What are /r/telescopes' favorite Products & Services?

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"Turn Left At Orion" by Guy Consolmagno and Dan M. Davis. Can be found on Amazon here.

EDIT: Apparently there is an updated version of the book (5th edition).

EDIT 2: watch the delivery time - the link in my former edit says ships within 1-3 months. Might not be the best choice for under the xmas tree.

No they are not good value. The only useable parts are the case itself, the 32mm - 13mm plossls, and the moon filter.

• Plossls are fine, but you can spend you money more efficiently and buy EPs à la carte.
• As for which EPs to buy depends on what scope you have.
• The issue with plossls shorter than 13mm, is that the eye relief becomes annoyingly small, as does the glass lens that you look through.
• Color filters are liked by some, but not liked by many others. They can increase contrast of certain planetary features. But myself and others find the color hue more distracting than the slight increase in surface feature contrast.
• The moon filter can be nice to have but is not needed. I would rather put that money towards an app, eyepiece, Telrad, etc…
• Oh and the barlow is not the best

These 66° UltraWide “goldlines” are the most recommended budget eyepiece. They are sold under a few different brand names and can be found for cheaper on AliExpress (where I bought mine). But first off, what scope do you have?

If you have it, you have it. It is a telescope, it does work. But even though it's really low end, free is free and you can't argue against that.

I do see however that it's missing parts. Primarily the Diagonal and eyepieces.

Diagonals can be bought rather cheaply, as can eyepieces, but you will be dumping at least $50-$75 to buy the missing parts.

Here's a ok, cheap Diagonal

Here's some decent Eyepieces

You dont have to buy the whole set, the 20mm and 9mm would be good to start off with.

If you download the Sky Map app for android or some equivalent app it's super useful for getting your bearings. You just hold your phone to the sky and it'll tell you what you're pointing at.

Rule of thumb, if it advertises itself as having x magnification it's a bad telescope. According to a quick google search, it's listed on amazon as a "Kids Telescope", with the only review saying how the mount is awful, which does not surprise me, as cheap refractors generally have shitty mounts. Speaking of cheap refractors, they generally are achromatic, meaning there will be significant chromatic aberration, meaning viewing planets will be a pain. Don't waste 50$ on this, you'll just be infuriated and throw it away because it is a piece of junk. For the same price, you can buy some Celestron binoculars off of Amazon, and have a much better experience than using that scope.

Yeah, buy the XT8 instead.

(Or the Skywatcher 8". It's cheaper than the XT6 on Amazon right now.)

This is /r/telescopes so regardless of your ability to store it, transport it, or find DSOs with it you're going to be recommended an 8" Dobsonian, might as well go with the Zhumell Z8.

Celestron 71198 Cometron 7x50 Binoculars (Black) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DV6SI3Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_4Y.SAb8HRKFV2

These are probably the cheapest decent thing you can get for ~$30 brand new. Binoculars are a good entry level tool for stargazing.

You might be able to find a used Astromaster 70 refractor online for ~$30.

I would recommend a book called "Turn Left at Orion". It is intended for people like yourself, who are just learning how to navigate the skies.

Also a sky map or a planetarium program, like Stellarium will help you a lot!

I would consider getting a pick and pluck foam hard case to store the eyepieces safely, and for the eventual expansion of your collection. Harbor Freight Apache cases are decent for the price. The Plano Large and Extra Large Seal Tight cases from B&H Photo Video are excellent.

Though by no means necessary, I would also consider replacing the 9mm Plossl the scope comes with, with a 9mm widefield like the "gold line". It will be more comfortable to look through and offer a wider field of view. The 9mm focal length in that scope is actually a good focal length, but in Plossl form it's very hard to look through. The fairly low cost of that 9mm is deceptive. I have it, and it is very, very comparable to my $250 9mm Tele Vue DeLite.

I would also consider adding a Telrad or Rigel Quikfinder to aid in finding things and star hopping. The RACI optical finder the scope comes with is great, but can be hard to roughly aim. So a zero-power reticle finder like a Telrad or similar is helpful.

Also get some planetarium software for your phone, like Sky Safari Pro. It makes star-hopping to find objects easier.

I also recommend getting a red light headlamp for seeing in the dark. I use this one from Home Depot: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Coast-FL75-435-Lumen-Dual-Color-LED-Headlamp-with-Twist-Focus-21708/304615539

Other than that, just spend some time observing with the scope, and then start expanding your eyepiece collection when you have a feel for what you like.

Hello :-)

The 4mm produces too much magnification, the 3x barlow is of poor quality.

While I agree with /u/_Augustus, (use what you have), you could purchase a 6mm for planets (117x). Don't get a cheap Plössl, get a "gold line" for example, it has better eye-relief at this focal-length.

• https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Telescope-Eyepiece-of-1-25-Ultra-Wide-Angle-Eyepiece-Lens-6MM-66-Deg-Multi-coated-for/32727027422.html?spm=2114.30010308.3.36.zZ5obu&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_2_10065_10056_10068_10055_10054_10069_...

The telescope is very limited though. The moon will be nice, planets small but recognizable.

>Celestron Astromaster 130eq

STAY WELL CLEAR OF CHEAP EQUATORIAL MOUNTS.

Equatorial mounts only really make sense for astrophotography or at the very least a combination of both visual and AP (that why I picked that combo).

How mobile do you need it to be?

For a mix a great visual and portability something like the 10" collapsible DOB is great. It weight less than my setup (and more than double the light gathering) and collapse can fit in the back seat of any car.

For something lightweight that does well for super cheap an Heritage 130P is also excellent.

Sorry to hear, but telescopes are a quirky hobby...you need many things to be right including the cash lol.

You could get these binoculars...

Celestron 71198 Cometron 7x50 Binoculars (Black) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DV6SI3Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_GIbOBbZB7DZB8

I use these all the time along with my dobs. They are cheap but solid. If you ever find yourself away from light pollution, you can still see plenty. And you can use the binoculars for other things...bird/nature watching, sporting events, etc.

You're very welcome.

If you have a smartphone you might prefer an astronomy app to the book. I use Sky Safari.

Stellarium is planetarium software that provides a simulation of the night sky on your computer. It's fun to just look around, and useful for finding when and where the planets, nebula, star clusters, etc. are going to be.

An accessory you might like is a smartphone holder like this one from GoSky. You can take a picture by just holding your phone to the eyepiece, but a holder helps.

Clear skies!

You can confirm what you're looking at with Stellarium. Set it to your location, set it to the time of your observation, and find Jupiter, and you'll be able to see what was in your eyepiece.

Congrats! I suggest SkyMaps (printable maps) or Stellarium (program) for seeing what's up in the night sky. Or just going outside every night and taking a good look around :)

You should get this adapter that lets you screw your mobile phone over your eyepiece of your telescope so you can take more stable pictures and videos: https://www.amazon.co.uk/LAKWAR-360%C2%B0Rotatable-Binoculars-Microscope-Astronomical/dp/B07GXHLSY1/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=Mobile+phone+telescope+mount&qid=1605612937&sr=8-5

This is a "goldline" set from Amazon. I don't know if they are available on Amazon UK.

SVBONY Telescope Eyepiece Fully Mutil Coated 1.25" Telescope Lens 66 Degree Ultra Wide Angle HD (6mm 9mm 15mm 20mm) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MR78I42/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_p5WJCbYXWP7ZX

No don't bother with the kits. Waste of money.

And personally, I'd skip a barlow too, they're a pain in the ass to keep switching out and they reduce the contrast and clarity, you're better off with dedicated eyepieces.

The two Plossls that come with it should serve you well - Orion's plossls aren't bad at all. And since it already comes with a finderscope rather than a red dot, you've got everything you need right now unless money is burning a hole in your pocket.

If you really need to round out the EP selection, I'd go for a 32mm 2" wide field like this and a 6mm gold line planetary like this.

I wouldn't bother upgrading the 25mm and 10mm with this scope. Save the money for bigger better things in the future :-)

Look for a deal on an 8" on craigslist. I got mine for $250.

Alternatively, pick a smaller size. The AWB OneSky is much cheaper and is a pretty awesome scope, especially for someone like your son who isn't going to be spending hours on end looking for faint deep sky objects. I'm a huge fan of that particular scope just in general, but for your situation it might be even better. Spend a little bit of money on a nice 6mm, 66 degree lens. Here's a link - you can find them on Amazon and the like, they are generic and go by a bunch of different names. Here is one from Amazon.

That will be good for planets and nice high magnification lunar viewing.

Definitely encourage his interest. My son and I are just loving our telescope, and he takes such pride in being able to explain what he's seeing.

Hi :-)

Any info on it's condition?

What telescope did you have previously, if any?

The 114/500 is a nice wide-field instrument. The fast aperture ratio results in some contrast issues (coma, large obstruction, mirror must be perfectly parabolic).

It's not great for overly high magnification when it comes to planets.

The cheap small EQ mounts are not great either. Manufacturers save some money and bundle these sets with the weakest mounts/tripods they can get away with.

For $100, it may be worth a thought.

BUT:

As a Zhumell z114 or similar table-top does not cost much more NEW.

More sturdy. (I use my Heritage 130p on an inexpensive Ikea step-stool as "table"/"mount", it's much better).

Easier to set up when starting out.

(Z114 $149, z130 usually $199 when in stock from a different seller).

If your budget is flexible, the z130, AWB OneSky, Heritage 130p or so would be more capable.

 

Clear skies!

Hello :-)

> $200

> upgrade

There's really just one telescope in this price-range that would be a significant upgrade:

The Zhumell z130.

https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/B07BRLSVWM

Or the collapsible AWB OneSky, Heritage 130p (<- more common in Europe, from €200) if you need something more compact.

These do not have a tripod, but are very sturdy table-tops. I use mine on an inexpensive Ikea step-stool. MUCH better than something like the 130EQ's mount (I've tried). A decent mount alone would cost $200-$300 for a 5" telescope.

&nbsp;

> planets

It requires a decent planetary eyepiece (e.g. the 4mm 58° for $20-$40). But with that, it's quite capable compared to the 70mm refractors and other cheaper solutions.

&nbsp;

> deep sky

The 5" (130mm) aperture can already show a lot!

Older post with what difference aperture makes.

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> higher

If your budget is flexible, check out the Heritage 150p ($270-$290), Starblast 6 - Or the larger 6-inch dobsonians (which aren't table-tops, e.g. Sky-Watcher 6-inch, Apertura DT6, Orion XT6, ~$340).

You can find 6" or 8" dobsonians used for a good price once in a while.

&nbsp;

Clear skies!

The telescope itself is fine. The EQ-1 mount is a little undersized for that scope. The single stalk legs on the tripod are particularly weak and will wobble. The setup can be made much steadier with some DIY wooden legs. It has potential.

FYI, that telescope is basically the same as the Celestron Powerseeker 114EQ. Current price is $125 on Amazon. I'd offer much less for the Bushnell or just buy new. And even if buying new I'd still probably make a set of wooden legs to alleviate wobble.

https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-21045-Equatorial-PowerSeeker-Telescope/dp/B0000Y8C2Y

You'll likely get a lot of input here steering you away from this particular deal and towards a dob of some sort.

If you have an Orion scope, this'll fit right in your dovetail.

Orion 52062 SkyLine Deluxe Laser Pointer-to-Telescope Bracket https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001DGR5BM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_UzjDAbCETWBP4

Just search Amazon for "telescope laser mount" or something similar.

Edit: derp, didn't see what laser you have. Might be a little big for what I linked, double check the measurements first.

Hi! So I'm sure you guys must get a lot of dumb questions so I'm sorry if I'm being annoying. My husband recently bought me a telescope for my birthday and I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing to be honest lol. The telescope is a Celestron 114LCM Newtonian computerized telescope, Amazon link is https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-114LCM-Computerized-Telescope-Black/dp/B0036GNNCC . I've managed to align it by myself, with the little scope thing, excuse my normie vocabulary, but I haven't aligned it with the remote since I don't really need it because I have a star map and I can spot out planets and stars quickly. Now, I was able to see the moon with it and it was a crystal clear image. Now, when I moved over to Mars, the image up there is what I saw. I had no idea what was going on, I also tried moving to Jupiter and a few stars and saw the same thing. Am I supposed to do something else to the telescope? Are these planets too far away for me to see? I also don't understand why I see the reflection of the center piece. I'd appreciate the help!

Hi :-)

Great!

> anything I should know?

Yes, it comes with free clouds ;-)

> know

> first telescope

Grab a copy of "Turn left at Orion" - the missing manual :-)

Ideally a long eye-relief 6mm for planets, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H8YZHFT/ref=twister_B07MVSSW4V?_encoding=UTF8&amp;psc=1

And binoculars if you're new to finding deep-sky objects :-)

Clear skies, have fun!

Vestil CPRO-800LP Ergonomic Worker Seat/Chair, 13-1/2" Width, 10" Depth, 300 lb. Capacity, 18" - 33" Height Range https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0052PJFCW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_cQtQBbDSCS9CR

I use this and absolutely love it. It isn't the cheapest chair ever but it might be the best money I've ever spent in astronomy.

There are not a lot of choices for good quality short focal length eyepieces on a budget unfortunately.

Your options are:

1. Wait for ES to make these available: short focal length but long eye relief, very affordable cost.
2. A high quality TV barlow, as /u/trustinnerwisdom mentioned (which will be the same price as two of those ES eyepieces anyway, and give you the same focal lengths from your 9 and 6)
3. Astromania &quot;TMB Planetary&quot; clones. (3.2, 4, 4.5, and 5mm focal lengths). You can shop around to get these cheaper on Ebay or AliExpress, but you'll be waiting a month or more to get them from China.

Hi, I'm afraid that telescope is really little more than a childrens toy. Don't expect a great deal out of it. It should still give you okay views of the moon though so there's that. At the sub $200 price bracket binoculars are better than telescopes in almost every case.

The best accessory you can buy is a good book at this point. The best for young beginners imo is Nightwatch by Terence Dickinson. You could also join a local astronomy club where the members will be happy to give you a look through their scopes. If your son does end up gaining enough interest in it to warrant a real telescope, $250 or so will get you a small Dobsonian which is the best bang for your buck.

There's one option to get a decent discount: http://rakuten.com/shop

They're offering 20% off up to $60 today since it's Cyber Monday.

They are a retail aggregator, and one of their stores is Adorama Camera, which sells Explore Scientific gear

Not the best product organization, but with some digging you should be able to find it. Not sure if $60/off good enough for a deal for you though.

Different targets benefit from different magnifications, so there's no one best magnification for your scope.

You calculate magnification by dividing the telescope's focal length by the eyepiece's focal length.

Your telescope's focal length is 1,000mm.

That said, the 114LCM is a Bird-Jones reflector so it probably can't handle very high magnification. I would stick close to 100x as the max. A 9mm eyepiece would probably be the limit. Anything beyond that might just look bigger but blurrier and dimmer. However, only you can make that determination based on what you see.

I recommend the following eyepieces:

1. A 32mm Plossl for low power, widest possible views in that scope.
2. An 18mm wide angle for general purpose deep sky viewing (such as the 18mm Agena StarGuider Dual ED)
3. A 9mm wide angle for higher power lunar, and basic planetary viewing (such as the 9mm &quot;gold line&quot;). I have this eyepiece. It's very good for the price.

I think your scope already comes with a 9mm eyepiece, but it's likely a Plossl or Kelner or Modified Achromat and isn't very easy or comfortable to look through, and has a narrow field of view. I recommend replacing it with the 9mm I linked above, as it will give you a more enjoyable observing experience.

Those would be the basic focal lengths that would make sense for your scope. You can add additional focal lengths as you feel you need them.

~1.62 au at the moment. In general it's an extremely bright whitish ball that varies noticeably in size and phase (currently relatively small and something like 95% illuminatedl)

For checking on distance, rise/set times, phase, etc in the future something like Stellarium or PlanetDroid is extremely useful.

Yes, the 5mm and 6mm are redundant, and both are overpriced eyepieces. If you want the 6mm, don't get the Orion Expanse, get the more generic 6mm "gold line": https://www.amazon.com/MEOPTEX-66-Degree-Ultra-Eyepiece-Telescope/dp/B07H8YZHFT/. Same eyepiece, different branding, lower price. That said, 6mm is quite high magnification and may not be usable all the time. There are other eyepieces to prioritize.

The Moon filter and polarizing filter are redundant. And frankly, you don't need a moon filter. Just let your eyes adjust to the brightness of the Moon and you will see it in the best possible contrast.

The 40mm plossl is not appropriate for this scope since the exit pupil will be too big, and will actually not allow all the light leaving the telescope to enter your eye, effectively reducing the telescope's working aperture. For a low power eyepiece, don't go above 32mm. If you want wider field, get a 2" eyepiece instead of a 1.25" 32mm Plossl. Something like the 30mm GSO SuperView, or ideally, the 30mm APM Ultra Flat Field / 30mm Meade UHD / 30mm Celestron Ultima Edge (all the same eyepiece).

That SkyGlow broadband filter is basically useless. I own one. It won't help much. You want a good quality narrowband or O-III filter. The Orion Ultrablock is a decent narrowband, and so is their O-III. Not the best, but decent.

With the exception of the solar filters, the other accessories you've chosen are either not necessary or not optimal for that scope.

For what it's worth a 10" scope is a pretty serious investment and it's worth picking some nice quality accessories for it. Don't be afraid to upgrade or replace the two eyepieces that came with the scope, with something nicer. The 10mm Plossl that came with the scope can be upgraded to a better quality 9-10mm wide field eyepiece that will get a lot of use in the scope.

What budget do you have for eyepieces and filters and what not?

The most useful filters are: 1. A moon/neutral density filter. I have an Orion 13% one that works well with my Orion 130EQ which appears to be about the same aperture as your scope. Basically this is like sunglasses for your telescope to prevent the moon from being too bright.

1. A narrow-band filter, useful for various DSOs. Read this for more information: http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org/resources/by-dave-knisely/useful-filters-for-viewing-deep-sky-objects/

There are a couple more specialized filters that are only useful on a smaller percentage of DSOs where they might outperform the more general narrowband but with that size scope I wouldn't bother.

On astrophotography... You can probably take pics of the moon with that scope and a camera adaptor. Maybe low detail shots of the brighter planets? But to take pictures of DSOs or more detailed planet shots needs specific equipment. I'm interested in doing this too, but even a beginner level setup with all used gear is expensive.

If you want to give it a go, look on Amazon for adaptors for your camera brand that insert into the eyepiece tube. For example, I have a Pentax camera so I might use this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013DT8OIE/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_30?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1&amp;smid=AHQ6VCR020F8X

However, I would not expect that much out of it.

Using your first formula I found a 160mm, 1300mm focal length spherical mirror on amazon that is just under the diffraction limit. It's F/8.125 and the limit for 160mm is F/8.233.

The tube would be over 4 feet long but that might not be so bad...

Handy tool for Android folks - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.stardroid

As for "what am I looking for"?

Nebulae and galaxies will mostly be faint fuzzy things in an 80mm refractor. Globular and open clusters should resolve pretty well. M42 in Orion should be good. Jupiter and Saturn are good.

What is the focal length of your telescope? Should be between 400 and 1000 millimeters.

The cheapest I have found the Gold Lines on Amazon is $30, with prime shipping:

https://www.amazon.com/MEOPTEX-66-Degree-Ultra-Eyepiece-Telescope/dp/B07HHSZB18

That's almost as cheap as AliExpress and you don't have to wait a month for them to arrive. For your scope, I don't recommend the 15 and 20mm for a couple of reasons, but the 6 and 9 are good options.

Alternatively as /u/Biggen1 said, th Paradigm ED from Astronomics or the Agena StarGuider Dual ED from Agena Astro (same eyepieces) are excellent values.

Ok, yeah. If your dad has eyepieces then you don't need to buy any for this scope to be useful.

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Assuming the mirrors/motor isnt damaged, the only thing you need to purchase is a power supply. You're looking for a 12V DC, 750mA power supply that is tip positive. You can find these for under 50$ at many telescope websites.

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Something like this should work. https://www.amazon.com/Liteon-PB-1090-1L1-12V-750mA-Adapter/dp/B002SIP9X0

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I have a pair of 7x50 Celestron Comestrons that I love. They are super cheap but work just fine. I can hand hold them or use a monopod for stability.

I have yet to find a reason to by anything more expensive. Any binoculars a little bigger and you start to need a tripod or some sort of mount because of the weight.

You can buy 2 pair for <$100. One for you, one for whoever you're with.

Celestron 71198 Cometron 7x50 Binoculars (Black) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DV6SI3Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_lpVLBbTFWZ142

Hello :-)

Have you aligned the finder scope?

Stars will remain dots, even with larger telescopes. They are too far away relative to their size.

The barlow is not good. A (decent!) 6mm or so with long eye relief would be required to view the planets. E.g. a gold-line. The 20mm is fine for a general overview, but not good either.

Consider getting "Turn left at Orion" - The missing manual on how to observe ;-)

Sadly the 127eq has several issues. If it's still an option, consider exchanging it for something decent. If it's not, you can still see a lot with it, but be aware of it's limitations. It's a bird-jones type with a flawed, spherical mirror, and a mediocre corrector lens to compensate for that. Alignment and contrast are always an issue with the 127eq.

Clear skies!

Hello :-)

Congratulations, that's a nice telescope!

A 6mm "gold-line" is a nice eyepiece. More than 200x magnification is possible, but only if atmospheric seeing allows (which it often doesn't). 6mm

Don't get a cheap eyepiece set (overpriced, mediocre), cheap barlow (chromatic aberration) or short Plössl (horrible eye-relief). In general, a good eyepiece is better than barlow+kit-eyepiece.

Still, make sure you know what to expect. Compared to processed and edited HD shots of planets, consisting of multiple/stacked exposures, visual will always be a bit less impressive... At first. It actually takes some practice to observe, patiently wait for good seeing, spotting faint details that are not as apparent. A good eyepiece, and possibly some filters (in some conditions, usually not required) can help with the contrast.

Clear skies!

Actually they are among the brightest dots in the night sky... And easy to find IF you know where to look :-) That's what monthly astronomy newsletters, http://stellarium.org and Apps are for. Especially apps make it very easy. They use the phone's motion sensors to literally point him into the right direction.

Yeah, especially binoculars with 10x or more are difficult to hold steady for astronomical use.

Tracking-> EQ mounts make tracking a bit easier, BUT in this price range most sets are not overly stable.

Oh, Ireland -> Some other choices available over there. Not sure where to search. There seems to be "northdowntelescopes" but they only have two offers on their site. There's another Skylux, but I'd recommend looking around for a 130eq or even a 5", 6" dobsonian.

The exit pupil is a measurement of the shaft of light being emitted by the eyepiece in a telescope. Your eye doesn't have an exit pupil; it has an entrance pupil. Your pupil can dilate to 5-7mm depending on your age, health, and ambient lighting conditions. Here is a technique to measure your pupil diameter using Allen keys: https://www.safaribooksonline.com/library/view/astronomy-hacks/0596100604/ch01s08.html

Hello,

hard to tell, what barlow, what erecting eyepiece do you have?

What telescope, do you use the barlow/erector infront the diagonal or between eyepiece and diagonal?

Sounds more like you are using a reflector because of the focus issues. What EF/t2 adapter do you use to mount the camera to the telescope? What telescope?

Anyway, in general, the magnification/image scale will change depending on the distance between sensor/eyepiece and barlow element. E.g. if you view through an eyepiece and slowly pull it out, the magnification increases.

https://www.desmos.com/calculator/efnu639fxv

http://www.astro-imaging.com/Tutorial/Calculations.html

Many optics use this effect (zoom eyepieces, Baader eyepiece rings, Astro-zoom adapter, Barlow with dual function...)

I have a 5x barlow which does not reach 5x when used with a 10mm kit eyepiece, because the barrel of the 10mm is so short it slides in further than my bigger 12mm eyepiece, so the barlow with 10mm magnifies less than with the 12mm - odd. Sometimes barlow labels tend to be a suggestion, not actual numbers ;-)

It's best to observe objects when they are at zenith because you are looking through the least amount of atmosphere so there will be the least amount of distortion. It's really not too difficult to find, you have to find the "torso" of Hercules and it is almost directly in between 2 the 4 stars which make up his torso. Start with a low power eyepiece like 25-30mm and slowly scan the area and you should be able to find it, even from a light polluted location it is fairly bright. Also, I suggest downloading Stellarium to better familiarize yourself with the constellations and deep sky objects.

Try Stellarium http://www.stellarium.org

It lets you put in your telescope size, your eyepieces, cameras and barlows or focal reducers, and it can show you the various targets as if you were seeing them through the scope.

you can download Stellarium (http://www.stellarium.org/) for free, go back to when you observed the moons and zoom in Jupiter! Yesterday These were visible from where i live at 10PM

Stellarium is a free computer program that shows you real time star map for your location. If your scope has alt/azimuth markings you can simply align your scope and point at the object according to what Stellarium tells you. If not, then just use Stellarium as a guide for star-hopping to find your target.

That's a very nice 'scope! Yes, you'll absolutely be able to see Saturn's rings and Jupiter's moons (as points of light) in this. I'd recommend downloading Stellarium or a similar program to familiarize yourself with what's out there to look at. If you aren't sure of how to operate it I'd recommend taking it out to a local astronomy club event. Have fun and clear skies!

I use this one with my Z10. I'm 6'1" 245lb and it so far it's been fine capacity wise. The Starbound has a padded seat, probably a bit more comfortable.

That being said, I've also used a plain folding chair and it's been fine. I've only used the scope with the base on the ground though, not elevated like your pic. I love your scenery!

No, but a decent eyepiece is not that expensive.

A great eyepiece is very expensive....

Ideally a large view (25-40mm) and close up (9-14mm). You need the 1.25 or 1 and a quarter inch size. You can go for the zoom version to start with. Not quite the quality, but really easy to use and flexible.

Orion E-Series 7-21mm Zoom Eyepiece https://www.amazon.com/dp/B084RDVHFQ/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_BZ58KH0ZR4ZTXBVGH5PN

Orion, Meade, Celestron are good names. Explore Scientific, Tele Vue, Pentax are some higher quality and pricier names. I love my tele vue and pentax, but they cost a lot.

Have fun!

Ps- you might be able to upgrade the remote to do guided star tours, but it is 100-150$ on cloudy nights. The 482 remote or something? I think it works with a ext70

I did a little digging a while back and think this would work but it’s unavailable and idk when it’ll be back 🤷‍♂️ Orion 15170 47x17x18 - Inches Padded Telescope Case https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000XMTW4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_YEG79Q351H2YMCPSQ18D

I would do a couple of things:

1. Replace the 9mm eyepiece that it came with, with a better quality 9mm or 10mm wide angle. The 9mm the scope comes with is a cheap Plossl, Modified Achromat, or Kellner and has limited eye relief and apparent field of view. The focal length is good, but not that particular eyepiece. On a budget, I recommend a 9mm &quot;gold line&quot;. Alternatively, the 9mm Celestron X-Cel LX, or 10mm Celestron Ultima Edge / APM UFF (there are a number of variations of this same eyepiece).

2. Get a 5mm eyepiece for conservative lunar/planetary observing. This will get you a nice 1mm exit pupil and 130x magnification, which is enough for when the atmosphere isn't very steady but you still want to observe the planets. The 5mm Agena StarGuider Dual ED / AstroTech Paradigm / BST StarGuider (all the same eyepiece) is a great value. Alternatively, the 5mm Celestron X-Cel LX would work.

3. For higher power planetary observing, get a 3.2 to 3.5mm eyepiece. The 3.2mm from the same series as the 5mm Agena/AstroTech is also a great option. This can be used when the atmosphere is more calm/steady.

This? https://www.amazon.de/Tasco-Teleskop-Refractor-402X60MM-30060402/dp/B0000A0AIX

The common FORK MOUNT OF DOOM! :-)

I've started with a telescope on such a mount (but a reflector type telescope).

There isn't much you can do. Don't extend the tripod. Attach something as balancing weight. Don't use over-magnification.

If you already have a camera tripod, you could try adapt it to that.

Else any new mount would be more costly than a better entry-level telescope (e.g. Zhumell Z100/Z114/Z130 for $99/$149/$199 + $13 Ikea stool as "tripod").

A lot of people talk about the SVBONY redline in a positive light, it sounds like maybe you received the wrong product.

I'll offer an alternative MEOPTEX 6mm 66 degree goldline. I purchased this one as my planteary eyepiece and it is fantastic. It has a long eye relief and the field of view is excellent.

Either one is a good choice. The DT6 has a better focuser. The 2" focuser of the Sky-Watcher is a lie since the secondary mirror is not big enough to fully illuminate 2" eyepieces. So I would consider both scopes to be limited to 1.25" eyepieces only.

For a good set of eyepieces that don't cost too much, I recommend this one:

https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B01MR78I42/

This is now on sale for Prime Day, and you will not be able to easily beat this price. All four are good performers in an F/8 scope like the DT6 or SkyWatcher 6, and the focal lengths have you covered for lunar/planetary to DSOs.

Sweet! Remember to go buy yourself a nice set of carrying straps, Strap-A-Handle HDV | 4' Easy... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0026S1B5C?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Total Life savers for lugging around my XT10.

https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Focuser-Newtonian-Reflector-Telescope/dp/B08HX1MWMM/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&amp;keywords=telescope+focuser&amp;qid=1623277640&amp;sr=8-2

That could work, there's plenty out there, you just have to look around.

Limited-time deal: Gosky Universal Cell Phone Adapter Mount - Compatible Binocular Monocular Spotting Scope Telescope Microscope-Fits almost all Smartphone on the Market -Record The Nature The World https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013D2ULO6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_WZTM718ENWYQH8P5GDPP?_encoding=UTF8&amp;psc=1

Didn’t go to college but still like the sticker lol. Found it.

https://www.amazon.com/Science-Magic-Sticker-Window-Bumper/dp/B07GRN65VL/ref=mp_s_a_1_9?dchild=1&amp;keywords=science+its+like+magic+but+real&amp;qid=1621376728&amp;sprefix=science+its+&amp;sr=8-9

> Would there be any downside in using a telescope with a 2-inch diagonal, which adapts into a 1.25-inch eyepiece holder to do visual observing with 1.25" eyepieces, compared to if everything was 1.25" from the start?

Not unless the connection is of poor quality. If everything works as it's designed it won't be a problem.

> How would I go about actually attaching a planetary camera to a scope with a 2" visual back? For example, the ASI224MC has a 1.25" T-ring included.

I think you have two options, but I don't own an ASI224 I own an ASI120. So take this with a grain of salt. They probably connect the same though, just confirm it before buying.

1) Connect the 1.25 t-adapter to your ASI, slot it into a 2&quot; to 1.25&quot; converter and then slot the converter into your scope.

2) The ASI has an M42 thread that the 1.25 t-adapter screws into. Instead of screwing the 1.25 t-adapter in, screw in an M42 to 2&quot; adapter.

I think optically both of these options would work just as well.

> but I assume this isn't an ideal setup since it adds an additional optical element in the form of the diagonal mirror.

You don't need to put a diagonal in to make the 1.25 to 2 inch converter work.

For future reference (if you're in the USA at least), use Superlube. It's great at most temperatures and is food grade (don't go actively eating the stuff though).

You'll definitely want a 5mm eyepiece for higher power lunar and planetary viewing. This gives you 130x magnification, which will be useful on most nights.

I recommend the 5mm Astro-Tech Paradigm or 5mm Agena StarGuider (same eyepiece). This same eyepiece is sold under different brands in different countries. For $60, it's a great deal.

If you find that the 5mm eyepiece gives you excellent results (that is, the view is nice and sharp and it looks like it can handle higher magnification), then also consider the 3.2mm from that series. That will get you 203x, which is about the useful limit of magnification for that scope.

I would also consider upgrading the 10mm Plossl with a 9mm &quot;gold line&quot;. 9-10mm is a good general purpose DSO focal length for this scope, but the 10mm plossl it comes with is hard to look through and has a narrow apparent field of view. The 9mm gold line will give you a wider apparent and true field, with longer eye relief.

Then consider getting a good quality UHC or O-III for viewing nebulae with more contrast. It will pair nicely with your 25mm eyepiece. On a budget, the Orion Ultrablock or O-III filter is a good choice. Barring that, I would get an Astronomik, Lumicon, or Tele Vue filter for a bit more contrast and transmission. A good filter is worth the money. Favor the O-III if you live under very light polluted skies and really need better contrast. Else if you live under rural or dark skies, consider the UHC instead. It will cost you around $100 for a quality 1.25" nebula filter, but it's well worth it.

After that, I would l look at a nice foam hardcase for your accessories to keep them safe.

Beyond that, you don't need much else.

I use this cheap attachment from Amazon.

Hi ! You might want to consider this kit or maybe a few of the individual “gold line” eyepieces. https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B01MR78I42/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?dchild=1&amp;keywords=svbony%2Bgold%2Bline&amp;qid=1607735751&amp;s=electronics&amp;sr=1-2&amp;th=1&amp;psc=1

I also recently got an xt8 and the 10mm plossl it came with is very uncomfortable to use, very short eye relief and narrow field of view. I imagine this 6mm plossl suffers in the same way, and maybe the 12.5mm one as well but I’m not sure!

I am planning on getting a little kit that has a few filters in it, a barlow, and a couple eyepieces (forgot the exact focal lengths of them). here it is, if you want to check it out:
https://www.amazon.com/Gosky-Astronomical-Telescope-Accessory-Kit/dp/B015AUANUQ/ref=sr_1_9?dchild=1

This is just my $.02 internet cents .... If your budget is less than $300 stay with binoculars (I saw some.. I think it was 10x50? on amazon..) unless you can get a good used telescope. If you can go to $400 to about 7 or $800 an 80mm or 90mm refractor or a 6 or 8 inch dobby mounted newtonian(i have a 10" dobby newt). are good choices.

The binocs are nice also because you can use them at events ... or land level spotting etc.

here is the 10x50 - Orion 09351 UltraView 10x50 Wide-Angle Binoculars (Black) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000XMRBM/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_apa_wE6rybX4ERPX4

and a eq mount (didn't check compatibility)

Orion 9011 EQ-1 Equatorial Telescope Mount https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000XMX7K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_2F6rybNJHGEZM

Should come in around $300 new

edit the 8" dobby is my #1 recommendation as well if you can get your hands on one for 300 used, otherwise binocs new. Cheers.
Oh, and don't expect color looking at things like Orion Nebula. It will be wispy gray and gorgeous. The faint light does not fire your photoreceptors in your eyes, so you don't see color. Long exposure CCD's are needed to let a sufficient amount of photons to hit and the dobby isn't a good platform for DSO's to film, but you can get great shots of the moon with a 8" and a 2" eyepiece and a phone camera squished up to the eyepiece. Last, a goto is... interesting. My dobby has a goto but I have never ever powered it on. 😅 I am getting around to it... someday but I enjoy all the knobs, dials, etc. and wiggling it around.

Amazon has a somewhat sturdy basic tripod as a part of its AmazonBasics brand, but it falls in and out of availability. It has a stated 15 lbs limit, but I wouldn't go higher than 12.

&nbsp;

It's a clone of this Ravelli tripod, which is a bit more expensive. There's currently one of these under the Used & New section for about $60 though, so you might jump on that one.

Hello :-)

Don't get a barlow, as phpdevster wrote, it's too much for the telescope. Instead, replace the not-so-great kit eyepieces.

I would even say, don't get any eyepiece under 8mm. It will be pushing this telescope beyond it's limit. The issue though: Cheap 6mm Plössl have very short eye-relief (some manage, I dislike it). A better budget eyepiece is the 9mm "gold line", $25 ebay/China, but $59 in Canada (e.g. Maison astronomie, Amazon).

You'll find the difference between a 9mm or 8mm compared to your 10mm to be pretty small though. The problem is that a 70mm aperture will be the bottle-neck. The rule of thumb:

• Maximum magnification = Double it's apertures in millimeters.

But 140x will already pushing things with this telescope. It creates a dim, dull image, and you won't see any more details.

More magnification does not show more.

For every object, you have to find the ideal magnification (large enough to see details, but also bright enough to see them!)

For many deep-sky objects (nebulae, galaxies) medium magnification is often better, as the faint details are lost if you magnify high.

If you can afford dropping a few more dollars on a set of bins, I would highly recommend Celestron Outland X 8x42, amazon seems to have a sale on them atm, or maybe you can find them somewhere else even cheaper!

I've had those prior to upgrading to my Nikon Prostaff 7s and they were really great for the price.

Oh, you're from Canada, offers differ slightly then.

I am not sure which cad$60 refractors you're referring to, probably this type?

Short simple refractors suffer from extreme chromatic aberration when magnifying higher, resulting in poor contrast at medium to high magnification, so rather unsuited for your ship observations. And the 50mm aperture is another bottle-neck.

ALL the telescopes on Amazon can show the moon quite nicely, and flabbergast most newbies. Thus the unreliable review scores. Of course they show more than the naked eye, but many of these are toys (and not even good ones).

Check the classifieds for a 70/700 or 70/900 refractor perhaps if you want to spend as little as possible. Avoid the poor plastic fork mounts though if possible. And be aware that they won't nearly show as much as a good 5" telescope. But used ones sometimes sell for $10-$30 or so...

Perhaps you can even find a used Celestron c90 / 90mm Maksutov or 102mm Maksutov for a fair price. New they are a bit pricey for what they are capable of.

If you like to tinker, you can sometimes get a cheap motorized mount with a refractor, but that's not really something practical for day-time use.

You could get the 6mm "gold-line" eyepiece from amazon, ebay, or aliexpress instead of the Expanse. The gold-lines are just a generic Expanse for half the price or less. I use the gold-lines in my 6" Skywatcher classic and they're well worth the money. I paid about $100 US for the 6mm, 9mm, 15mm, and 20mm together.

Hello :-)

What Celestrons exactly?

(Examples of what you like in general?)

//Edit: Price-range? :-)

&nbsp;

> I live in the city and there's a lot of light so I probably wouldn't be able to get much use out of it at all

Moon and planets can be observed from the city. Only deep-sky objects require a dark sky. Though some double stars and clusters are visible as well (if you can find them - Depending on how many stars are visible to use as reference).

&nbsp;

> brand

All brands have good and bad telescopes.

(Do not buy due to good Amazon reviews, they are very misleading, often from beginners who simply don't know what an actual good telescope would show)

&nbsp;

> decorative

I asume you want a refractor, as it looks like a "real" telescope?

If you want a classy look, those brass telescopes are probably the way to go. They are either useless or very limited regarding actual observing. Even the 150€ ones are not good.

&nbsp;

But decorative is subjective. E.g. our 4" Maksutov from Sky-Watcher has a black glossy finish with sparkles.

&nbsp;

The firstscope table-top has names of scientists all around. The Heritage 130p, a serious entry-level telescope, has this too, but in the US, the OneSky-version does not.

Omni XLT refractors are black on a white mount, Explore-Scientific has a lot of all-white telescopes that are definately an eye-catcher.

Depends if you want a classy look, something that could be from Galileo himself, or if you want something that looks like a modern device.

&nbsp;

Else, aperture is key. But especially the lower budget ones often have flawed optics and accessories.

&nbsp:

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Clear skies! :-)

I also wanted a low power 1.25" eyepiece a while ago. I bought this. It's not fancy but does the job well for the price. I have no idea if you can purchase it on Amazon UK.

Gosky 32mm 1.25inch Plossl Telescope Eyepiece - 4-element Plossl Design - Threaded for Standard 1.25inch Astronomy Filters (32mm) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F7N9QFK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Xd-TBbZYD904Q

If you get the 6" classic, it's large enough that it can sit on the ground (a big advantage over table-top dobsonian options). All you will need is a chair or stool to sit on since it's not quite tall enough to look through without hunching over.

For eyepieces, I recommend this kit:

https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B01MR78I42/

Normally the 15mm and 20mm won't work great in telescopes with shorter focal ratios, but the F/8 focal ratio of the 6" classic means all four eyepieces will work very well. At $28/each, they are an excellent value. Wide field of view, comfortable eye relief. Much, much better than standard Plossl eyepieces. That range of focal lengths for that scope is a good spread, and will give you flexibility for different objects, including planets and the moon. Eventually you might want to get a low power wide angle eyepiece like a 24mm 68 degree eyepiece, or an 18mm 82 degree eyepiece, but to get started with, that eyepiece kit will be sufficient.

If you don't want to spend $110 on the whole kit, then I recommend getting at least the 9mm and 6mm for planetary viewing. If you look around on Amazon, Ebay, or AliExpress, you should be able to get them for about $25-30 each.

In before someone else mentions the used Skywatcher 8 inch dobs that are currently on Amazon for under $300. Probably your best bet.

These are good and will work well at your F/10 focal ratio:

https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B01MR78I42/

You can find the same set on Ebay for as little as $80 if you're willing to wait 6 weeks for shipping. Quality is the same, you're just paying a premium to get it faster from Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BKSHH3H/ref=crt_ewc_title_dp_2?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1&amp;smid=A1KTPYXLG45C22

Hello u/SchoolGlue420, it appears you tried to put a link in a title, since most users cant click these I have placed it here for you

^I ^am ^a ^bot ^if ^you ^have ^any ^suggestions ^dm ^me

Definitely a 6mm for planets! Had a lot of fun with this one: Meoptex 6mm.

I also just picked up a 2" 32mm Orion Q70 for viewing Andromeda Galaxy.

Pick up a Moon filter as well. Moon can be extremely bright and you don't want to gaze at it w/o a filter.

I use a 6mm gold line

Planetary magnification for me starts at about 120x and goes up as high as the atmosphere allows, or until you've reached the point where your telescope's optics are the limiting factor (which depending on their quality, might be anywhere from 300 to 400x). Most nights, you should expect to be operating within 120x to 200x, which is plenty to see detail on the major planets. Only on the very steadiest of nights will you be able to push it higher than 200x.

The best options to start with are the 9mm and 6mm &quot;gold lines&quot; or &quot;red lines&quot;. They are easy to look through compared to Plossls, and perform well for their price. 9mm will give you 133x for nights when the atmosphere is turbulent, and 6mm will give you 200x when the atmosphere is steady. From there you can add higher magnification eyepieces if you feel the views through the 6mm are frequently crisp and looking like the skies/scope can tolerate higher magnifications.

Both together will be well under your budget for just one eyepiece, so they're a good value.

If you like that mount, you should try something like this. I have your mount and found it difficult to line up my camera, but the one I linked makes it crazy easy. Beautiful shots by the way.

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B07ZF92RB1/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_n-UuFbY795K87

The 30mm 2" wide angle is indeed a good low power widefield eyepiece. The edges of the field of view will look a bit funky with the fast F/5 focal ratio of the telescope, but I don't think it will be too bothersome.

The 9mm plossl it comes with is a fairly good general purpose focal length for that scope (good for low end planetary observing when the atmosphere is not steady, and good for most of the brighter/smaller DSOs), but the problem is the limited apparent and true field of view, and tight eye relief.

I would DEFINITELY recommend upgrading it with a 9mm &quot;gold line&quot; right away.

I own that 9mm and it works very well in my F/5 and and F/4.5 dobs. Can't beat its performance for the price.

If you find that the views of the planets are very crisp with the 9mm (170x), then you can go up in magnification by getting something in the 4.5mm to 6mm focal length range.

If, however, the views of the planets seem a bit blurry and hard to focus in the 9mm, then increasing magnification will not help, it will make things worse. Some nights are better than others in this regard, so I recommend being conservative and waiting until you get a night where you go "wow! That's super sharp, wish I had more magnification!" and then get an additional eyepiece.

It will also be CRUCIAL for the telescope to be thermally acclimated for viewing the planets. A large temperature difference between the mirror and ambient air will cause massive problems with the view - as bad as the atmosphere.

Also, if you live at high northern latitudes (45 degrees or higher), the planets will be low on the horizon and atmospheric turbulence will be worse, and atmospheric dispersion will be an issue.

I don't think so you can get the Orion 6-in XT for $299. Reading the details of the issues he had to fix I think it was basically just a good used price. https://www.amazon.com/Orion-8944-SkyQuest-Dobsonian-Telescope/dp/B001DDW9UW

Hello :-)

Don't bother, going by those (small) setting circles isn't really the way to do it, it's just frustrating. Star-hopping, a decent finder and overview eyepiece are usually the way to go.

> clearly

What were you able to see?

Your telescope has a focal-length of 1000mm. With the 10mm eyepiece you'll get 100x magnification. That should be enough to recognize Jupiter and Saturn, albeit small.

With a decent 6mm, such as the 66° "gold-line" (Aliexpress, sold out at Amazon atm), you'll get ~167x magnification. I would not recommend pushing the telescope higher, as things will get dim and dull. The bottle-neck is the 90mm aperture (but don't "upgrade" to a 127eq/130eq/114eq from Celestron, those have flawed optics).

Have you tried observing some deep-sky objects?

Clear skies :-)

You write that you centered polaris, this is not correct, Polaris will be offset from true north so if you have it in the center of the polar scope you are not polar aligned. You can use an app to find the correct position, i use: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.watware.www.polarisview but there are many others.

As you write about yourself you may not have adjusted the mount correctely before using goto, depending on the focal lenght and EP you should be able to see Polaris in you scope if it is in home position and the mount is aligned properly. You should at least be able to see it in your finder.

Do not assume that the RA and DEC scales are correct out of the box. I am not familiar with that particular mount, but on most they can be adjuste so you might need to do that before relying on them for home position.

My own most common errors:

1. Mount is not in home position

2. I said "yes" to resumed from park position when the mount was not parked before shutdown

3. Polar aligment off

4. Dec. axis facing the wrong way (rotated 180 degrees)

Yes, the 6mm "gold line" for $30

https://www.amazon.com/MEOPTEX-66-Degree-Ultra-Eyepiece-Telescope/dp/B07H8YZHFT/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?keywords=9mm%2B66%2Bdegree&amp;qid=1553185137&amp;s=gateway&amp;sr=8-1-spons&amp;th=1

I also recommend replacing the 9mm plossl that comes with the Z8 with the 9mm gold line as well since 9mm is a nearly ideal general purpose focal length for that scope.

The point of the W in Cassiopeia always points (mostly) to Polaris, and Cassiopeia rotates around Polaris throughout the night. Behind Cassiopeia (in respect to Polaris) is Andromeda, and on a nice, dark night you can see the Andromeda galaxy which is actually a whole lot bigger than the moon.

For learning the constellations (as well as finding things in the sky) the two things I found to be the biggest help were Stellarium for planning a night of observation and Sky Map for understanding what I was seeing in a particularly part of the sky.

Can you stretch to £175? For that you can get the cheapest scope that isn't just a toy - the Meade Lightbridge Mini 114mm.

If you can't stretch that, the Orion Funscope or Celestron Firstscope or the smaller Meade Lightbridges will give decent moon view and you might be able to make out the Galilean Moons of Jupiter, but that's about it... those scopes are still really just toys.

If you can wait until you've got £200 available, you can actually get the most affordable scopes that will grow with your kid and maybe even last him a lifetime - the Skywatcher Heritage P130 or the Meade Lightbridge 130.

Hope that helps.

I use Skeye. Paid version only 6$ i think. Has all major catalogs. Satellite flythrus and comets listed too. I use it on my tablet and phone. Android only i think.

link to google store

The circle for the base is not expensive and the level:

https://www.amazon.com/Wixey-WR300-Type-Digital-Backlight/dp/B00T6YZ0K6/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=wixey+gauge&amp;qid=1661238064&amp;sr=8-1

You just have to level the telescope very carefully and adjust the digital level so when you point at polaris you get the same angle as the altitude in your app.

It is also useful to set the azimut marker in such a way that you can adjust it.

With that you can locate faint deep space objects with no fuss.

I think its this scope, a 150mm (6 inch), Jones-Bird focal length: 750mm (F5) / 1400 (F9). It has allot of "Konus" about it (a company known for making fake telescopes).

If it is similar to the Konus products then it may be your worse nightmare, poor quality spherical optics combined with an under engineered mount that breaks.

You should pass up the Celestron AstroMaster 130AZ, the mount is very bad. Its a camera mount with a heavy telescope on it, so you will always be fighting trying to move it vs trying to lock it tight enough so it wont drift or simply flip over on you. costco US site has many people complaining about that.

Celestron (like other sellers) sells junk in the price range you are looking at, basically cheap Chinese "department store" telescopes that they slap their label on. You should not go by "brand name" in that price range, you will end up getting rooked.

For what you want to spend your best bet is a 6&quot; dobsonian. It will give the best overall performance.

EDIT: Unfortunately that list of 13 telescopes available at costco it a virtual whos-who of telescopes you should never buy, undersized and over priced kiddie scopes on mounts that will make people give up on them right out of the box. I would abandon the idea of buying at costco, department store telescopes have their bad reputation for a reason. Follow the advice of buying at a dedicated online supplier.

On a budget, consider the gold-line. They are available in 6, 9, 15 and 20mm. The 6 and 9 will perform alright in "faster" aperture-ratios, I use them for my F/5 telescopes. The BST Explorer and similar are a bit better but they cost more and have a smaller apparent field of view.

• https://www.amazon.com/Ultrawide-multicoated-telescope-eyepiece-DVLP/dp/B01N3M99Y9/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1483266618&amp;sr=8-2&amp;keywords=6mm+eyepiece+66

• https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Telescope-Eyepiece-of-1-25-Ultra-Wide-Angle-Eyepiece-Lens-6MM-66-Deg-Multi-coated-for/32727027422.html?spm=2114.30010308.3.36.zZ5obu&amp;ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_2_10065_10056_10068_10055_10054_10069_...

A significantly better eyepiece can be the Explore Scientific 82° eyepieces, but cost $130-$150 or so (for the shorter focal lengths).

Good decision :-) Never rush a purchase.

Either way, I think you're on the right track and either will provide nice views.

The 130p will fit into a (large) back-pack. It's only flaw is the height, but that can be dealt with. It lacks a decent eyepiece for planets (1)

If you are mostly taking the telescope to your back-yard or transport it via car, go with the 6" -> More ergonomic height, shows more, cheaper &quot;planetary&quot; eyepiece)

Clear skies.

Do check if there's a used 8" somewhere in the classifieds, it'll show even more and is the best regarding price/performance :-)

Also, a 6mm for planets, and ideally some 2" wide-angle eyepiece (optional, more expensive, but shows a larger field of view than the kit 25mm eyepiece) would be nice.

//edit: Also see this link regarding size

Clear skies!

Solid scope, decent price http://camelcamelcamel.com/Explore-Scientific-ED80-Essential-ES-ED0806-01/product/B00KI0C1C2?context=browse

Eye piece is solid, if you don't already have a good one, keep it for your dob at least. Scope should also be fine for photography on an AVX.

Yeah, OP needs to find the limiting magnitude for naked eye visibility.

Also, /u/headball123 could try my app if they have an Android phone.

The Pleiades is a naked-eye object. It's often confused as the "little dipper" for those that don't realize that it's actually a star cluster. Your telescope, even with the widest 2" eyepiece you could get for it, would just barely be able to fit the entire cluster in the field of view. Honestly, the Pleiades are best viewed with binoculars, not a telescope.

As for finding things, I suggest installing Stellarium (http://www.stellarium.org/) on your computer. It makes it easy to find out what objects are visible and where they will appear in the sky. Be sure to set your location and time zone correctly when you first start it up.

Pretty sure it's not your eyepieces. You just might need a bit of practice! Or maybe a guide. How about a book, like Turn Left at Orion, with detailed description of what the object is and how to find it?

Anyways, Messier objects are very different and come in all shapes and sizes. From the M31 (Andromeda Galaxy), spanning whopping 190′ (the size of six full Moons side-to-side), down to the tiny M57 (Ring Nebula), appearing just barely larger than Jupiter. And for these objects you need as vastly different set of eyepieces!

Furthermore, these objects vary not only in shape and size, but also in brightness. Some are really bright and quite conspicuous (M13, M31, M33, M42, M45), while others can be very tough to find. So with enough patience and will to learn you will find them all!

I also highly recommend planetarium program, like Stellarium, to browse the skies for all that fancy stuff from your computer!