Orion Dobsonian mount makes it easy to find objects or just casually wander around the night sky. Unlike some of my other scopes, that Dobsonian mount never gets in your way.

[AngrySpud]

" ... lugging a cumbersome scope to the viewing area ..."

Good point, and I will now mention that I am particularly blessed in this regard. I live in a small town in northern Arizona that jealously guards its dark skies. I can step out of my brightly lit living room, look up and instantly see the Milky Way, without any time needed to 'develop' my night vision. For deep-sky viewing, I'd have 200+ nights a year just from my backyard. My big Dob would roll from the back yard to an unused b-ball court.

Going from my 4" inch refractor to a 8 or 10-inch reflector like your son's would be an awesome jump in aperature, but I fear my 'fever' would continue. That's why I'm looking at the biggest scope my budget can reaonably afford.

[Vineyard]

Great . .. suggest you check www.astromart.com for 2nd hand scopes, get an even better buy.

I purchased, several years ago, a 13.1" Coulter Dob. I am in the processes of converting the cheap Dob mounting to a computer controlled Alt-Az Drive per Mel Bartel's concept (see http://www.bbastrodesigns.com/cot/cot.html ).

Check the web for further info ... there is lots of it out there. There are many many e-groups for some specialized hardware (Meade, Celestron, Losmandy, etc.) ... so that you can check user comments prior to you buying anything.

I also have a Celestron Schmitt-Cass on a G-11 Losmandy, and I find the e-groups fantastic. And then when you decide to build an observatory, you can find an Observatory e-group (plus a miriad of web sites) to get pro's and con's (oops ... didn't mean to get Bill Clinton in on this thread) of a Dome or a roll-off roof (and how to best build either.)

Mike

[AngrySpud]

" ... many e-groups ... "

Thanks, I'll try that. Also, I hear there is an informal astronomy club somewhere in the area. Guess I should track 'em down. It might yield an unexpected dividend -- I wouldn't mind taking advantage of an impulse shopper with buyers' remorse.

[arjay]

Check out eBay for Dobsonian Telescopes. There are several up for auction right now. BTW, I know absolutely nothing about telescopes. I just happen to like eBay.

[Vineyard]

I would be very very very careful of e-Bay. I have seen items that sold for far more than the same item could be found elsewhere. For example: I have seen new 'scopes sell for more than what the same 'scope sold for in Costco. You might find a good buy .... but in a bidding action, often, the seller is the one to profit, not the buyer!!

just my opinion ... based on 4 months of monitoring eBay for a good deal.

Mike