Celestron 31045 AstroMaster 130EQ Newtonian Reflector Telescope, Dark Blue

Product Information

The eyepieces are average and are to be expected at this price point. The 20mm eyepiece did seem to create internal reflections, marring the narrow true field of view of just 0.9 degrees (the Full Moon’s angular diameter is just 0.5 degrees, for comparison). The 10mm eyepiece is perhaps the best of the two, but the eye relief on both is quite poor - you have to push your eyes right up into the eyepiece cup to see anything, making for uncomfortable viewing, and almost impossible viewing for spectacle wearers.

Additionally, parabolic mirrors do not suffer from spherical aberration, making them important for larger apertures, although they are more expensive. As a bonus, you will find a CD with the Starry Night Astronomy Although a 2013 AstroMaster 114EQ you can see the improvements I made to it and hope these images give you some Ideas for your AM-130EQ. I loved my little AM-114EQ and observed my first DSO's with it to include M1. We also slewed to Jupiter, which dazzled at magnitude -2.34 in the south. We pushed the AstroMaster 130EQ toward our target with ease, and are pleased to discover that the mount moves quite smoothly, with no drooping or huge amounts of resistance. At a magnification of 33x, a white disk and Galilean moons – Io, Ganymede, Europa and Callisto – is visible, but upping the magnification to 66x brings the storm systems into view.Well, the focal ratio determines how “fast” the telescope is. I’m not going to explain it in detail, but in simple words, the faster scope has a brighter image than the slow scope. Some handy little things to look at Thankyou. I’m not minding my red dot sight so far. The one you’ve replaced with looks very similar to the one that’s on mine though so maybe they’re the same. P.S.~to enjoy viewing the planets (the inner ones anyway), you dont really need to use very high magnification such as 5-8mm. I find some of the best views i have seen come with 15-25mm. Obviously you wont see as much detail but its not ALWAYS about detail. I do like to sit and watch Jupiter and its moons from a widefield view and see the moons dance around the planet.

This focal ratio is popular among beginners because it can provide wide angles of view and mirrors gathering enough light to see “almost everything” in space. The mount - it has quite a wobble to it which I’m not sure if it’s normal or not. To the extent where if I use the slow motion controls or try to adjust focus the image will go out of focus until it stops again. Although manageable I would prefer to not have to deal with this. The RA slow motion is also quite tight and in need of some sort of lubricating. I took the EQ mount and used it on my Celestron Powerseeker 114, which provides quality views despite the spherical mirror because of its longer focal length (F/7.9). Accessories include a 20mm and 10mm eyepiece, a smartphone adapter, a T-Adapter/Barlow lens, and a finderscope

The Celestron 130mm has used both mirrors in this telescope over the years which makes it a pain to verify at times, they have used a mild corrector in the drawtube when using a spherical mirror in the past though. Unfortunate you bought the kit to realize they are not very good. Actual Plossl eyepieces are a good place to start with and the GSO/ Revelation offering are quite good for the cost. The Astromaster 130 EQ is a good value for the money and an excellent choice for beginner and experienced stargazers. But at times, getting the correct information can overwhelm many intending buyers. I noticed that your Motor drive is attached lower than I had mine on the 130EQ MD. I followed instructions and had it attached to the upper (I believe it's RA). What does it turn on your scope? If you can get one that’s motorised, even better, especially if you want to do some astrophotography.

So far I’ve tightened everything up a bit and removed some of the wobble. I’ve also used some ptfe dry lube on the ra and dec slow motion controls. They now move a lot smoother although there appears to be an issue with the dec control skipping occasionally that were monitoring. If it continues I’ll be onto Celestron for a replacement I think.If you are a beginner or you are thinking about getting it as a gift for a beginner enthusiast, it’s a great choice.