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> Can you recommend some eyepieces which I should get?

Well, for starters you'll want to replace that 9mm with something better, and you'll want a planetary eyepiece. For planetary a 5-6mm eyepiece will work nicely. As for which one in particular -- whichever you can afford from what I linked :)

5-6mm planetaries:

• TS 5mm HR Planetary
  
• Omegon 5mm ED Flatfield
  
• Celestron X-Cel LX 5mm
  
• Omegon Ultrawide 6mm
  
  9mm replacements:
  
  
• William Optics SWAN 9mm
  
• Omegon Ultrawide 9mm
  
  Later on you might want to get something in the mid range, like 15-20 mm, but honestly, pretty much anything will work here. Higher AFoV (degrees) is preferred over longer focal length in most cases.
  
  And finally at some point you'll want to replace the 30mm 2" one. I would highly recommend the Explore Scientific 30mm 82° one, but it's definitely nowhere near being important purchase, your kit 30mm will serve you well. Alternatively, a William Optics SWAN 33mm eyepiece is another good choice, but it's barely different from your current one, though the FoV is still larger. But for your scope 30-35mm eyepiece is the limit, don't go with larger ones, you'll be losing light from too large exit pupil.
  
  As it is with most astronomy stuff, higher quality stuff will cost you more.
  
  > Where should I spend more money? and what sort of filters should I get? I need one for the Moon atleast dont I?
  
  Priority list:
  
  

1. Telescope -- you cannot upgrade aperture, everything else can be changed later. But the 10" you chose will be a superb starting instrument, congratulations :)
   
2. "Turn Left at Orion" or "Nightwatch" -- your essential night sky guides! Stellarium for the cloudy nights and lazy days :)
   
3. Missing eyepiece ranges -- as I have mentioned above. Planetary is a must-have if you want to view planets (you do want, trust me). Then look into either mid-range plug, or the 9mm replacement, depending on how well the kit 9mm performs for you. If you're happy with it, stick with it. I'd order the planetary of choice along with scope, and wait for the rest until you've got chance to field test the setup a couple of times.
   
4. Filters -- Yes, Moon filter is a must with this telescope, however I would highly recommend a much more versatile Variable Polarizing Filter instead. The 2" is more expensive, however, the low-magnification is where you need it the most. And 2" filters should be able to be mounted on the 2"-to-1.25" adapters to work with 1.25" eyepieces. Alternative is to wear your sunglasses at night. Another great choice is a narrowband UHC filter, like this one from Baader. It will also help out against the light pollution. On the other hand, I would recommend against spending money on a wideband "light pollution" filter, as in my experience I haven't found them to be of any use whatsoever.
   
5. Telrad/Rigel QuickFinder -- I've already covered those in my previous post.
   
6. Dew heaters -- self-explanatory. If dewing up of eyepieces and/or mirrors becomes a problem, and you have no hairdryer at hand, there's your more portable (but more expensive) solution.
   
7. Binoculars -- surprisingly good accessory to telescope, and on their own! Wide field of view and super high portability makes them excellent tool for quick stargazing, observing of objects otherwise too large to fit into telescope's view, and useful for finding a good star-hopping route to the next faint fuzzy of your choice! Also useful for travelling, birdwatching, and other daytime activities. A simple but good set of 7x50/10x50/8x42 binoculars will set you back like 80-150€ tops, unless you want something of highest quality. But once again, entirely optional!

No worries, busy time for sure! I'm pretty new to Telescopes myself, my family got me my XT8 for my First Father's day this year. I've done a ton of research since then, and am always excited to share knowledge. Not a lot of people I know share my hobbies, so you can private message me anytime and I'll have fun giving advice or discussing it.

If you don't buy the XT8 off Craigslist, I'd recommend from their [Clearance page](https://www.telescope.com/2nd-Orion-SkyQuest-XT8-Classic-Dobsonian-Telescope/p/102342.uts). It's mostly returns that they've thoroughly inspected and come with a 1 year warranty. That's how I got mine and it was in New Condition, usually around 25% off.

Planets like Jupiter and Saturn are easy, they are typically the brightest objects in the sky so you really only need a phone app to tell you what days they will be in the night sky. I really like the Stellarium app, I paid for the full version but I think the free is still really good. Deep space objects (called DSOs) are things like Nebula, Galaxies and Star Clusters. Finding these can be like finding a needle in a haystack with how big our night sky is. For this I would highly recommend the book [Turn Left at Orion]( https://www.amazon.com/Turn-Left-Orion-Hundreds-Telescope/dp/1108457568/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=turn+left+at+orion&qid=1575054480&sr=8-1 ). Apps can help find these things, but looking at a phone can make you lose your night vision and you don't pick up as much detail in these DSOs. It is recommended to only use red light when using a telescope which doesn't hurt your night vision, eventually you'll want a red flashlight, [I use this one]( https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93588-Astro-Vision-Flashlight/dp/B0000665V5/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=celestron+red+light&qid=1575054716&sr=8-2 ) which works best if you put opaque tape over the clear window in front to diffuse the light.

As far as finding objects goes you'll use a couple of things. Every telescope has a finder scope of some sort. The XT8 has a red dot finder scope, which is a little window you look through on the outside of the scope and it superimposes a red dot on the object you're looking for. So if you put the red dot on the moon say, and then look through your actual eyepiece you should be looking at the moon. It's similar to a rifle scope. For DSOs you will do what is called Star Hopping. You find a bright star that is near by what you are looking for. Then you find dimmer stars that you can still see with the naked eye. Usually I find two stars that are on either side of the object then estimate where the object should be, put my red dot here and then do a little scanning with the telescope until I find what I'm looking for. Use a low magnification lens (like the 25mm) to search. There's more scientific ways to do it, but it works for me every time. Takes some practice. It's also confusing in that if you move the scope one way, it might make the image in the scope move the opposite direction. It takes practice and patience, but with time it becomes 2nd nature.

The included 10mm and 25mm are pretty good for planets and the moon, but will fall short for DSOs. If you're willing to spend another ~$100 dollars right out the gate on accessories I'd buy a [zoom lens]( https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93230-24mm-1-25-Eyepiece/dp/B0007UQNV8/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=8-24+zoom&qid=1575055505&sr=8-1) that allows you to change the magnification and an [eyepiece that provides higher magnification]( https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B07JWDFMZ4/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=svbony%2B6&qid=1575055611&sr=8-1&th=1) (get the 6 mm option) than the zoom or the provided lenses. Later, if you want to spend another ~$130 on more options at eyepiece I'd by the 9mm option from the 2nd link there and a [wide angle lens]( https://www.amazon.com/Agena-Super-Wide-Angle-Eyepiece/dp/B00YO60I9E/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=agena+32&qid=1575055724&sr=8-2) that makes it easier to find objects by showing more of the night sky. When in comes to eyepieces, make sure you know the math of magnification. You take the Focal Length of the scope, 1200mm for the XT8, and divide it by the number in mm on an eyepiece. I.e. a 12 mm eyepiece would be 1200/12 = 100x magnification. Don't bother with Barlows, a Zoom takes care of that by giving you an infinite spectrum between 50 - 150x and the 6 mm gives your 200x. That is plenty for basically all viewing conditions.

The [Moon Brightness Filter]( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076MP3T66/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) is nice if the Moon hurts your eyes to look at, but it might be worth just looking at the moon first before spending the $20. You can't actually hurt your eyes looking, but it can definitely shock your eye. Also, higher magnification always means dimmer so zooming in can naturally act as a filter. I wouldn't bother with other filters. Most are crap and don't contribute much.

In summary: To really feel prepared when going out for the first time you should have a book that you studied ahead of time for what you want to look for (The book is broken down by Season and what is viewable during that time) and a red light to see the book. The provided 25mm will be okay to search with, and the 10mm will let you see more of it, but you will want something better soon like the zoom or the 6mm Svbony lens. Make sure your Telescope is [collimated]( https://lovethenightsky.com/telescope-collimation-for-complete-beginners/) and your finder scope is lined up with your scope (the Telescope manual walks through this, do it during the day). Bring chairs and warm clothing. Lastly bring your patience. Hope this was helpful with how long it was, and I hope you and your kiddo have a ball!

Hello :-)

Great advice so far!

 



> don't want a possible expensive clothes hanger

Sadly a lot of telescopes in this price range are rubbish, despite overly enthusiastic reviews on sites like Amazon and descriptions that sound amazing.

Aperture and optic quality are key, there's no way around it. Most entry level telescopes on tripod suck. It may not sound like a big deal, but it really, really makes focusing, tracking and observing tedious.

What to expect in different telescope aperture sizes

 



> sun

Normal visual solar filters do not show the sun as you have seen them on some images. Prominences for example won't be visible like on images.
Here's a comparison of visual light and dedicated solar scopes, the left is the visual filter: image (source).

You can make a filter with (quality!) solar filter sheets, it's quite simple.

 

> $150

New, there's basically only the Dazzle 4.5, but it will be a compromise.

IF you want something decent, consider the Meade Lightbridge Mini 130, Zhumell z130 or AWB Onesky (very compact, not suited for solar observing though!). Those sell for $199, occasionally you can get a slightly cheaper deal. These are excellent starter telescopes that do not suck. Their only down-side is that they are low to the ground, but you can put them on something, and they still will be much more stable than anything in this price-range.

Used, you may find a XT4.5 or XT6 dobsonian within your budget.

 


> niece

The AWB Onesky is very nice for kids, as a larger telescope or set with tripod can be quite bulky. Also see

• Size comparisons; https://www.reddit.com/r/telescopes/comments/4ldauj/need_help_identifying_a_good_telescope_to_buy_for/d3mr0xp/
  
  
  7 is very young for a telescope, but you are the one who's better able to judge how deep the interest is, and if it's the right choice. Be aware: Especially the small refractors and flawed short reflectors on garbage mount will cause so much frustration that you'll eliminate all fascination and enthusiasm right away. Don't get a telescope at all before you get something not worth it. :-)
  
  
  Pointing the telescope at the moon and planets is pretty easy with some guidance. A good book and phone+app can help with that.
  
  
  
   
  
  > DSLR
  
  It's not possible to take great images in this price range. Snapshots of Moon and planets are possible, but you have to understand that astrophotography has completely different requirements then day-time photography and visual astronomy. Many telescopes even have issues reaching focus with DSLR. But you can get a T2 adapter and Barlow and take nice snapshots of the moon with almost every telescope ;-)
  
  
   
  
  > Terrestrial
  
  Get a spotting scope or binoculars for $30-$50. There's just no device that does everything equally well. A while back you could get a Celestron c90 spotting scope that could do a bit of everything, but if the main focus lies on astronomy, a large aperture reflector will be the best budget solution, but turns the image up-side-down.
  
   
  
  > extensive adjustment
  
  Reflectors need collimation, but it's not like they don't work anymore and need it every time. Something like the AWB Onesky will still outperform a short 80mm spotting scope, even if the alignment is a bit off. And mirrors of mirror telescopes are not your average houshold mirror that's a couple of millimeters thin, but big chunks of glass that are sturdy... As long as you don't rub a cloth over the delicate coating.
  
  
   
  
  Sorry for the long rant :-) I know a lot was already mentioned, but it really, really is important.
  
  Looking at the other things in the area from your craigslist-link: There is a $50 70eq telescope. It's small, but it will be nice for the moon and shows Saturn as small disc with rings. EQ mounts of this size are somewhat OK for smaller telescopes (not for the 130/5" ones though). EQ mounts are relatively difficult to set up though (->
  How to align, How to use an equatorial mount).
  
  Ideally, consider the Orion Dazzle 4.5 (new $120) or even better, the AWB Onesky ($199)/z130/Mini 130. The 5" table tops are very, very good. They are something that won't get boring soon, have decent optics, and are easy to handle by children (size).
  
  
  
• https://www.astronomerswithoutborders.org/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=0&products_id=4&zenid=dpc0abiafvp2h9fjv0udgsu9i4
  
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Meade-Instruments-LightBridge-Telescope-203003/dp/B01C5TG53Y
  
  
• https://www.telescopesplus.com/products/zhumell-z130-portable-altazimuth-reflector-telescope
  
  For solar, be very, very cautious. It's dangerous. Instant and permanent eye-damage, even if there's just a split second of unwariness. Solar binoculars with firmly attached filter might be a better choice for a child. The open structure for the Onesky is not suited for solar.
  
  Telescope.com regularly has refurbished telescopes, e.g. the Orion xt4.5 for $160-$170 or so. It is somewhat comparable to the 5" table-tops (a bit taller, a bit smaller aperture, contrast benefits though due to smaller obstruction).
  
  
• Telescope.com clearance section - Nothing suitable atm though
  
  Th mentioned c90 is a small Maksutov. It's really not going to show as much as the 5" table tops regarding planets, but it's nice for terrestrial.
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B0038QYRDO/ref=sr_1_1_olp?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1502311419&sr=1-1&keywords=celestron+c90
  
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-39-100x90mm-Maksutov-Spotting-52268-OP/dp/B002OUBI5A/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1502311419&sr=1-2&keywords=celestron+c90
  
  
• Requires a halfway sturdy camera tripod with enough leeway though.
  
  
  Clear skies!

1. An 8" dob is definitely a bit much for a 7 year-old, but as long as it's for both of you, it's a good purchase. The most complicated part of owning a dob is collimating the optics (just making sure they're all aligned properly). There are plenty of tutorials on how to do this online. It will take a tiny bit of practice, but once you do it a couple of times, it's easy.
   
   
2. Get this eyepiece set. Don't bother with a barlow. The 9mm that comes with that set will replace the 9mm Plossl that comes with the telescope. It's much, much easier to look through and offers a wider field of view. That set is a good spread of focal lengths for that scope, and will compliment the 30mm nicely.
   
   
3. Does that even matter? Yes. You will be fighting condensation on the finder scope like crazy. I recommend buying a pack of those chemical handwarmers and just strapping one to the underside of the viewfinder with an elastic band, and maybe also one to the eyepiece of the view finder as well. That will keep it above ambient and keep the condensation off it.
   
   
4. Yes, several things to know:
   
   

• Obviously, never ever point the thing at the sun unless you have a visual rated solar filter that sits over the FRONT of the scope. You cannot put a solar filter at the eyepiece, it must block the light before it enters the scope.
  
  
• The biggest limiting factor to seeing lunar and planetary detail is the atmosphere. It bends and distorts light just like water in a swimming pool does when trying to view items on the bottom. Some nights are steady and planets are super crisp with tons of detail, other nights are abysmal and the planet looks like an amoeba. It takes patience and some luck to get a night of good atmospheric "seeing" as it's called.
  
  
• You also need to make sure the telescope is thermally acclimated to ambient temperatures. If the mirror is warmer than the outside air temps for whatever reason (e.g. stored in a hot un-insulated shed all day), then the heat coming off the mirror will distort light on the way to the mirror, and again bouncing off of it. If you store the scope in a cool air conditioned space, when you bring it outside in the hot humid air, the mirrors will instantly fog up and the scope will be unusable.
  
  
• It's best to view the planets when they are the highest in the sky. This is known as their transit time - when they cross the southern meridian in the sky. If you try to view them when they're low on the horizon, atmospheric seeing will be worse, and the atmosphere will act like a prism and badly scramble the light, obscuring fine details.
  
  
• The full moon is the least interesting phase to view because lighting is very flat. Best to view near 1st or 3rd quarter so you can see the moon illuminated from the side, where you will see deep shadows on craters, mountain ranges etc.
  
  
• If you buy the eyepiece set I linked to, the 9mm and the 6mm will be your planetary and lunar eyepieces. The 9mm is at the low-end range of planetary magnification and can be used when the atmosphere is very turbulent. The 6mm will be useful when the atmosphere is steady. Eventually you can get something between 3mm and 4mm for very high magnification, but it will only be useful on very rare nights unless you have particularly stable air.
  
  
• I recommend getting the book Turn Left at Orion, which is a good guide to get familiar with the night sky and using the telescope.

Lots of people are going to say 8" dob, Z8 specifically, and I have nothing but good to say about that. For a lot of people that's the only answer necessary.

However, let me offer an alternative case in favor of OneSky telescope by Astronomers Without Borders.

Three reasons for this recommendation:

SIZE The OneSky is a collapsible tabletop reflector. It is quite modestly sized when collapsed. It will fit in the front seat or trunk of a car and can easily be carried by even a child. Size ultimately is the thing that keeps a telescope indoors. There have been several nights this year where I've had 20 minutes to sneak a peek out at a beautiful crescent moon or something, but haven't, because I knew it would take me 20 minutes to set up my telescope and I would have no observing time. Plus all the work of lugging the heavy parts from my shed to my front yard. With a tabletop scope there's none of that. It takes 2 minutes to set up and requires no heavy lifting.

You will never miss an observing session due to the work of setting up the telescope, and you will never have to leave the telescope at home on a trip. An 8" Dob is going to show more simply because it's a larger scope, but the OneSky is going to show more than an 8" scope in the shed.

COST With a budget of $400, you will be able to afford some killer accessories after getting the $200 OneSky. Turn Left At Orion is the ideal book for a new telescope owner. A wide-field eyepiece like this one will give really good views of clusters like the pleiades and large nebulae like the Great Orion Nebula. A 6mm, 66 degree eyepiece will allow excellent, comfortable viewing of planets and smaller objects like binary stars. In addition you will be able to afford a comfortable stool to place the scope on, and a nice chair to sit on.

If you buy an 8" scope you will not be able to get all that stuff and stay in your $400 budget.

COMMUNITY The OneSky is well reviewed (review 1, review 2 under the Heritage 130 name) and has an active community of fans who have a lot of ideas about how to improve the performance of the scope for very little money/effort.

Troubleshooting this telescope is a breeze and the community is favorable. Even among seasoned enthusiasts the OneSky is popular.

The telescope is definitely going to come with a collimating device of some sort. I've only ever used a laser collimator, so I'm not sure how hard other collimating devices are to use. It never takes me more than 5 minutes to collimate my dob though.

I would get a 2x barlow (this one is pretty nice and also cheap), and some gold-line eyepieces. They're recommneded often on here because they're not too expensive but still pretty good. I would maybe get maybe the 15 mm and 6 mm. Those combined with the scope eyepieces and the barlow should give you all the magnifications you could want.

Whether a solar filter is worth it is entirely up to you. However, just note that if you don't want to put in $100s of dollars, you're pretty much limited to something made with Solar Filter Film or a basic glass filter. The views you get from that are definitely nice, but it might not be what you're expecting. You'll see something like this with those filters.

If the scope doesn't come with a 0 magnification red-dot finder scope, you might want to get one. Telrads are considered one of the best one's on the market (and I love mine to death), but they can be a bit pricey. A cheaper red dot finder scope (like this one) should also serve you just fine.

Besides that, I would definitely recommend getting the book Turn Left at Orion. It's essentially the complete beginners guide to all things Amateur Astronomy. It's absolutely fantastic.

One small other thing I can think of is a red-light flashlight (like this). It's definitely not necessary, but it's nice to be able to look at things in the dark without losing your night vision too much.

It's not a terrible scope but it's not really a good one either as you might expect given the low retail price. The good news is that you might have an okay time with it being as you're under dark skies. Dark skies and a cheap scope trumps light pollution and an expensive scope any day and twice on Tuesdays.

The best thing through it will, of course, be the moon.

You should be able to see Jupiter as a bright white disc with the 4 main moons visible as tiny stars beside it. If you're really really lucky, you might see the two highest contrast belts through this scope, but I wouldn't bank on it with this scope.

Saturn will be visible as a small disc with a blurry line representing the rings... something a bit like this

You'll be able to make out the brightest deep sky objects such as the great nebula in Orion, and the Andromeda galaxy as fuzzy gray "clouds". Clusters such as the Pleiades will look great, because they look great through just about anything :-)

I'd recommend you grab a copy of Turn Left at Orion, it's your indispensable guide to viewing and to your next telescope upgrade.

Just to note the 4mm eyepiece that comes with the scope is way too powerful for its aperture, not worth using really, but stick to the 20mm and you'll see some stuff.

Happy viewing!

Not a problem. I'm not an expert on that type of scope either, which is why I linked and mentioned the other sub, but the general consensus is that they are decent entry level scopes that will give you a good start in the hobby, but leave you wanting more over time, and it seems $50 is about what they are generally worth, so I think you made the right call to get into the hobby and figure out if you like it or not.

You didn't mention anything about eyepieces, but I would assume it came with 1 or 2 plossl or kelners, likely around 25mm for 40x magnification. I would recommend getting one of the "gold line" eyepieces this sun always praises. They have great eye relief and about the same FOV as a plossl, so they are great for higher mag when plossls force you to damn near touch your eye to the eyepiece.

I generally wouldn't recommend an eyepiece kit, as they are generally not that great with overlap of ranges and being bundled with other useless filters and stuff, but this one is a bit better, though I would suggest getting only 1 or 2 of the eyepieces in the kit anyway (the 6mm for sure, maybe the 9 or 15 as well):

https://www.amazon.com/SVBONY-Telescope-Eyepiece-Accessories-Astronomy/dp/B01MR78I42/ref=pd_day0_hl_421_9?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01MR78I42&pd_rd_r=38600535-6f7e-11e9-8571-61275becdf34&pd_rd_w=lYs1c&pd_rd_wg=Ezw2r&pf_rd_p=ad07871c-e646-4161-82c7-5ed0d4c85b07&pf_rd_r=JGJ2X0WVDD2MC1DZSXRQ&psc=1&refRID=JGJ2X0WVDD2MC1DZSXRQ

The 6mm will give you 166x, 9mm 111x, 15mm 66x, and 20mm 50x. I'm getting these values by dividing your focal length (1000m) with the eyepiece focal length. Again, I'm assuming you already have a low power eyepiece around 25mm, so a 20 won't be much different. The 15mm or 9mm will be medium mag, which I like to use on larger objects like the Orion nebula, and the 6mm will let you zoom in on small objects, which based on your pic of Jupiter is probably something you are interested in.

In general, the mag limit of a telescope is about 2x the aperture in mm, but with the spherical mirror, you have have focusing issues before getting to that point, so I wouldn't recommend going further than the 6mm.

Eyepieces will transfer well from scope to scope, so if you are at all interested in continuing the hobby, I think it's well worth it to start getting slightly better eyepieces early.

8SE owner for over eight years, let me see if I can tackle some of these questions.

1. I found the foam the OTA came with fit perfectly into an igloo cooler. I used this to store and transport it before finally upgrading to a JMI case.
   
   
2. You can defocus a star to see if it needs collimation.
   
   
3. It really shouldn't require much in the way of maintenance.
   
   
4. No clue, but feel free to ask me if you have specific questions.
   
   
5. Humidity can promote fungal growth, probably not a bad idea to throw a silica packet or two in your case. I've taken mine 4-wheeling, left it out overnight in the desert, etc and never had any issues.
   
   
6. I absolutely love my Hand Control Mounting Bracket, it makes it much more pleasant to use. My JMI Motofocus takes care of any vibrations during focusing, and a Telrad made alignment much easier. I did eventually upgrade to a 50mm RACI finder as well. You'll probably want to pick up a dew shield and/or dew heater strips depending on where you live.
   
   Enjoy and clear skies, there's no need to be nervous about your new telescope!

Jupiter and especially Saturn looked underwhelming for me in my telescope, but after cleaning up my eyepieces's lens and secondary mirror with just a wet and dry paper towel my quality was greatly increased. Weather conditions like heavy wind and humidity can also affect the view pretty badly. Collimating your telescope properly is something you probably hear all the time, but it really does make a big difference. As for eyepieces, the Celestron Omni has served me well but I've upgraded to a "Baader Planetarium 8-24mm Hyperion Clickstop Zoom Mark IV Eyepiece" (what a mouthful). The views are noticably better and the zoom feature is so, so, soooo convenient. It's especially handy for showing friends and family who are not into the hobby, as you don't have to change the eyepieces constantly for them. It runs for about 300 dollars which is a big asking point, but there are cheaper alternatives like the Celestron zoom eyepiece (https://www.amazon.com/Celestron-93230-24mm-1-25-Eyepiece/dp/B0007UQNV8) which are only 65 dollars. I would recommend getting one of those, a decent 2x barlow (shouldn't be more than 40 dollars), and a dedicated large eyepiece (in the 30-40mm range). That's all you really need for casual observing by yourself or to show friends and family.

The Z10 would be a great scope. I have the Z12, and I love it. It's a lot to handle though. The Z10 would give you some more mobility and wouldn't take up too much space. A 10 is still a great light bucket and will give you wonderful views of lots of fun objects.

There are myriad resources to get you going on what to see and when to see it. You can check out earthsky.org for a day-by-day update on what's happening in the sky. Telescopius is another great resource. Also, grab yourself a copy of Turn Left at Orion. It'll help you get acquainted with the night sky.

The Bahamian sky should treat you quite nicely. Just be patient with the equipment and the hobby. Learning takes time.

Oh cool, that was my first scope! It still sits on my table, I have very fond feelings for it. It performs really well for its size, and it's a sturdy little thing. A lot of people count it out, but I think that's a great scope to get into the hobby with.

As u/schorhr and Submarine have already shared, it's definitely not the ideal scope for planets, but it will get you started! The 4mm schorhr recommends would probably be great. I personally (on his recommendation, back in the day, went with a 3.2mm). I think I bought this one. Knowing better now, I would probably look for one on aliexpress or ebay for cheaper. That eyepiece will get you around x125, which is definitely pushing the envelope for the scope.

Holy Batman this is an amazing response!
The 4 year old has used a telescope before, he's just absolutely fascinated by space right now. If it was just him, I'd definitely be getting the £50 type scopes. Due to my interest, I really don't believe any model I get will be a waste of money.


I had the Heritage in mind, but had never looked at that Skyliner 150p, which has lead me to the 200p....I'm sure you know the feeling!

Already purchased Turn Left at Orion, definitely want a moon filter/scope as well as a planetary one.
Finder scope is essential from what I've read.

I think I'm settled on either the Heritage 130p or the Skyliner 150p. Is there any justifiable reason to even consider the 200p? I'm fairly certain I'll go in the middle for the 150p, but always welcome opinions!
Yet this Orion StarMax and this Orion SkyQuest keep appearing in my research. It will be between those 4 for sure, if you have any specific advice on those along with any accessories I need I would be eternally grateful.

I use printouts and books much more than apps. Printouts especially are great because you can mark them up and plan what you want to look for.

I mostly use http://www.skymaps.com/downloads.html to get the map of what's up this month, and it includes locations of the planets. Easy two page printout. Of course, planets are bright enough that you don't even need dark skies to find them, so you can try pointing your funscope at them right now.

Currently, the planets are coming up later at night, with Jupiter coming up after mindight, mars after 2:00am, and venus at 4:00am. So if you want to see them, I'd recommend getting up early in the morning. I'd recommending practicing finding them in the sky with an App before you leave. They are super easy to find once you've done it a couple of times, and follow the path of the sun.

Since your scope and binoculars are relative low on magnification, you'll probably want to look for big bright nebula's, star clusters, and galaxies. If you've never seen any of them before, look for the bright ones: the Orion Nebula and Andromeda galaxy are huge and going to be high in the sky in the evening. They are both bright enough to see a little bit of even in light polluted skies, so I'd practice finding them before you leave on vacation.

For traveling recently, I just brought binoculars and a tripod. I have cheap sets of 7x50 and 15x70. Your funscope has a 76mm mirror, about the size of my big binoculars.

Personally, I think it's a great idea to bring both the scope and the binoculars. You'll get a feel for what you like to look through more once you're out there.

I am not an expert on taking pictures through telescopes, but I do know that if you don't have a tracking equatorial mount, it's really tough to get anything in the sky because you have to take brief pictures. And the funscope doesn't have a parabolic mirror, which makes goop pictures very difficult, too.

If you're just starting out and want to get into the hobby, I really recommend the book Left Turn at Orion. Truly a great guide to getting started when you have no idea where to start in this hobby. And it's the best guide for finding stuff for the first time.

I believe Bresser is synonymous with ES just like Orion is to skywatcher.

The finder scope looks like it could be a bit better but it should get the job done. It also looks like it makes up in the design area for what it slightly lacks in the finder scope area.

Welcome to the dob world. Let everyone know what you think but I’m sure you’ll love it.

Do yourself a favor and order the 6 mm in something like this

SVBONY Telescope Eyepiece Fully Mutil Coated 1.25 inches Telescope Accessories Set 66 Degree Ultra Wide Angle HD 6mm for Astronomy Telescope https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JWDFMZ4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_KEHJDb8FR7VDD

The planets are getting low and setting very early but if you get a good eyepiece soon you should be able to catch them before they’re gone.

As u/schorhr mentioned... Field of View (FOV) can play a big role in this. Wide field eyepieces are usually advertised for nebulae and star fields and stuff like that, but they improved even planetary viewing for us immensely since it was easier to locate the object to begin with, a more enjoyable view (better overall opening on the EP), and an easier task to keep it centered in view.

Assuming a dob with a focal length of ~1,200mm (like Orion, Apertura, etc.) you'd want a ~6mm EP to hit a magnification of 200x:

• Economy 6mm 66° EP
  
  
• Very Nice 6.7mm 82° EP