Help. Telescope..

first off i would like to say sorry if this is in the wrong forum but i have no clue where to put this at.

I am here looking for help. i have at the very most $400 to spend on a telescope, although i dont want to spend that much i will though,, if anyone knows a good telescope that can let me look into space real good and be able to look the rings of Saturn. even the polar caps of mars would be great. i have no knowledge of telescope and im just need help finding a good one that can give me good outcomes.

future thanks for all who help.

reply to post by ConfusedPeasant

Hey friend, try the search function because there are numerous threads on this with some good suggestions and breakdowns of the equipment. I just punched in 'buying a new telescope,' and a plethora of threads came up.
Or, hang tight and some knowledgeable members will offer some help. Either way, good luck

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


thank you im still rather new and not smart enough to look for other posts ha XD

reply to post by ConfusedPeasant

Hey that's why they make it easy for us here, and put that little 'search' button up there.
Welcome, btw, and yea I can spend all day just going through older threads here, it is crazy how many there are in all!

ETA:
Here are some specific ones:
www.abovetopsecret.com...
www.abovetopsecret.com...
www.abovetopsecret.com...
www.abovetopsecret.com...
www.abovetopsecret.com...

Originally posted by ConfusedPeasant
and be able to look the rings of Saturn. even the polar caps of mars would be great.

The rings of Saturn are easy. Binoculars can do that. Even Galileo's telescope could do that.
However, the polar caps of Mars are much more difficult. Be prepared to spend many more dollars to get any view of features on Mars.

My recommendation for people who ask "what telescope to get" has always been good binoculars on some kind of support.

This will show you both the rings of Saturn and the polar cap on mars:
www.telescope.com/Telescopes/Dobsonian-Telescopes/Dobsonian-Telescopes-with-Free-Shipping/Orion-SkyQuest-XT8-Classic-Dobsonian-Telescope/pc/1/c/12/sc/ 398/p/8943.uts?refineByCategoryId=398
Ideally you'll want to spend a bit more than just that in order to get another eyepiece for up-close views of the planets.

If you want digital setting circle style "push-to" technology as well you can sacrifice 2" of aperture and get this:
www.telescope.com/Telescopes/Dobsonian-Telescopes/IntelliScope-Dobsonians/Orion-SkyQuest-XT6i-IntelliScope-Dobsonian-Telescope/pc/1/c/12/sc/27/p/27182 .uts?refineByCategoryId=27
I had a 6" Newtonian for a number of years and was very happy with it. It showed me quite a bit of detail of Mars and even the polar caps during the 2003 apparition of Mars (though that was the best we'll ever see it). Personally if I had to choose a beginner scope I'd go with the first one and learn the sky properly the old fashioned way with paper star charts and star hopping. Finding the planets is easy to do by eye anyway. An 8" scope will show you quite a bit of detail in the planets and make it easier to see faint deep space objects.

The only advice I can give is that whatever telescope you choose, make sure it has a good tripod! It can become very frustrating to gaze at the stars if the tripod isn't good enough to hold the telescope firmly in its place, and frustration will quickly kill your motivation.

reply to post by ConfusedPeasant


To be honest,you won't be able to get much for $400-some eye pieces cost more than that.
If I was you I would keep saving a while longer,but keep looking for different scopes and learn about the different sorts.
As some one mentioned the Dobsonian type scopes give you the biggest aperture size per buck,but you will need to learn the sky and how to view different parts of it,which can be a steep learning curve(although very rewarding).

The advice about getting a good solid tripod is very good advice-My scope cost about £800,and although the optics are great for the small aperture size,the tripod could be one heck of a lot better-I have a asphalt yard,and even with the tripod locked up good and tight,the view wobbles if my dog is walking about nearby,or if there is any more than a very slight breeze.

That can make things difficult and frustrating,to the point that I am considering upgrading my tripod.
Trouble is a decent one would easily cost more than my scope.
The other things to consider are your local weather-That is my main frustration in Wales-too much cloud and rain most of the time prevents me from even setting up the scope.

The whole thing can be very challenging-But it is also massively rewarding when everything works well.

I am only a beginner myself,and my best results are still my shots and films of the moon-although I have had some success with mars and jupiter-but that was before I had a camera connected.
One day I will make a film of them,if the weather ever gives me a chance.

Take a look at the link in my signature If you want to see my setup,and some pics and a video of the moon I took.
Good luck Buddy,and learn as much about different types of kit before you commit to buy.

Dobsonian 7", its around $360~.

You'd better get a reflector not a refractor, a 150 mm in diameter would be fine, you do the maths for inches, I dont understand why they keep on using their separate units for things that should be measured the same like it is with gravity and other things in physics.

I myself after operatingan observatory telescope and looking through professors' 200+ mm telescopes I can say an astronomer I knew was right, no need to waste too much money on telescope, something like that is fine, you can see more details with larger telescopes but you will want more and more. That's my advice, I also have had a small 50 mm refractor which was too bad, I would also get some Newton or such reflector of around 130-150 mm when I have time,

Now you see, there's Venus and Jupiter and all I have is just some binoculars that the best they could show was one of the satellites of Jupiter (porbably Ganymede as the largest), well I bought it cause I cant bring telescope every time I go to the mountains can I.