Which 1 for my firstscope?

yeokimsong · Post by **yeokimsong** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 1:06 pm

thanks for the numerous advise, but is collimation required for SCT? i am surprised that actually very few people here would intro a 4" APO to me.. haha, but why huh? 4" APO on a equatorial mount is serious stuff right?

tungkian · Post by **tungkian** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 2:02 pm

collimation for SCT is easy! get bob's knobs and you can jus hand collimate. u'll need a high power EP. just google for SCT collimation and you'll get buckets of websites..

a 4 inch APO is serious stuff..BUT a 4 inch APO CANNOT show u what an 8 inch SCT CAN show you..stuff through a 4 inch APO is dimmer..u'll see less, simply because the aperture is much smaller.

rlow · Post by **rlow** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 3:45 pm

It is true that aperture rules, and that the bigger the scope the more (and brighter) you can see.

However I would like to offer an alternative suggestion to newbies that you don't really need to get a big scope, say bigger than 150mm aperture, for visual observation in S'pore. It is fine for beginners to start off with a lighter 80mm or 90mm scope which is easier to find a suitable mount/tripod, and also easier to mobilise. Better to get more observing time with a 80mm scope than to buy a 8 inch scope that is inconvenient to mount and to bring out & setup. It is also much cheaper for a initial 'investment' to try out astronomy equipment.

My first scope was a 60mm Unitron achromat on alt-az mount in 1986 and I used it to observe many objects in S'pore, including planets, Halley's comet, double stars and many many deepsky objects.

Once the beginner upgrade in future to a second bigger scope, the initial 80mm scope can eventually still be used as a grab-and-go scope, travel scope, superfinderscope, guidescope, spotting scope, solar scope or to be sold off.

Just my 2 cents....

cataclysm · Post by **cataclysm** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 10:21 pm

However I would like to offer an alternative suggestion to newbies that you don't really need to get a big scope, say bigger than 150mm aperture, for visual observation in S'pore. It is fine for beginners to start off with a lighter 80mm or 90mm scope which is easier to find a suitable mount/tripod, and also easier to mobilise. Better to get more observing time with a 80mm scope than to buy a 8 inch scope that is inconvenient to mount and to bring out & setup. It is also much cheaper for a initial 'investment' to try out astronomy equipment.

There are no hard and fast answers on the best scope and mount combo, but I share the same view with Richard, a compact refractor on AZ mount offers the most straight forward way for beginers to explore and learn about the skies. Its very easy to set up and intuitive to use and with that, you would prob use it more often too. I started to get serious with this hobby with a 4'' apo, and the big advantage of typical refractor is that it offers wide field of view, ideal to star-hop and find your ways around the night sky.

Post by **acc** » Wed Apr 23, 2008 10:43 pm

An 8" SCT on a fork mount, like the 8SE, is as easy to setup as a 4" APO on an alt-az mount. Things start to get more complex/bulky/heavy when u need an eq mount for photography purposes.

Canopus Lim · Post by **Canopus Lim** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:33 am

I would think the first scope would be a good binoculars... learn the stars and constellations first. It would be better to observe with people with telescopes and look through a real telescopes to know what the image look like. Then the right expectations can be set and requirements for a telescope better known.

yeokimsong · Post by **yeokimsong** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:40 pm

years back in my secondary school days me and my friends setup a group and purchased a C6 reflector, haha, thats how i started. since army this hobby died off. now going to rekindle the love of it.

swat_pup6433 · Post by **swat_pup6433** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:09 pm

a C6 !!! i have one sitting around!

Post by **weixing** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 4:30 pm

yeokimsong wrote:years back in my secondary school days me and my friends setup a group and purchased a C6 reflector, haha, thats how i started. since army this hobby died off. now going to rekindle the love of it.

Hi,
So, you are not newbie after all...

. In this case, you should know the difference between a 4" (4" APO is still a 4" scope) and a 6" scope.

Remember you are the one going to use it, so get the one that you'll be happy with it.

Have a nice day.