I guess I'm this type. I disappeared for 15 years! come back only after had enough fund to buy an etx (yes, I DO started small :-))2. HaleBoppComet type - They swing in once in a blue moon, make their presence felt, only to disappear for a long time before re-appeaing again later.
Start small??
Boss, allow me to share a few experiences of mine. You brought up some valid points, only thing is...this hobby is not cheap to just make that damn scope into a white elephant!Tachyon wrote:I see this not just in astro, but in other hobbies as well - aquarium keeping, pets, flying model planes, wind surfing, hi-fi, etc.
Sounds familiar?
Few years back, my son wanted to get into astro and he kept pestering me for a LX200GPS. I bought him an 8" LX200 GPS for nearly SGD$5000. He only used it enthusiastically for 2 months and he said it was too heavy. After that he never bother about the scope. None of my family members wanted to use that scope either. It is also too heavy for me. Today, the mount doesn't seem to be working and the front lens is full of fungus. My 5K just went into the drain.
Thinking back, if I had bought him a smaller scope, I wouldn't have lose that money. Far better to gauge his interest before jumping in with something that is too big for him.
Other hobbies can come and go...but this one is not cheap to just "go". If there is ever a chance to "go", might as well buy something cheaper and smaller to start off with.
Maybe you guys here are rich in the sense that it doesn't matter to just dump a few thousand dollars on a big scope and chuck it at a corner when you decided to just quit. But for most of us average income earner, I don't think being wasteful is something I want to teach my kids.
So I agree that one should start small here....esepcially if you are a parent and your kid want one of these toys.
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Canopus Lim
- Posts: 1144
- Joined: Fri Jun 03, 2005 12:46 pm
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Unfortunately many of these small scopes that people would like are more expensive than the big scopes. 
I also started small, as I started with a binoculars, then went on further with a C5 then 8 inch dob and now the biggest of what I can afford and handle. I would keep mine for long long years and that is guaranteed as long it doesn't spoil and I have the ability to bring it around.
It is true that astronomy is a very expensive hobby of astronomical dollar; probably at par or could be cheaper than photography. Therefore, it is wise to continue it to the end or the investments will burn.
I also started small, as I started with a binoculars, then went on further with a C5 then 8 inch dob and now the biggest of what I can afford and handle. I would keep mine for long long years and that is guaranteed as long it doesn't spoil and I have the ability to bring it around.
It is true that astronomy is a very expensive hobby of astronomical dollar; probably at par or could be cheaper than photography. Therefore, it is wise to continue it to the end or the investments will burn.
AstroDuck
I understand how you must feel owning a $5,000 scope and letting it collect dust before it has been fully utililzed.clittle wrote:only thing is...this hobby is not cheap to just make that damn scope into a white elephant!
Unfortunately, that can be said for most hobbies also. I have a friend who works as a technician, earms $1,800 a month, married with one son, and he spent $10,000 on "Luo Hans" when it was all the craze. Now the aquarium is dry, the fishes given away, and the air pump rusting away in his 4-room flat.
What I'm trying to say is, in every hobby, you can spend the minimum or you can spend a lot. Prudent financial and asset management is the key. The question whether one should buy the best equipment there is or start with cheap ones and then move up has been hotly debated in other forums, and my opinion is - there is no consensus. It depends on your personality - some prefer to buy a low-end equipment and "try first" while others would like something "serious" to start their hobby off on the right footing. You can always find someone in either camp fervently defending their views.
When it comes down to it, it's about *your* own preference, not mine or someone else's. I do not think it would be fair to criticize someone who is just starting into the hobby and wants to own a quality (and expensive) scope, nor should we shame someone who wants to start with a "low-end" scope.
BTW, the people who are the richest are usually the ones most careful with their money!
p.s. Are you selling your 8" LX200GPS?
[80% Steve, 20% Alfred] ------- Probability of Clear Skies = (Age of newest equipment in days) / [(Number of observers) * (Total Aperture of all telescopes present in mm)]