Telescope Reviews: Refractor recommendations for a beginner

Mickey,

Wow, you're in for a journey. I started out with a Dynascope 6" reflector back in the mid-70's in 5th grade. But, although the scope was nice, it was HUGE and heavy. I didn't like that part one bit. I learned a lot about equatorial mounts and also a bit about mirror alignment.

From about junior high till 2002, I used a K-Mart 40mm spotting scope on a simple camera tripod. Then I purchased a 60mm 2nd hand Orion. Then the Orion 90mm Mak-Cass (new), then a 130ST, then an Orion ST80, then a 127mm Mak. I've owned the 90mm EQ-2 Orion achromat, the 102mm Orion Mak, the 100mm F/6 AstroView achromat, and a Vixen 130ST. I don't own any of them anymore. Today, I own the AT80ED (used primarily on a Vixen Portamount), an Orion 100mm ED F/9 (with the 100mm F/6's old AstroView mount), and a custom 6" F/6 dob.

In all honesty, the easiest to use and best images given of the lot is the custom 6" F/6 dob. It is, however, the least portable. I didn't build it. It was designed and built by a disciple of Rick Singmaster of the famous StarMaster dobsonian series. It uses an 8" sized tube (oversized for easier cooling), and a recessed mirror to minimize scatter, so it's a bit longer than the 912mm focal length might suggest, but not a lot more so.

From a simple, low sitting chair I bought at WalMart for less than $10, without any adjustment other than moving the chair as I move to different targets in different parts of the sky. I just replaced the old rack and pinion on it with the Orion single-speed Crayford. It's a dream. The whole thing's not a big setup, but does the best job and has a relatively wide field.

Mickey, I cannot recommend an SCT. All of them that I've looked through just don't have the sharpness of a well-collimated dob or a refractor. What scope you get should at least be determined by your own habit of being a tickerer/repairman. If you like doing maintenance work (around the house, garage, etc.), then you might be okay with an SCT.

An SCT's spherical primary is something like F/2.5 until it hits the secondary. Bill Paolini has noted he felt he had to collimate his 6" SCT MORE than his 10" F/4.7 dob, and that's a lot. If this hobby really is about enjoying the skies, and not fiddling with optics, you need to consider carefully which scope you get.

F/6 and longer reflectors, refractors, and Maksutov's deal with less collimation grief. In fact, if manufactured well and treated like the delicate, precious instruments they are, refractors and Maksutovs will probably never need collimating.

One of the joys, for me, of the night sky, is to fish out the object. I personally find go-to pretty anti-climatic. You might like it, but I'd rather get them myself, thank you. Nothing quite like being with the sky, just you and your telescope. Plus, the grief of batteries not working, or some blasted computer losing it's orientation in the sky are minimized. I have a bit of that with the AstroView mount, since I have the Dec-clock, but really, it's very minor. The batteries waver before they go completely dead on this old analog device. Not a problem to operate at all.

And a wide angle AFOV is critical for finding things in the sky. I prefer lower focal ratio scopes, overall, because of this reason. My 100mm F/9 is something of an exception, but I got it used on AstroMart for a steal, and I don't have a spare $G for a new F/7 4-incher. Besides, I use the 100mm ED on my driven mount, so the narrower field is less problematic.

I once ordered an Orion 127mm Mak on the SkyView Pro mount, and I found that mount to be the antithesis of portable. In fact, I found it oppressively heavy. I'm about 5'10" or so, not a tall guy. I'm not a complete wimp, but I honestly don't want to mix weightlifting and astronomy. Astronomy for me is a hobby of enjoyment, and straining over a mount is not fun. On top of that, the Orion SkyView Pro doesn't have the ingenious leveler built into the side of the AstroView for scope balancing for alignment. It holds a much heavier scope than the AstroView, but if portability is what you're about, well, I'd avoid the SkyView Pro (aka, CG-5). Stick with the AstroView/CG-4, or an Alt-Az mount.

Honestly, I would bet your 4.25" spherical mirrored Bushnell will probably hold its own, if not better, an 80mm ED on DSOs. It won't do as well on stars, so open clusters will look better in a good refractor, but dusty, gaseous nebulae and galaxies respond more to aperture, and the 4.25" is pretty good sized in the small-refractor game.

Pay attention to weight. It's another reason I wouldn't own an 8" SCT. Besides the collimation Hades you may find yourself in, they all weigh a TON. I don't care what anyone says, they're nothing like, even my 100mm ED on the AstroView.

An 8" dob and an 80mm ED scope are sure hard to beat for visual. But if you wanted ultra-portable, I'd go with one of the F/7 102mm ED refractors (I like Stellarvue's offerings, FeatherTouch or not -- both focusers are quite good in my opinion), and a 66mm ED scope. The AT102ED would probably be a good exchange for Stellarvue, but either would be a good choice. The AstroView or CG-4 with Orion's Dec-clock would be fine for the 102mm F/7, and a Vixen Portamount with the 66mm would be the ultimate portable setup. This would complement a buddy's 12" dob if you are able to hook up with other astronomy-minded folks.

For eyepieces, the Meade 5000 series SWA or UWA's make for nice entries into widefield viewing.

In parting, dob's are oriented correctly, with the focuser at the top and out. It is just plain easier to look at targets near zenith with them. Refractors are a bit more work in this regard, and the longer the F/ratio, the more work. I also LOVE my AT80ED, with it's superwide field (almost 3 degrees in my Pan 24), light weight and easy portability. It won't show the Orion nebula nearly as well as my 6" dob, but it will frame it better in the sky. Also, not having to wait for optics to equilibriate to start viewing is a huge advantage for refractors. If you consider your time under the heavens precious and too scarce, this is yet another thing to consider. With refractors, you are pretty much ready to go as quickly as you can set it up. Smaller reflectors don't lag too far behind, but SCTs and Maks take a back seat here. They will produce bloated stars and detail-less planets until they equilibriate, and that can take over an hour, depending on the temperatures you observe in.

Good luck,

CDS

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