(January 2, 2021 at 12:21 am)popeyespappy Wrote: The idea was easier to use = more use, but we'll see...
Right now I'm into this used equipment a couple of hundred more than I would have been if I had bought a new LX65 or 8SE. But that just includes the refractor, mount, and a single 14mm 82 degree eyepiece. What I'm trying to figure out right now is if I need a finder and/or polar scope for alignment or if I can get away with just an illuminated reticle eyepiece to perform a polar alignment.
You will want more eyepieces eventually. The 14 is a medium-high power in that scope (2 mm exit pupil, which is regarded as the perfect value for getting maximum detail while still rendering the stars still as points, or at least very small circles). It is a very good choice as your only eyepiece, but is a bit too low power for planets (not that planets are really up or good right now. You can see Mars, but it is getting smaller). You will probably want a low power eyepiece before finding the perfect planetary one.
Polar alignment is a bit of an art. A polar alignment scope is tricky to learn to use correctly (you need an app that tells you what angle Polaris is, and you need to get the reticle aligned (easy by rotating the scope and making sure the center doesn't move on the sky)). But the polar scope will get you set up quickest when you know how to use it.
You can get partially aligned just by using an eyepiece, and then use a drift method for determining which way to knudge the scope (you can google that). You don't need perfect alignment for visual anyway -- it just means you use the manual controls more to adjust for it.
Refractors are great! But, that 8" was a bigger scope. That's why I have two scopes
