Can you recommend a good but reasonably priced telescope?

I picked up a good reflector for 99 quid, with a sturdy equitorial mount.

I also have a Meade ETA 70mm, which was more expensive at 199, but has a motorised, computer controlled goto mount.

The starting price for a decent brand new telescope is $300 and that will usually be a 4.5" reflector on a fairly sturdy mount.

What you should do is decide how much you want to spend, what you want to do with the telescope, and whether or not you want to buy it used or new.

Used telescopes can be 1/2 the price of a new telescope but of course there's always some risk buying it used.

If you want to do astrophotography eventually then you need something on a german equatorial mount or a fork mount with a wedge/field derotator. If you can afford it, I'd suggest an 8" Schmidt Cassegrain for this purpose. Meade and Celestron both have a wide line of these and many are available used.

An 8" Schmidt Cassegrain is a good all around telescope with enough aperture to see a good variety of things, yet small enough to transport easily. Used they start at $500

For live deep space viewing, dobsonians are the scope of preference. The smallest deep space telescope you'd want would be 10" in aperture. A 10" Zhummell dobsonian can be had for $500 + shipping from http://www.telescopes.com/

I recommend this one a lot because I've been following telescope prices for a while and it really is an unbeatable deal. Most telescopes of this size start at $799

Orion makes very good dobsonians as well, and Celestron and Meade make a few. For the larger dobsonians, people usually by brands such as Obsession Telescopes or JMI (Jim's Mobile).

If you insist on buying new, and want to do astrophotograpy but don't have much money, your best bet is a 6" or 8" newtonian on a german equatorial mount. They can usually be had for around $500 new.

If you want to buy used, try the classifieds at http://www.astromart.com/ or http://www.cloudynights.com/

Most sellers are reputable but if they insist on money transfer payment, are offering a deal that's too good to be true, or have some weird transaction deal they want you to go along with (ie "My friend will send you a check because blah blah blah", or "I'm from London but I'm in the states for business, etc") it's a scam.

New telescopes should be bought direct from the manufacturer if possible, from a certified Meade, Celestron, or Orion dealer, from a telescope shop or sometimes a camera shop, or from a reputable telescope website. Never buy your telescope from a department store. They usually only carry junk lines.

First of all, he'll never outgrow his binoculars. I'm still using mine nearly every night after 50 years.

For a serious amateur astronomer, the best buy in telescopes is the largest Dobsonian reflector you can afford or transport. It will give the maximum aperture for a given price of any telescope design, and modern commercial models are well made and easy to use. There are two main manufacturers: Synta in China, sold in the US by Orion and world-wide by Sky-Watcher, and Guan Sheng in Taiwan, sold by various dealers in different parts of the world:

http://www.telescope.com/jump.jsp?itemType=CATEGOR...

http://www.skywatchertelescope.com/Dob.html

http://www.celestron.com/c2/category.php?CatID=7

I wouldn't recommend anything smaller than a 6" (150mm) Dob or anything larger than a 10" (250mm) for every day (night?) use. Prices range from around $250 to $800, depending on size and accessories.

PS Whatever you do, DON'T buy a telescope from eBay. All the scopes heavily advertised there are total junk!

Hi, i have a celestron with a 3x barrow lens. I got mine second hand for about £90, i think there about £150 new. Apart from being a bit big for the sitting room its fantastic for looking at the night Sky's, when it not cloudy that is, lol!

Obviously you (probably) have a computer. Whatever you get allow yourself the luxury and (in this day and age) the necessity of computer control. Have fun. Check prices on line but support your local economy.

Check the source.

try ebay in particular www.saben.com i got mine a 900mm on ebay for £60 that included tripod extras as well well chuffed take a peek you won,t be disappointed