Buying a New Scope Need Help

[Eugene N]

Hi,
I'm new to all of this but I always had that urge to find out more and to explore the space.
I'm looking to buy a scope and don't want to spend more than $400 for my first purchase.

I was looking at these 2
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If they're ok is telescopes.com the best place to get them ???

Thank yo very much for your help and info :-)

[admin]

I don't know where you live but if you live in or near large city then check out yellow page phone to see if there's telescope or science store near your home then go there and take look at all kind of telescopes. Ask dealer questions. You want up to 400 dollars for a good telescope then 6" or 8" dobsonian is good for start. 6" and 8" to get more light that you able to see little more details on planets, nebula and open cluster than 3" and 4" telescope. Avoid high power! Between 30 and 120 power is good for general! Go library and borrow astronomy books and its free to borrow and learn something! Take your time to research on telescope and soon you will know which telecope you want to use for a long time.

[Johnmore]

If it were me I'd go for an 8" Dob over the 5" Meade or 4.5" Celestron Goto mounts. I enjoy the search for the DSO more than the thrill of the Setup. Heck, when a nearby house or tree gets in the way, I just pick the whole darn thing (10" Dob), walk a few feet and resume viewing all over again. The only setup I require is going back for my chair! If you're seriously into phtographt, them I'm not sure if these types of mounts will do. You might want a polar mount instead.

Cheers

[Eugene N]

Thank you for the info guys.
I just ordered the 10 inch Dobsonian, I hope I made the right choise....it is a little more then I wanted to spend and it does not have the electronic finder....but this way I will learn to find the objects myself
Here is the link of what I ordered....I'm so excited :-)
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[admin]

yea, i think you made good choice and it ships free!- that may even be the model that had the GSO mirror in to- id get a red-dot for it or something if it doesnt have one-- since you got the scope, you may wanna check at the same place for the celestron EP kit @ $99- hard to beat that EP deal kit

[Eugene N]

Any tips or info on that scope? how to operate it, take care of it?
I do have 1 more question...sorry if it is stupid but I'm new to this! can you se satellites with the scope?
I never owned a scope before :-( .....my hobby was my car....but I ended up spending a lot of time watching the discovery ch. and got hooked on astronomy :-)

Thank you for all the help guys

[Falcon]

You will get instruction how to set up, care of your telescope and it will come with your new telescope. Take your time to set up and learn how to use it. Pratice during the day to get know with your telescope. Maybe a few months later that you might want to add reddot finder that will help you to location star very quickly. My 10" with 8X50 rt angle finder and Orion reddot finder. I depend both of it! Reddot finder help me to find location of M57,M45, M42,etc. 8X50 finder help me to spot a fuzzy blob like M27, M71, etc then I use low power to find it then use medium power for better view. Use about 6ft by 6ft heavy duty waterproof plastic cover for camping tent that I can use it to cover my telescope to stay clean and out of dusts in my garage.
Also I created 2ft by 2ft and 3/4 thick, 3" or 4" rollers with lock and drilling 3 holes to match bottom of my telescope base for hold better. I can move my telescope in and out of garage. Check collimation very often that you can see much clearer! Go library to borrow astronomy books and get know the stars! Have fun!

[doriscrisp]

When you bring the scope in from the cold, leave it pointed down. That way moisture that accumulates will not get on the mirror. NEVER colminate with the scope pointed up. If you drop a screwdriver, it could break the primary. ALWAYS do it pointed sideways.
You will see many satelites pass thru the FOV while viewing (maybe 1 per night or so). Tracking them can be difficult, but possible.
Taping those silica packs to the inside of the cover will help reduce moisture.

Cheers