What's the best scope to go with??

I am planning to get back into Astronomy after a 20 year lull. I had one of
those Jason 60mm reflectors back then. I just got the Orion catalog and I am
mulling over several choices. I got three kids too, so will take that in
consideration for a scope. First, there is the portable StarBlast for
$169....then there is the SkyQuest XT4.5 for $199....BUT I see in their new
Holiday catalog that the SkyQuest XT6 is on sale for $239, and the SkyQuest
XT8 is on sale for $339. Those are the four I am looking at. The XT8, though
a bit expensive for me....is intriguing as I bet one can see alot with it.
But it must be heavy. The StarBlast
and XT4.5 are cheaper and more portable but not sure which to go with there.
XT6
may be the best deal as it is $60 off its regular price. Is the XT6 heavy
and not portable? How does the XT6 compare to the 4.5 and 8??? Anyways, any
opinions appreciated. All are reflectors. XT's are Dobs. Plan to make the
decision by December.

David wrote:

I am planning to get back into Astronomy after a 20 year lull. I had one of
those Jason 60mm reflectors back then. I just got the Orion catalog and I am
mulling over several choices. I got three kids too, so will take that in
consideration for a scope. First, there is the portable StarBlast for
$169....then there is the SkyQuest XT4.5 for $199....BUT I see in their new
Holiday catalog that the SkyQuest XT6 is on sale for $239, and the SkyQuest
XT8 is on sale for $339. Those are the four I am looking at. The XT8, though
a bit expensive for me....is intriguing as I bet one can see alot with it.
But it must be heavy. The StarBlast
and XT4.5 are cheaper and more portable but not sure which to go with there.
XT6
may be the best deal as it is $60 off its regular price. Is the XT6 heavy
and not portable? How does the XT6 compare to the 4.5 and 8??? Anyways, any
opinions appreciated. All are reflectors. XT's are Dobs. Plan to make the
decision by December.

I would suggest the XT-8; only a few pounds heavier than the XT-6 and similar
eyepiece height. In the long run the price difference is very small. OTOH, the
kids might have fun with the Starblast since they could probably easily use it
on their own.

"David" wrote in
news:F_Dad.2833$wV4.1459@trndny03:

I am planning to get back into Astronomy after a 20 year lull. I had
one of those Jason 60mm reflectors back then. I just got the Orion
catalog and I am mulling over several choices. I got three kids too,
so will take that in consideration for a scope. First, there is the
portable StarBlast for $169....then there is the SkyQuest XT4.5 for
$199....BUT I see in their new Holiday catalog that the SkyQuest XT6
is on sale for $239, and the SkyQuest XT8 is on sale for $339. Those
are the four I am looking at. The XT8, though a bit expensive for
me....is intriguing as I bet one can see alot with it. But it must be
heavy. The StarBlast and XT4.5 are cheaper and more portable but not
sure which to go with there. XT6
may be the best deal as it is $60 off its regular price. Is the XT6
heavy and not portable? How does the XT6 compare to the 4.5 and 8???
Anyways, any opinions appreciated. All are reflectors. XT's are Dobs.
Plan to make the decision by December.

You didn't say how old the kids are, but assuming ages over 12, they could
easily handle the XT-8, which, as you correctly surmised, will let you see
a "lot" more than any of the others. If price is a big consideration, then
the XT-6 is probably the best "deal" of the four.

How old are the kids?

You may just want to start with the Star Blast, and pick up a couple of
accessories (the book Turn Left at Orion, a planisphere, a red flash
light, a barlow, another eyepiece) (that's extra $ that should be
budgeted in).

Then have some great fun with the kids and observing all sorts of things.

It has a wide fov which will make finding things easier. The small
scope will also be more readily schlepped around by you and the
kids---and it will easy to plop in the car along with them and go to a
dark sky site.

If the astro bug really bites any of you, then you can always go for the
8" down the road (which will be a handful). But you'll likely keep the
smaller scope for its sheer enjoyment and ease of use.

And if no one really takes to it, you're not out all that much $$ and
could easily sell it on Astromart.

Larry Stedman
Vestal

Another option not to ignore is binos. I won a pair of Burgess Optical
20x80 binos at this year's NEAF, and have mounted them on a parallelogram.
These have provided my sons and me with many hours of tremendous viewing.
Also, we have just mounted a pair of 9x63 Oriion Mini Giants on a Burgess
Optical Tiny Titan parallelogram mount, and my older son is having a lot of
fun with this combo. In fact, his observing project for tonight is to
observe as many of the Messier objects in Sagittarius with the 9x63s as he
can.

Dennis