Astromaster 130EQ or 90EQ

[oktovan]

I'm a beginner in astronomy and I'm going to science centre to buy a telescope. After hours of research, I'm down to these two telescopes: Astromaster 90EQ(refractor) and Astromaster 130EQ(reflector). Which one should I buy?

[Davegn]

Hi oktovan,
A warm welcome to singastro and to the hobby.
Choosing a first telescope could be quite a hassle.
Why don't you first drop by to any astronomy session conducted by the members of singastro.
We are more then willing to share our experience with you.

Thanks and clear skies,
Dave Ng

[Gary]

I'm a beginner in astronomy and I'm going to science centre to buy a telescope. After hours of research, I'm down to these two telescopes: Astromaster 90EQ(refractor) and Astromaster 130EQ(reflector). Which one should I buy?

Hi Oktovan. Welcome to the forum and thanks for the twitter follow!

Sharing my 2 cents here. Please ignore and don't feel offended if it does not make sense or is not helpful to you.

(1)We are in the NE monsoon period right now. If you buy your telescope now, you may not be able to use it as frequently as you would like to in the next few months. If you can manage that expectation or have other more urgent reasons to get one, then go ahead and buy it. If not, better continue to do more research, visit more public stargazing sessions and then buy one nearer to next year's stargazing season (approx Apr - Aug).

(2) For these 2 options you have short-listed, both are EQs. May I know why you choose EQ or AZ? Have you done research on some of the weakness of these 2 AstroMaster EQ mounts? E.g. Potential tangle between counterweight bar and slo-motion cables in actual use at low altitude setting in Singapore? The product shots you see for EQ mounts are usually pointed at about 40 degrees for use in countries in higher latitude. Thus, from those photos, there seems to be no issue of the counterweight ever hitting the tripod legs while in use.

(3) The finderscope is another weak point of these telescopes. Some of our members have similar AstroMaster series scopes. Give it a try during their sidewalk sessions before you make your final purchasing decision.

(4) The 90EQ is 36 inches long (914.4 mm). Will that be an issue for you in terms of transportation or storage (e.g. in a dry cabinet)? Use an actual measuring tape and visually see the length. Most telescope product shots nowadays do not have not have a human being standing beside it for scaling purposes. So they may look smaller or shorter than imagined.

(5) Are you aware of other telescope vendors in Singapore and overseas? Have you compared prices with them? Or find out if for the cost you can getting something of better value?

(6) The newt needs more collimation frequently than the refractor (none if well factory collimated). If after considering the above, you still narrow down to these 2 and need to choose one over the other, then perhaps the deciding factor may be your preference and perception of collimation of telescope - is it a hassle or is it fun and worth learning in return for a bigger aperture?

Good luck and clear skies!

[beginner]

Gary,

That's one heck of some useful information you gave on the subject.
Thank you for your constant contribution.

There are many other considerations to look into before you buy a telescope.
Firstly is what drawn you to want to buy a telescope and what objects that you intend to observe with it.

And several more considerations which perhaps the more experienced hobbyists here can help to elaborate later on when the read this thread.

Enjoy the hobby.