[Chaos-l] introduction, equipment request

Fri Jun 15 08:59:03 EDT 2007

I thought I'd follow up a little on this excellent advice.

A golden rule I've heard and subscribe to, is to buy the biggest scope you can, but not so big that you will never use it.  Let's face it, if a scope is big and heavy, or a pain to setup, it's going to be gathering dust most of the time.  That's why so many people recommend a 6" reflector on a dobsonian mount.  It's easy to setup, easy to use, and doesn't bust the budget.  However, if you can swing the little bit extra cost of getting an 8" scope, consider going that route.  The 8" scope is not that much bigger.  It will probably be a f/6, so about the same length.  The tube and base will be a fraction bigger, but not by much.  The extra light gathering ability will come in handy as you gain more observing experience.  Don't get me wrong, a 6" scope is still a great scope, but also consider an 8".

If you're just learning about astronomy another great tool is a planisphere...those round thingies where you dial in the date and time and it shows you what's up.  They are excellent for learning the constellations, how the night sky changes, and finding the brighter stars and deepsky objects.

Welcome to a hobby worth loosing sleep over.

Jeff
http://www.jeffpolston.com

________________________________

From: chaos-l-bounces at rtpnet.org [mailto:chaos-l-bounces at rtpnet.org] On Behalf Of Mark South
Sent: Friday, June 15, 2007 8:35 AM
To: Michael Hrivnak
Cc: Chaos-l at rtpnet.org
Subject: Re: [Chaos-l] introduction, equipment request

Michael, I highly recommend the Orion SkyQuest XT 6" Dobsonian as a beginner scope.   I own one myself and it has been a wonderful scope.   I think the current price is around $249.  By default you get 2 eyepieces!  (wide-field and narrow-field).  The current deal is a free laser collimator (to align the scope) and a starmap.   I bought my scope from Big Bang Astronomy because I want to support our local dealer.  (Speak with Kendall, the owner).   Other considerations:  Zhummel or Celestron 6" Dobsonians  (www.telescopes.com).   

Click on:
  http://www.telescope.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=238462&itemType=PRODUCT&iMainCat=3&iSubCat=334&iProductID=238462 

Reasons to buy this scope include the following:
1) As a musician, you can full understand that buying a really, really low quality instrument will detract from learning how to use the instrument.  In the same way, buying a cheap department store scope will end up in the closet!  The Orion XT's are very good quality scope for the price.  
2) A 6" scope is easy to "grab-n-go".  Very minimal setup time... no hard-to-use inaccurate go-to computers.  (any scope less than $1000 that has computer go-to is really bad.  spend your cash on the mirror not bad tripods and go-tos).
3) Look at this scope as a long-term scope.  If you decide later to buy a scope of larger aperture-- 10", 12" and up you will still have this scope as your small scope.  I currently own a larger scope, but guess which scope I use MOST of the time?   The Skyquest 6" scope--- because it's so easy to use. 
4) It has a f/8 f-stop. (Let me get techie on ya).   What this means basically is that it's a nice balance between a wide-field of view and a narrow field of view.  For example, the 5" ETX scopes are f/15.  So every eyepiece will really magnify highly-- kinda like looking through a port-hole.  This is not bad if you want to stick to planets, but not good for other views of deep sky objects.  On the other extreme are small scopes with f/4.  This has great wide-field views, but tough to magnify the object.   So the bottom line, I'm getting at here is that f/8 is a nice balance for a 6" scope.  

Used equipment:  Do not buy used from e-bay, but only from a good website such as "Astromart"   Personally, I think it's a hassle to buy a used 6" scope  on-line.  I would rather pick up a new one, but that's me.  

Accessories:
Always save extra cash for accessories:
Urgent Essentials:  
1) Telrad -- makes finding objects a cinch
2) "Turn Left @ Orion"  or a good Star map (sky and telescope's Pocket Sky Atlas)  
http://www.amazon.com/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundred-Telescope/dp/0521781906/ref=sr_1_1/102-0200149-1147310?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1181910432&sr=8-1

Non-urgent non-essentials for later to consider:
1) Better eyepieces 
2) Telrad dew shield (from astrosystems.biz) 
2) Teflon pad kit from Astrosystems.biz to make the motions smoother.  (the only negative for this scope is that the motions are rather sticky)  
3) Bar-lowed Collimator laser for the ultimate accuracy.  
4) A padded case http://www.telescope.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=408&itemType=PRODUCT&iProductID=408

Stuff to learn:
1) Learn to Collimate your scope.  Read the directions cover-to-cover.  
2) Learn to use the Telrad for easy targets and Star-hop for more difficult objects    http://www.skyandtelescope.com/howto/visualobserving/Map_at_the_Telescope.html

Also check out the CHAOS information on getting started with Astronomy
http://www.rtpnet.org/chaos/RA/startingRight.html

Hope this helps!
Mark South

On Jun 14, 2007, at 11:20 PM, Michael Hrivnak wrote:

	Greetings from a newbie.  I want to get into amateur astronomy, and I 
	intend to be at the Morehead Planetarium observation session on Saturday 
	night.  I'm moving back to the Triangle to play with the NC Symphony, I 
	love science and math, and I think it's high time that I learned more 
	about astronomy.

	Now I need a telescope.  I've been reading buying guides, etc., and I 
	think I want a good reflector in the 6-8" range.  How easy is it to find 
	some decent used equipment?  I'm thinking to spend maybe a few hundred 
	dollars.  I've checked websites of a couple of local shops (big bang, 
	oceanside), but there is nothing used that fits my parameters.  Advice?  
	Suggestions?  Where should I look?  Should I forget about used equipment 
	and just buy new?

	I'm sure that I'll learn a lot more about what equipment I want by going 
	to some local observation sessions and going to some retailers.  In the 
	mean time, I invite your advice for a novice's first purchase in the 
	Triangle.

	Thanks a lot,
	Michael
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