Expert: Paul Wagner - 8/6/2009

Question
Yes, I ask you a question before, but this one is different, although related. I see lots of pricey 80mm or so apo refractor OTAs; they are plainly popular. I ask you why is that? Isn't there a huge trade-off when you have great quality but sacrifice aperture? I know a 120mm OTA goes way up in price, but to spend $4K for an 80? Why not spend another 2-3 grand for a 110 or 120? Also, why are the more costly refractors almost never offered as a package with a mount? Most packages I've seen are less costly than buying individually. I hope you can help; my logic curve apparently doesn't go high enough to make sense of it. Thanks.

Answer
Hi Tom

I agree with you on this one.  I think those scopes are for people who have very expensive cars, and want to have a telescope in the trunk.  Yes, they are very convenient....but if you ever want to do some serious observing, a $400 6" dobson will show you so much more in the sky that it isn't even fair to compare the two.  

As for the mounts--by the time you are spending that kind of money for the OTA, you probably want to design and build your own custom mount! \

Hope that helps.

Paul Wagner