At almost 10″ in diameter, this is the largest dobsonian in the library. This venerable telescope (made in Canada!) is mounted on a solid metal base and adjusts easily. It can fit in the back seat of a car, fully assembled, which is quite unusual for a large Dob. It’s a really good telescope, with stars showing nice and crisp. The optical finderscope is somewhat awkward to use since the tube is relatively short.
T46 – Omcon 620D 10″ Dobsonian Read More »
This versatile rich field telescope is quick to set up and simple to use.
It is a great first telescope. It has very little chromatic aberration, and its wide field of view is quite crisp and provides fine views of star fields and the moon. It is not quite as well suited for viewing the planets and smaller deep sky objects. It is rather short, which can make viewing of objects which are low in the sky rather awkward. Like all reflectors it can be somewhat counter-intuitive when trying to center the view on an object.
The base has a handle that makes it quite easy to carry. The tube has a handle to make it easy to point.
T27 – SkyWatcher 8″ Dobsonian Read More »
This featherweight travel telescope has quite acceptable optics on a very shaky mount. It packs into the included small backpack. Lenses are plastic, the finderscope is not necessary, and the whole thing threatens to blow away if there is some wind, but it is quite usable as a telescope.
T25 – Travelscope 70mm refractor Read More »
This is versatile telescope with very little chromatic aberration. Its wide field of view is quite crisp and provides fine views of star fields and the moon. It is not quite as well suited for viewing the planets and smaller deep sky objects. It is rather short, which can make viewing of objects which are low in the sky rather awkward. Like all reflectors it can be somewhat counter-intuitive when trying to center the view on an object.
The base has a handle that makes it quite easy to carry, but it is still large and cumbersome.
T21 – SkyWatcher 8″ Dobsonian Read More »
This versatile rich field telescope is quick to set up and simple to use. It is a great first telescope. It has very little chromatic aberration, and its wide field of view is quite crisp and provides fine views of star fields and the moon. It is not quite as well suited for viewing the planets and smaller deep sky objects. It is rather short, which can make viewing of objects which are low in the sky somewhat awkward. Like all reflectors it can be a little counter-intuitive when trying to center the view on an object.
T07 – SkyWatcher 8″ reflector Read More »
This older reflector provides good views of rich fields and expansive star clusters. It is relatively short and easy to set up and carry. It is most comfortable to use when sitting on a chair.
On the downside, it can be difficult to find objects because of lack of a finderscope and the ergonomics. Planetary and nebula views are not the best, and it is somewhat difficult to achieve sharp focus. Like all reflectors it can be somewhat counter-intuitive when trying to center the view on an object.
Eyepiece insertion is a little unusual. The eyepieces are pressure-fit into the eyepiece holder, and consequently there is no need for the retaining screws found on other telescopes. Lined up perfectly an eyepiece will slide in smoothly and stay firmly in place.
T11 – Coulter 8″ Dobsonian Read More »
This unusual pick-up-and-go elbow telescope is easy to transport and a joy to use. It’s a wide-field right-angle refractor married to a Dobsonian mount. The objective is almost 5” across, and it has a single fixed eyepiece. Telescopes don’t get much simpler than this, nor easier to use. Pull out the eyepiece for coarse focus, twist it for fine focus control. The field of view is about one quarter that of 7×50 binoculars and rivals that of many larger telescopes. The stars are crisp, with very little distortion until the edge of the view.
Unlike all other designs of telescopes, the eyepiece always remains at the same height no matter where the telescope is pointed. The mount can be placed on a picnic table or attached to the optional tripod. Very suitable as a grab-and-go during winter. Highly recommended.
T04 – Rich-field elbow refractor Read More »
