Getting Equipment

03/21/08

So how does one go about selecting and buying Equipment? There probably is no 'Right' answer, but here is what I did.

Way back in University, I bought a simple 4" Newtonian from a store. Even from the city it let me get a reasonable look at the Moon, Saturn and Jupiter. I found a few nebulae, but in general had trouble with them. From this experience I learned:

The harder it is to set up the telescope, the less likely I was to use it.

Even a relatively small diameter telescope can show you good things.

Learning the night sky takes time and effort.

The 'Cheap' telescopes often sold in stores are CHEAP. In my case:

	The mount let the scope wiggle and sway too much,
	The eyepieces were too small and difficult to see through.
	The focus mechanism was too rough to get a good focus.

Just because you can see something in an eyepiece, does not mean you can get a picture of it.

So recently I decided to get a telescope again and this time get something better. I bought a Celestron NexStar 8. I also bought a Solar Filter, the Celestron Accessory/Eyepiece Kit and a WebCam + adapter + Focal reducer.

Here is what I have found so far about this.

	The 8" SCT is a great 'compromise' scope. It is relatively easy to move around and set up and gathers enough light to let you see good stuff!
	In particular the NexStar 8 is light and easily portable.
	WebCams are great for getting pictures of the sun, planets and the moon. It is also a relatively cheap and easy way to start off getting photos.
	For Astrophotography, using a barlow or a focal reducer greatly improve your ability to get the picture you want.
	For $100 the eyepiece kit was a great deal. While I now want better eyepieces, it let me play around with different sizes to see what I want and need. I find that I usually only use a few eyepeices for observing.
	The NexStar 8 is not sturdy enough for Astrophotography.
	I found that I do not use the goto that much on the scope. I use a star mapping program to find things much more. However if I had to do it over again, I would probably want to get a goto mount again. This is because the computer makes it much easier to find new objects..

As far as the process of buying, I found that:

	Buy used from other amateurs when possible. I found Astromart to be wonderful! Amateur astronomers are always moving from good gear to other good gear it seems. Have a great 8" SCT? Well then you may want to move to a bigger one. Have a bigger SCT? Then you may want to get a more portable one. The stores can offer great assistance and information when buying, so if you are unsure you may be best off buying from a store. (If an astronomy store is not near enough, then try by phone or internet.)
	Know what you want to do with the equipment before buying it. In my case I should have know I would want pictures and could have found that the NexStar 8 was not what I wanted. However it was a great deal and at the time I was unsure how much I would want to keep with it.
	Be prepared to have to wait to try out any new gear. In the meantime reading the manual is a good idea. I love getting a new toy and immediately trying it out. However with a telescope you will need to wait for the weather.
	If you have a computer, use programs like Cartes du Ciel to help you find things in the night sky. Even if you have a goto, it can be great to know what to look for,

This site was last updated 09/10/04