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New member from Derby


Guest Steve-O

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Guest Steve-O

Hi Everyone,


 


I'm Steve from Derby. I've always been interested in astronomy but i'm pretty new to using a telescope, now my 5 year old son is taking a great interest in it as well which gives me an excuse to spend far too much time looking at the sky.


My current telescope is an old second/third hand Jessops newtonian on possibly the most unstable tripod you could imagine. As you can guess I am on the hunt for an upgrade.


 


Anyway I hope to meet some of you soon


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Hi Steve, welcome aboard. If your thinking of upgrading come along next time we have a meet and have a look and play with some kit so you know what's about and what you'd like to do. We have a stargazing live event on on the 25th in long Eaton with lots going on.

Ask any questions you may have in the relevant section and someone will answer, they're a good bunch really.

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Welcome to EMS Steve.

You've come to the right place for lots of help and advice.

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Guest zidder

Hi Steve,


 


Welcome on board, I am new to the forum, the folks on here are a good bunch and very helpful.


 


Gary


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Hi Steve, you have done the right thing joining this forum, you are not alone out there, there are lots of people like yourself who share an interest in this stuff.

I am a newbie to this site too, and have found the natives to be friendly, helpful and very enthusiastic! The forums and various articles are interesting and informative. Enjoy!

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Hello Steve, a warm welcome to EMS.


 


It's a shame that the department store scopes are generally very disappointing. These can be so bad they could put you off for good.


 


I suppose your budget is what is going to determine what you will be able to afford to buy. Have a look round in here, it's a specialist retailer, whom I would say most of us have used, others are available, but it will give you an idea of what is available.


 


http://www.firstlightoptics.com/


 


If you go on Ebay, don't consider any scope by Seban, they are cheap, and there is a good reason for that.


 


If there is anything you spot, stick a post up and let us have a look and we'll let you know if it's worth a punt or not. Don't go and do what I did before I got involved with astro forums, and buy something which gives you that instant feeling of regret.


 


A pair of Binoculars will open up another level of sky, these will show you some of the open clusters, and just wandering round the Milky Way is a good way to lose a few hours.


 


If you haven't already got it, Stellarium is an excellent free planetarium program.   http://www.stellarium.org/en_GB/


 


In the meantime, enjoy the forum. :)

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Hello and welcome to EMS.

Good advice above, don't rush into any purchase.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy the forum.

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Hi Steve and welcome to EMS. :)


 


Good advice above - if you do upgrade you need to think about whether you intend to observe only, or do imaging, or both. Then with an idea of your budget we'll be able to make a lot of suggestions of good scopes to consider. Other considerations include size, weight, portability, set up complexity, and cooling time.


 


Useful retailer sites to look around are First Light Optics, Telescope House, Altair Astro, Green Witch, Harrisons, Rother Valley Optics, and Wide Screen Center. I've used all of these and they are all pretty expert, good with advice, and highly reliable. For Ebay and other sale/auction sites you really need to know what you're doing. :)


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Guest Steve-O

Thanks for your welcomes everyone, much appreciated   :thumbsup:


 


With regards to the upgrade, a member on here is selling a Celestron Omni XLT15 that I'm going to go and have a look at tonight. I would love to get into imaging but for the time being I want to learn the basics first.


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Hi Steve,


 


Nice to meet you earlier and welcome to the forum.


 


I hope you get on with the scope - any questions just give us a shout.


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