I'm thinking about buying a telescope, any suggestions?

Question

yea. I don't want to spend too much, maybe $200-$400?
What kind/features should I look into having in the telescope?
I'd like to be able to see planets mainly.

Answer 1

Hello BP Shoes:

Buying a telescope is a real exercise in making concessions... A really good telescope costs lots of money (precision optics are very expensive) and might just be to cumbersome and unweildy for actual uses that you might have planned for it. So we get into various compromises. For one, you mentioned a budget of $200 to $400. And, you mentioned wanting to see Planets. I think that unless you buy a used dobsinian telescope or something like that you will be quite dissappointed with the results.

At the $400 limit you might get a "used" 6 inch Dob telescope or a "used" 4 inch refractor with minimal stand. Either one mighty have a pack of accessories that would not normally come with a new telescope and could enhance your usage quite a bit...

Sources of good used telescopes:
www.cloudynights.com
www.astromart.com
www.handsonoptics.com
www.ebay.com
Any member of a local Astronomy Club Near You.

Please avoid being drawn in by discussions of fantastic Magnification Powers such as 250X, 300X, and 400X.
In a small, lightweight, portable telescope it is just not possible to utilize those magnification powers to "see" anything. Your normal views will be between 40X and maybe 160X to 200X maximum (or less). At those powers of magnification, stars will be pin points of white light, nebulas will be blurs. Planets will be visable but very small - on the order of 1/6 to 1/8 the size of a dime in appearance. The Moon will be astounding in brilliance (filter needed) and detail.

I recommend that you join an Astronomy Club near you and attend some of their meetings, especially go and attend some of their star parties. Visit homes of club members who have large telescopes mounted at home. You should be able to look through many club mambers' scopes at Star Parties and get some idea of the equipment, products and technologies that are out there and what they provide in the way of performance for free by doing that, and avoid most of the common mistakes people make. Please do not spend the money on a Wal Mart package deal for $300 or $400. You will regret it. You might be able to pick up a good used package at half or 2/3 of retail cost from a club member wishing to move up into a finer system. In that way, your money purchases more "seeing" power.

In looking at a telescope you would "normally" seek the one with the largest objective lense or mirror possible (budget wise) to collect the most light for delivery to your eyes. Often people see a particular telescope for $400 and say wow, let's get that one...only to realize it comes without a mount. A powerful telescope without a stable mounting tripod is next to useless - impossible to use. Next, realize that beside the mount, the next most important thing is the eyepieces. You can always purchase and use much better eyepieces with your telescope later on (costs from $20 to $600 each, depending upon quality). Do note what comes with every package being offered, however.

Lastly, I would like to caution you, for your own benefit, to go outside of your home late at night before making ANY purchases and look around. Are there huge trees blocking your view of the 360 degree horizon? Are there bright "night lights" and "street lamps" all around your house??? Is the horizon lit up with zillions of street lamps and commercial advertising signs so that the sky is not black as the Ace of Spades??? If so, the place you will use your telescope for best viewing is "not in your own yard." So, you will have to transport the telescope elsewhere - out into the country where there are no lights. Will this package fit into your vehicle? Is it easily assembled in the dark? And, you will need a lantern of some sort with a red lense to protect your night vision. Recovery of good night vision takes from 20 to 30 minutes in total darkness. Many of the best viewing nights occur in winter. Do you have good warm clothes for extended stays outside at night when it is cold? How cold does it get at night in your locality?

In case you were wondering, My telescope is a Meade 6 inch Refractor ($500 used) mounted on a Heavy Duty Meade LDX-75 Go-To Mount ($500) and equipped with 9 Eyepieces (Televue - ranging from $200 up each). I like it a lot, but it is quite cumbersome to haul around. The more cumbersome a telescope is, the less likely you will be to haul it out and use it. Play with this idea, and visit a club at your first opportunity (more encouragement).

You can purchase less than what I did. You may be pleased with the results. I suggest the only way to know is to go and look through someone elses equipment before you buy your own. Chuckle, Chuckle...It does no good whatsoever to look at one on the show room floor in the daytime. You must be able to look at your intended viewing objects in the dark, and to lift up the total apparatus to move it around a little bit.

Regards,
Zah

Answer 2

While I've seen some great answers on here, I'm going to add my two cents. I will add another vote for Orion Telescopes. I got mine through them and I'm quite happy. Their scopes are both affordable and of good quality. The 10" model i about $530, and it just barely fits into my backseat (which is why I avoided the 12" model). Transportability is important.

However, I will say that based on your question, it doesn't sound like you spent tons of time around astronomers (though I may be wrong). The absolute best thing to do is to learn what you are buying before you buy it. Look to see if there is a local astronomy club. Call Parks & Recreation, look in the paper, look online. Meet them, talk with them, and get involved if you are interested. Attend a few meetings and even see if they could allow you to join them some night so you can see the telescopes in action. I spent four years doing this before buying a scope. The knowledge gained will make your purchase more valuable than just going out and buying one. You'll learn the terminology, how scopes work, which ones you feel comfortable with, and how to use them properly (one reason many people return cheap scopes is that they get frustrated with handling them). Do this, and by the time you are ready to buy one, you'll get a lot more out of it.

And if you are just starting out, a great way to be able to see things but not get a telescope is a pair of binoculars. Spend a little and get a decent pair no larger than 10x50's (get larger and you run into problems with steadyness because of weight).

Oh, and avoid department store telescopes. They are worthless and the people selling them don't know what they are doing (well, usually...once in a while an astronomer will pop up working there to steer you away).

Answer 3

I would suggest visiting a local astronomy club for public viewing nights and asking some questions and to see what features you like in some of those telescopes.

Stay away from department store telescopes.

I would lean toward a 8" dobsonian mount to start out with. You get more aperture for the money. Check out www.telescope.com for some idea's. There is nothing wrong with a refractor style telescope if that is what you fancy. I actually have a 10" dobsonian mounted reflector and a 70mm refractor.

Once you get comfortable using a telescope you'll want to buy some different eyepieces and a barlow lens for different powers of magnification. You also get what you pay for with these. So do some research before making a purchase.

Answer 4

For that kind of budget, I would recommend a 6 or 8 inch reflector telescope. I suggest things because of the dobsonian mount. The mount is really easy to work and that's a plus for beginners and the scope will have the desired results you are willing to pay for. If you get a telescope, I suggest Oriontelescopes. They've been really consistent with quality and have a reliable customer service. It doesn't hurt that they offer a one year warranty with their service as well.
I highly recommend researching the terminology associated with telescopes as well. You need to know what everything is on the scope before you use it.
I also suggest you learn the sky, because what's the point of having a scope if you don't know what to look at. Download "stellarium" for this.

Look up.
- Jansen

Note: If you wanna see planets, get a scope with a faster focal ratio (learn the terminology), and be sure to get either a 6.3 mm or 7mm eyepiece.

Check this baby out:
http://www.telescope.com/control/product/~category_id=reflectors/~pcategory=telescopes/~product_id=09182

The skyquest classic is good too, but with the above link, you can buy the object locator later if you want.

Answer 5

I really recommend a celestron 114mm or 130mm 130 is best these numbers are the aperture which is how much light it can gather which means it will have a clearer and brighter image. this is only $181.00 on telescopes.com and you can get an eyepiece and filter kit for $89.00 instead of the usual like $200 or so there is also other telescopes if you are not satisfied with this one but i really recommend this one i own it and it is really nice and easy to use and comes with sky software

Answer 6

In that price range, your best buy would be a Newtonian reflector on a Dobsonian mount, like these:
http://www.telescope.com/control/category/~category_id=dobsonians/~pcategory=telescopes/~VIEW_INDEX=0/~VIEW_SIZE=1000000
http://www.skywatchertelescope.net/swtinc/product.php?class1=1&class2=106

Get the largest aperture (mirror diameter) you can afford. 6" is about minimum for serious observation of the planets, but 8" is better. Smaller scopes will show you the rings of Saturn and the moons of Jupiter, but not much more. 6" will show you detail in Jupiter's belts, the Cassini division in Saturn's rings, the polar caps and dark features of Mars, and absolutely unbelievable detail on the Moon.

Answer 7

Almost any telescope will view planets well - at least the nearer planets. A 3"/75mm refractor telescope is how I first saw Saturn and its rings.

Uranus and Neptune will require a fairly large telescope. Pluto is a tough object even for the largest telescopes on the Earth, unless seeing a starlike object will do for you.

I prefer telescopes with equatorial mounts. They are a little harder to set up but once you have, much easier to use.

Answer 8

Depending on where you live - you may or may not be able to see very well unless you get out away from the city.

Chances are you have a local group of amateur astronomers (I say this because I've never lived anywhere that didn't - even most small towns). Try to look them up, and you can see what kind of equipment they are using, and find out what they suggest.

Answer 9

I think it's a good idea if you like looking at the stars and you enjoy tht kind of stuff u should look for like ones tht have very good technology w/ it and good viewing it's better sometimes to go for more expensive because they have more features

Answer 10

6"-8" Dobsonian. Gives you the most bang for the buck.