How do u upkeep Astronomy as your hobby?

[VinSnr]

I think most people when they are young and unmarried will not be thinking so far in the future.

I think this is big problem with many of our young ones these days. They start planing for their financials when it is a bit too late. HSBC recently made a poll on financial and retirement planning.



The last line is the most worrying. 77% never made any financial arrangement for their old age....and the most shocking it, half of those who were surveyed were age 40 and above! This also tell me that in 5-10 years time, the most lucrative job will be those in the financial advisory line.

Coming back to astro, as long one does not make it a habit to spend out of line all the time, then I think he/she should be fine.

[soulfrost]

for me, it is really just a unhabitual hobby..
as far as i can care to, im only bothered to look out for specfic dates(peaks mainly) , and perhaps every now and then just stare at the clear skies(when there is one) .
sides, everything nice is usually at night. and since im a night person, i really have pretty much loads of time ^^

heheh

~gin

[Tachyon]

In life, everything is balance:

You can be frugal, save a lot for your retirement, never have to worry about money when you retire, but then find that your eyes are not as sensitive as they were when you were younger to appreciate the wonders of Deep Sky Objects!

Or you can spend today, and worry about tomorrow, and find that when financial disaster strikes, you have a lot of illiquid 'astronomical assets' but no cash.

So best to balanace - think and save for the future, but spend sensibily. How much you spend on your hobby depends on your risk appetite. For me, I have moderate risk appetite and spend up to 30% of my net worth on the hobby. If you are risk averse, you may want to spend less than 10% of your net worth.

Your milage may vary.

Cheers!

p.s. Also, by spending sensibly, I mean buying quality instruments that (1) lasts longer, (2) have higher resale value, (3) I can treat it as an 'investment' rather than an 'expenditure' (:P). Others may have a different opinion.

[philip]

I am now quite old, I was the newbie that did not made it . Once I put up a notice at the BUY And SELL section for Bino. I got alots of offer and I did went to try one. Due to poor my eyesight and the view in the bino becomes too abstract for me to made it out.
The moral of my story ,if you want astronomy go for it now. go BIG and you won't regret. If you wait then you can join my club"old newbie that couldnot see".
Money spend now you can still earn them later. Today youth, tomorrow you...th...Got the picture... my 2 cents

[alvinsclee]

I am now quite old, I was the newbie that did not made it . Once I put up a notice at the BUY And SELL section for Bino. I got alots of offer and I did went to try one. Due to poor my eyesight and the view in the bino becomes too abstract for me to made it out.
The moral of my story ,if you want astronomy go for it now. go BIG and you won't regret. If you wait then you can join my club"old newbie that couldnot see".
Money spend now you can still earn them later. Today youth, tomorrow you...th...Got the picture... my 2 cents

Welcome to the SOAP (Society of Old Astronomy Practitioners) party... hahaha.

I'm not far behind at 45. Yeah, our eyesight may be less keen now, but our minds should not go senile. I took up the hobby to sharpen my mind with more knowledge.

How to find good value in the hobby? Buy quality equipment and upgrade only when there is substantial gain in quality... eg: buying a 100mm refractor to replace a 80mm refractor is not wise, but buying a 10" reflector to replace a 5" one is definitely worth the spending.

Finally, I think simply saving 'enough' for the future is not a good solution. Due to inflation, no saving is ever enough! Better to ensure employability by learning new skills and applying it. I don't intend to retire until I am totally bed-bound.

[soulfrost]

"Due to inflation, no saving is ever enough! "

thats one of the reason why people buy toto and 4d isnt it? hehehehe

[mrngbss]

In life, everything is balance:

p.s. Also, by spending sensibly, I mean buying quality instruments that (1) lasts longer, (2) have higher resale value, (3) I can treat it as an 'investment' rather than an 'expenditure' (:P). Others may have a different opinion.

I like what you said! Perhaps these are the reasons why people buy Rolexes too. High resale value.

[hlyf]

I guess for many of us here in Singastro, it's not just the equipment, but also the people we get to know here who share the same passion in astronomy, that keeps us coming back for more

[elton]

Most quality equipment (AP, Tak, TV etc) have high resale values and if you buy them used you can continue to trade them for very little loss. Those who like to change equipment often should consider not only the resale value but also the availability of buyers. For eg, a Mewlon 180 is very easy to sell on astromart as someone has adequately demonstrated ;)
10% of net worth is a lot! 10% of net worth less house, car, cpf, other illiquid assets (ie, 10% of savings and investments) sounds more reasonable. For younger people who have yet to accumulate much savings, it may be ok to bust this limit in the early years because your earning power will catch up later....or so you hope

[mrngbss]

10% of net worth is a lot! 10% of net worth less house, car, cpf, other illiquid assets (ie, 10% of savings and investments) sounds more reasonable. For younger people who have yet to accumulate much savings, it may be ok to bust this limit in the early years because your earning power will catch up later....or so you hope

Pardon me for my ignorance... What is meant by 10% of net worth? Can you quote an example?

Thanks.