northern lass said:
thanks russ, do you have any thoughts on one over the other celestron or skywatcher?
The mount on the Celestron appears to be a bit sturdier, judging from images of the 'scopes. Flimsy mounts can make telescopes shaky and hard to use. In your price range (especially for a beginner) I would suggest a Dobsonian. They are very solid and sturdy, and the money that you didn't pay for a complex mount goes toward the optics, which is the heart of the telescope. Often, the mirrors of cheaply-made Newtonians are figured spherically, which results in distortion of the images (you can look up spherical aberration). Generally, Dobsonians feature parabolic primary mirrors, decent coatings, etc. You don't get a fancy mount, but you end up with better optics at any price-point.
Just a suggestion: Can you give your husband and son a nice card authorizing them to buy a 'scope as their present from you? You could do some research and include information about where and when the nearest astronomy club will be holding their next star-party. It would be great if they could attend one and get to look through a lot of different members' scopes. Then, they would have a better idea what 'scope might be best for them. If they tell the members that they are in the market for a 'scope, they might get a great deal on an instrument that's just collecting dust in a member's closet. I know that surprising them with a brand-new scope would be more exciting, but look at this as an investment.
I know that if you have read this thread through, I sound like a broken record, but for your budget, a Dobsonian is probably the best bang-for-the-buck. The mount is simple and sturdy and easy for a kid to use. The optics will be better than scopes on cheap German equatorial mounts, and those two features alone will add up to a better experience for your son.
Since your husband and son will be relatively new to this, I suggest buying them a cardboard planisphere, so that they can find what constellations and extra-galactic objects will be visible at any time on any night, AND spring for the $40 or so for the complete 3-volume set of Burnham's Celestial Handbook. Burnham's has a lot of very handy information, and it is arranged by constellation, so if Orion is going to be visible tonight (for example) you can find out about what nebulae, double-stars, interesting color-contrasting star pairings, etc you might find there. Planning an observing session can be as fun as actually getting out to observe, especially if the weather is not real cooperative where you live. Make lists of the objects you want to observe, and make notes as you check them off. Is object "A" very prominent in your 'scope? How about at different magnifications? What was the sky condition like? Observing logs can be fun, especially on cloudy nights when you want to review. It's interesting to see how "difficult" objects can get easier and easier over time as you learn to become a better observer.
