The focuser is a classical Crayford 2” focuser, which I think works quite well - you can adjust the tilt of it, and it is really firm and solid, even when you use pile up optical elements on top of one another. I am given to understand that wildlife is scared by unnatural sounds, so this one fits the bill nicely. I think it would be good to avoid details on how it was delivered or what accessories I have bought for it. Similarly, I will not spend much time discussing how it performs when observing in detail, because that belongs, I believe, somewhere in the observing section. One thing that really bothers me though is the dust cover for the OTA - when it’s cold outside (and it usually is), it probably shrinks which means that when you pack your things and head home, the cover keeps falling off of the OTA, which is really annoying. The solid tube Skywatcher 12" dob is no longer produced and has been replaced by the Flextube version. However, I as yet have no tendencies to step into the astrophotography area (because I don’t want to bankrupt myself), so for me, the combination of large scope on a dobsonian mount is ideal. The plastic parts touch the metal tube, which results in occasional squeak and creak now and then, which can get really annoying. It's easy! The finder scope is located in quite a convenient place, but I can’t really comment on using the default straight-through finder, because I have immediately replaced it with an RA finder (same spec), but I can see that using the default finder may get a bit awkward when you try locating something near the zenith; there is no problem with my RA finder in this area. Both have the same optics in them though. Great review! A refractor telescope of similar size and image quality would be much more expensive. What a beast. I reckon that having a 12” dobsonian (solid tube) is the reasonable maximum for one person (albeit strong) to handle. The GSO dobs use the same mirrors and mirror cells that the Meade Lightbridge's use. Apart from that, it is all quite pleasantly well made. With smaller telescopes, like 4.5” or even 8” ones, transportability of such device is not really a primary concern for most people, but when it comes to 12” and larger, moving the thing about can really become an issue. Me, personally, I am not a perfectionist, so somewhat blurry stars on the edges of the field of view don’t bother me, but I can see how that might be a problem for some people. The OTA sits on a dobsonian mount - very basic, totally functional. Once the OTA is in, I load the mount in the boot – there is no problem with the estate car, but hatchback struggles, and I have to put it in horizontally - it is like solving the Hedgehog in the Cage puzzle. I wanted the largest scope that a single person could move (in 2 pieces) and that would fit in a small sedan (Acura Integra and Honda Civic). Having a detailed analysis of several aspects of the Sky-Watcher 12 Collapsible Dobsonian Telescope, we can conclude that it is a suitable Dobsonian since it enables you to clearly watch out the deep-sky objects and gives the least number of problems to the user. COMPLETED - (sold) Skywatcher HEQ5 Pro £650 reduced price, Hard to transport, takes up a lot of room. When I head out observing by car, I usually load the OTA first. Thank you for this review. The XX12 was a serious contender, with its trusses and built-in DSCs, but the price would have been close to $1,400, including shipping and, call me old-fashioned, but I don’t feel that “thrill of the kill” with either go-to or push-to systems. This just proves it large scope/dobsonian mount is a really foolproof concept, even though it’s purely for visual use. I just got the Skywatcher 12 Collapsible Dobsonian. great review.i have the flextube auto version of your scope,same mirror etc but a bit more transportable due to not having such a hugely long tube.i was a bit funny about transporting mine to start with but now i can pack and unpoack it from the car in about 15 minutes so its actually not that much of a big deal.im only 5'7 and 11 stone so if i can handle one anyone can.i actually was close to ordering a solid tube 300p but changed my desires too a meade 12" lightbridge but someone offered me a second hand 330p flex for a good price and had to have it.you can actually get a solid tube 16" orion dob,bet thats a monster to transport. I've had the 300p Flextube GoTo for a year now and am delighted with it. In fact, there are no problems at all with the scope, but customers had issues with the customer support since they were not very well with responding to the queries of customers. Innovative Design. I once invited a friend over for some observing, who has never seen a telescope of any sort up close - he was able to observe Jupiter and follow it on his own in 10 minutes or so. For sale is my beloved but now superfluous to requirements HEQ5 Pro for £650. I can finally dive into observing dim and small galaxies and galaxy clusters, and I can finally see some famous objects like the Stephan’s Quintet or the Veil Nebula. The OTA is cradled on four plastic knobs, two on each side, which works quite well, although sometimes, the resulting movement in the altitude axis stammers a bit - I have seen some DIY modifications, where people replaced the knobs with ball bearings, and I think it might be worthwhile, but for now, I will go with the default setup. Of course that being only Alt-Az type mount operated only manually, you are limited to visual observations only, or occasionally, some webcam planetary astrophotography (but even that is hard enough with high magnifications). Planetary nebulae and larger galaxies finally show some internal structures, and with the image being so bright, observing planets with high magnifications delivers really good contrast. It can be collapsed into two separate sections: the base and the optical tube. Sky Watcher Flextube 300 Dobsonian 12-inch Collapsible Large Aperture Telescope – Portable, Easy to Use, Perfect for Beginners, White/Black (S11740) Visit the Sky Watcher Store 4.6 out of 5 stars 20 ratings I am fully aware that the primary concern when moving a telescope is its weight – I am afraid that I do not know the exact figures of 300P, but if I would guess, I would say the telescope weighs some 40 kg (sorry about the metric), with distribution being 50/50 mount/OTA, but I cannot be sure. are made of metal as well. Aperture: 12.5 inches (30 cm) Focal length: 1,500 mm Focal ratio: f/5 Weight: Mount 23 kg; Tube 20 kg I've owned a Meade Lightbridge 12" in the past but I've always wanted a solid tube Skywatcher 12" dobsonian as it was one of those that first showed me spiral structure in a galaxy (M51) and my first supernova. Another cracking and well illustrated review - thanks again. All you need is to get accustomed to the whole flipped image idea, and anyone can enjoy himself. When observing bright objects or stars, you get the traditional diffraction spikes, as expected. Skywatcher Heritage 150p or SW Skyliner 150p? Its OTA is big, its dobsonian mount is big, it weighs a lot, it’s pretty hard to handle; pretty much as you might expect. It was quite a pleasant surprise, thought I reckon there was a mistake in the description in the first place. The sky never looked so full to me! Anyway, as you might have guessed, Skywatcher Skyliner 300P dobsonian telescope is no midget. Previously, the only telescope I had was an Orion Shorttube 80 that I put on a Camera Tripod. Furthermore, the default matt black paint with which the inside of the OTA is painted, is really not bad, but I have taken the liberty of flocking it already link here: ) - I actually don’t believe it helps a great deal, but it is good to be able to exploit the performance capabilities of the optical system to the limit, and flocking can’t do any bad. Furthermore, the bright image enhances the colour experience, which means that when for example observing open star clusters, their different colours become apparent. There is no point in going into details, but a list of some of my observing reports is below: http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/150839-yet-another-unexpected-session/, http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/150457-unexpected-session/, http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/150127-surrounded-by-forrest-19th-may-2012/, http://stargazerslounge.com/topic/139441-at-last-a-full-on-session-with-my-12/. I was going to review my newly aquired nirvana 16mm the other night but I kept getting distracted with the views it gave me, which I suppose is a review in itself. Only thing you really need to be careful about then are doors (for obvious reasons). 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