On Fri, 17 Sep 1999 you wrote:

> Hello, i need some advice i have a 1600.00or so budget and wanted to know
> whats best? a meade 16" dob for 1400.00 or better quality astro systems
> 12.5" portable truss scope for about the same price? the 16" astro truss is
> about 2900.00 so it is a lot more than i want to spend. am i better off with
> quality of a truss scope or would you say get the biggest for the buck. i
> live in a suburb and have realativley dark skies .are meade dobs a decent
> scope? or should i wait a year or so and save for the 16 " truss 2900.00
> scope :( (i cant wait to get started) 16" cheapo meade or 12.5 " astro
> system truss scope,size or quality? or is meade good quality? what would i
> be able to see in a 16" and not in a 12.5"?

Hello,

What scope you should get really depends upon what your needs are. If you
are a beginning amateur astronomer, or if you have been using small
telescopes, then it is probably not worth the money to go out and buy an
expensive, huge telescope. If you are a true beginner, then even the
12.5" is probably more scope than you want to start with (a 6" or 8"
reflector would probably be the best choice).

In terms of the quality of a telescope, I have little experience with most
amateur telescopes available. However, Sky and Telescope magazine has a
page where they have reviewed many telescopes and other equipment; it is
probably a good start to look there. The review site is:
http://www.skypub.com/resources/testreports/testreports.shtml
The magazine also offers tips for choosing the proper telescope:
http://www.skypub.com/tips/telescopes/telescopes.shtml
There are also numerous telescope test reports and other related pages
listed on the Yahoo! directory:
http://dir.yahoo.com/Science/Astronomy/Telescopes/Amateur/
The quality of the Yahoo! pages varies dramatically, but there are a lot
of options listed there.

Another good resource would be to find a local astronomy club (most clubs
have web sites these days, though finding them can be tricky. The Yahoo!
directory has links to many clubs at:
http://dir.yahoo.com/Science/Astronomy/Organizations/Clubs/
Once you find a club, drop in on a few of their open star parties and ask
folks about their telescopes. Most amateur astronomers are willing to
talk and offer advice, and they are probably quite familiar with the
various telescopes and options. You would probably even have the
opportunity to look through many varieties of telescopes at a star party,
and thereby get a taste of what is best for you.

As to what you can see in a 16" telescope that you cannot see in a 12.5"
telescope, if both telescopes are of the same quality, then the larger
scope can see things that are 1.6 times fainter than the 12.5", or about
0.5 magnitudes fainter. This is not a huge difference, but it would bring
fainter galaxies into reach. For the advanced amateur, the difference
between the two scopes would be noticeable, but for the casual observer,
the difference would be small.

It IS very confusing to find the right telescope with so many choices
available today, but the resources I've listed above should be able to
give you a good start in finding the information you need to make the best
decision about the telescope to buy. Good luck!

Sincerely,
Kurtis Williams

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