Re: Vivitar Telescope Question

wsnell01@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
Glenn Holliday wrote:
wsnell01@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
Glenn Holliday wrote:
... Until you get above the $200 line, binoculars
of the same price are likely to be more useful and better quality
than a telescope.
I'll have to disagree with that. There are many decent telescopes
priced -well- under $200 that will show more and work better than
similarly-priced binoculars. Recognizing them is the trick.

What do you recommend at that price?

At $100 the Orion Spaceprobe (3-inch Newtonian) is one possibility. I
used a similar model years ago that certainly showed more than any pair
of binoculars I could find. My scope even had 0.965-inch eyepieces,
instead of the much better 1.25-inch included with the Orion scope.

OK, sounds interesting. I've never seen that one in the flesh.

In the $200 range the Orion Starblast and XT4.5 reflectors come highly
recommended.

Yes, these are examples I was thinking of at the $200 level.

Lower on the price scale, I have seen 60mm refractors in the $50-$60
range, that might be worth a try.

In my personal experience, I've been happier with binos than with
scopes in this category. In this price range the optics may be OK,
but I generally see tripods, mounts, and finders that make the scope
difficult-to-impossible to use.

... for every beginner who would buy a $200
scope there are probably many more who can afford only $100. If you
set the price of admission too high you might end up with fewer amateur
astronomers in the long run.

I agree. When I present to Scout groups I talk about naked eye
observing, and show a $25 pair of Wal-Mart binos as an example of a
low cost first instrument. And as I mentioned to the original poster,
an investment of (much less than) $100 in a local club often gets you
access to equipment.

--
Glenn Holliday holliday@xxxxxxx
.

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