telescopes, any astronomy buffs out there?
 

Looking for my first telescope, but I don't want to pussyfoot around with some telescope you buy at walmart or some shit like that.... looking to spend anywhere from $500 to $1000

any suggestions?

Check this out man: http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Blue-6-Refle... ht_3428wt_917

This Ebay dude has so much space shit it's crazy.

That reflector telescope is rubbish. Wouldn't waste my time with it.

If you are starting out then you want an 8" Dobsonian at the minimum. A Dobsonian is easy to set up and you will be viewing great objects right away. The problem with equatorial mount reflectors like the one above is that they just don't capture enough light to see anything useful. A good amateur astronomical reflector will cost you at least $1500 whereas a larger Dobsonian will cost you a quarter of that.

With telescopes, the rule is the more light it can capture, the more you will see.

If you want a computer controlled scope then you want to go for either a Dobsonian with a go-to mount that guides you to a celestial location or a tracking telescope like the Meade LX90-ACF 10".

If you join an amateur astronomical society then you will be able to try out alot of telescopes and pick which is right for you. Most people will advise you to start with a Dobsonian.

Another consideration is you need somewhere dark. I'm not talking about your suburban back yard at night, I am talking about outback 100km from the nearest lit city, it is in truly dark places that you will get the most from a scope. There are some designated dark spots around the world.

A great forum if you are starting out is Cloudy Nights http://www.cloudynights.com/ubbthrea...reads.php?Cat=

a better forum is http://www.iceinspace.com.au/index.php?home

however IceinSpace is very southern hemisphere centric.

The number one bit of advice I can give you is DO NOT BUY A CHEAP REFLECTOR TELESECOPE and don't go with an equatorial mount. It will end up in the cupboard never used.

:1orglaugh :1orglaugh

I agree with the above. Dont waste your money on that. You will use it once and put it away until your grandkids find it, then they will bug you to use it, they will use it once and put it away but this time in their house until their grandchildren find it and so on and so on.

I have a 16" Celestron Schmidtt-Cassigrain telescope and its awesome. Costs alot but well worth it, especially if you ever want to take photos, which is what I do mostly with it.
Tracking makes your whole experience good. If you want to go with no electronics, I recommend as above, the Dobsonian mount. Its very good for that. Steer clear of manual systems with counterweights and etc. Especially the cheap ones with plastic optics.

Show us your best pics!.. I'm also going to buy a bigger telescope some day soon..

Sure, Ill post them when I get to my office tomorrow... they are all on my raid array right now on my desk. :-)

I have been doing lots of CCD imaging with various filtering to uncover gasses and nebulae clouds that I could otherwise not photograph. Ive got my CCD cooled with a peltier junction and it keeps it very stable.

Im not trying to break the bank but I'd like a decent look at some planets. Im checking out this model.

8" Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope
http://www.celestron.com/c3/product.php?ProdID=416

I looked around for a 16", but the highest aperture I found by celestron was 11"

This is a little over my budget (for a newbie) . but it looks like a decent telescope. No?

Also, does anyone know what i would i need to to hook this up to my digital slr?

That telescope is a bit of a toy I'm afraid. Look at something above 10" if you're going for a Schmidt-Cassegrain. Remember, the less light it can capture the less you will see.

Again i'm really not trying to break the bank. But if i have to spend a little extra i'm willing to.. but i'd rather not if I dont have to. Im just now breaking into astronomy, and I might loose interest.

I have a 6 inch reflector, bought it on ebay a few years ago for around 250 bucks , its a nice beginner telescope. if you wanna spend more go for a 8 to 10 inch ;)

Then spend $600 on a 10" Dobsonian. You will see more than you will with many other low cost telescopes and it's easy to set up. Don't go with an equatorial mount or a cheap reflector as you will end up putting it in the cupboard.

If you start with a 10" Dobsonian you can learn and see a lot with that and if the interest takes hold then buy a more expensive goto scope.

Best advice is visit the Cloudy Nights forums and find a local astronomy club or society. You should be able to try out various telescopes and see first hand what I am talking about.

I think you will lose interest ALOT faster if you have a toy telescope like that.
The number one reason most people stop astronomy is because they cant see anything that stimulates their interest with a tiny scope.

this is a little true.
you see basically grey spots