It's been a while since I posted on this thread. We've begun doing sidewalk astronomy at new a local outdoor mall/living center, and using the 22" Starmaster isn't practical from a transportation standpoint. Because of the large crowds and the prospect of me not being right by the scope all the time, I decided not to use my 11" Starmaster or my Televue-85. Instead, I tuned up an old 8" Hardin Dob acquired off Astromart a few years ago. Know what? It's a great public demo scope!
Saturn and it's rings, the Moon at 100x, Alberio -- all from a very light-polluted area -- look great in that scope. "That is *tight*! How much is that?" When I respond you can get one brand-new for about $350, they are flabbergasted. For less than the cost of a video game system, you can get your own spaceship!
All in a scope I can carry in one piece on a fold-up dolly and not worry about if I have to turn my back for a few minutes. It's a small scope to many of us but to the average onlooker it's a "huge cannon". I'm having a lot of fun doing outreach with this!
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