You never know I might get this past the family financial controller...

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Meade-10-LX20...item45ef1b2b54

I'd have to get it shipped to a friend of mine on the West Coast but it looks sweet to me.

EDIT: Or this one http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I strongly suggest you do NOT buy astronomy equipment on eBay, unless you really know what you're getting into. Astromart or Cloudy Nights Classifieds are the way to go for used astronomy equipment.

Also, you are asking us to talk you IN to the scope, I think you can do that yourself, but making the right decision, that takes a bit more.

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You can't really tell the difference between drunken rambling and sober blogging.

I'd be leery of buying equipment like that off Ebay as well, unless there's a way to check it out in person first.

Is this a first scope for you? What is your level of interest/knowledge about this hobby?

It would be my first SCT that's for sure. I've been an avid amateur telescopist for 25 years, and I now have an opportunity financially to buy a much bigger light bucket than I've had previously.

Hey ITM, where are you based? Are you in Australia?

Your enthusiasm in commendable. As redshifter / Siguy say, and many others here would probably react along similar lines, careful with the scopes on EBay. Don't you think the seller is in the USA?

my shiny tuppence squeaketh...the warranty aspect would be null/void outside continental USA. The shipping costs would comprise a large percentage of the landed cost and no warranty hey!

Unless, of course, you've found this being auctioned at eBay's Australian site...
re-reading your second line at OP, are you in the States, as the seller seems to be?

Even so, I'd question the warranty aspect. Old Murphy's law strikes unannounced.

Wish you the best with clear skies and all that (and right decisions for eBay 'scopes)

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clear skies

If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe. CARL SAGAN

Mak: Pass the pepperoni please.
Fazor: "Hail, Bautainia! We pledge our hearts to thee! Science and woo, some babbling too, and astron-oh-meee!"
slang: And it made ash out of yew and tree.

Just curious as to the reasoning behind this. What would make buying a telescope on eBay different from buying any other expensive/delicate item?

I'm sure there's sound logic behind your recommendation, just curious as to what it is since there seem to be some pretty good deals on eBay. Also, something about Astromart requiring a fee to even view full ad details kinda rubs me the wrong way.

I've bought telescopes on eBay on two different occasions.

The first was when I was a complete newbie, two or three years ago, and I bought a 6'' "Newtonian" which made some department store scopes look good, as well as a 50mm toy which I thought would be my "grab and go". This is why I don't recommend buying off of eBay.

The second is when I found a complete vintage 62mm Celestron Cometron f4.8 refractor. I had a bit more experience and knew about the specific telescope, and knew I wanted it.

If you're a newbie, you're taking too much of a risk buying off of eBay. But if you have some experience, then it's your call.

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You can't really tell the difference between drunken rambling and sober blogging.

Thanks for the feedback. I couldn't see the problem with eBay that is somehow fixed with Astromart or Cloudy Nights - I can't physically inspect the item before purchasing but I can assess the reputation of the seller on eBay unlike either of the other two, and eBay has fraud protection, and better pictures (usually)

I do know what I'm looking for, but in Australia the dominant brand in that size is Celestron, which I dislike because of the single prong side mounting which seems guaranteed to be unstable. Hence Meade LX90 or LX200.

Mahesh: I live in the Gippsland area of Victoria.

Ok, I see what you're saying. That makes sense. I do think, though, that the same mistake could be made in any other venue. It doesn't seem specific to eBay. If one were to stick with known manufacturers of quality equipment, and check reviews of specific model, I don't see why a person couldn't come out just fine on eBay.

For example, in the specific case of the scope linked in the OP, while I don't have much experience at all, I have read several dozen reviews of the LX200 written by people that do have the experience. Factor in that the seller has 793 feedbacks, 100% of them positive, and I would personally feel comfortable bidding on that auction, especially since the "extras" are worth nearly what the bid price was when I stumbled on this post yesterday. (In fact I did bid on it, but it quickly got bid higher than what I can spend right now with Christmas on the way and all...)

I guess what I'm saying is based on a lot of previous experience with eBay, if I were the winning bidder on the auction he linked to, I would feel confident that I would receive a working 10" Meade LX200, and that based on the reviews I've read, the LX200 is a well made, quality example of a SCT. This, of course, leaves aside the issue of whether the 10" LX200 is the right scope for me, but if it turned out not to be, it's pretty likely that I could throw it back on eBay and recover most, if not all, of what I had spent.

That said, one definitely has to remember that there's always a certain risk associated with buying online. Even if the seller isn't out to scam anybody, a lot of people just don't understand how to package things properly. I bought a fairly expensive guitar a few years back that survived the UPS gauntlet through nothing but pure luck. It showed up simply wrapped in thin cardboard with no padding. The package handlers must have been music fans and not subjected it to their usual destruction efforts.

ETA: Note to the OP. I have very, very little hands on experience with telescopes. This post is just my own personal thoughts, not intended to sway your own purchasing decision in one direction or the other.

Celestron does have scopes with a double prong mount, but they're quite a bit more expensive. For instance, the 8" NexStar sells on Amazon for $1200 new, while the 8" CPC goes for $2000.

Granted, I'd expect the NexStar line to show up in the used market more often.