Which Scope Do I Choose Now?

Hey everyone I am going to have a $900 dollar budget in about 3 or 4 more weeks and I will try to have another 200 or 300 in 2 or 3 weeks after that.Just so you know I am disabled and on a fixed income so the funds are not easy to come by.The two scopes in my sig I am selling to my son that is where part of my money is comming from.I have been into photography since the early 70's and I am not a professional photographer I just enjoy taking pictures.I now want to try Astrophotography.I have looked at scopes for months and I could use a little help deciding for sure which one would be the best choice.I have been looking at the Celestron C8N GT I just like that scope and everything I have read up on it says it is good for Astrophotography.To those of you that are refactor folks or cat folks etc I am not saying anything bad about you so please dont take it that way .I just dont like those types of scopes.I like reflectors.I do know from all my reasearch that reflectors are not the best scopes for Astrophotography but I still like them.I am not wanting to get into it hot and heavy per say but I would like to be able to take a descent shot if one were to arise and I have seen some great shots taken thru a reflector.Also I want to set the scope up in the long run to be operated from a pc.The C8N GT can be setup that way.Also I have looked at dobs and I have looked at buying a dob and then a good EQ big enough to support it yada yada yada.That is where I am at this point.Oh yea part of my disability is my back.I have degenerative disc and joint disease and in my lower back 3 ruptured disc so weight to a point is an issue.The C8 can be taken down to OTA,Mount and Tripod.I may also want to take it to a dark site somewhere so transportability is not on the top of the list but is important.If you have any questions please feel free to ask.

So now everyone The floor is yours,,,

I'll stress this. The mount is the most critical item in Astrophotography. The C8 is an excellent scope with a long focal length. That means a higher magnification when imaging at prime focus. The higher the magnification the more precise the mount alignment must be when shooting unguided images. At the C8 focal length a focal reducer me be needed. The shorter focal lengths of a refractor are more forgiving because they provide a wide field view and are lighter in weight. There is a general rule of thumb that a mount to be effective when used for astrophotography should not be carrying much more than half its capacity rating. That includes scope, camera and whatever else is in use.

Just some food for thought.

Hey thanks for the response.I will say this Celestron's C6R GT is one of the few refractors that I have looked at.
I will say this also I will be open to ALL suggestions about any scope.I do know that the C8 comes on the CG5 and from what I have read it is really pushing it as far as the weight goes.The C6R is also on the CG5.I realize and understand what you are saying and I have thought about it alot.Maybe I need to look more at refractors and I do like the looks of the C6.After I read my starting post I see where I stated I did not like all refractors I did not mean it like that I meant They are not my favorites.I can however get used to one(a refractor) I want to get the most aperature for my money to do some astrophotography and viewing with.Maybe I said it right that time.As far as Maks and Cas's go I really dont want one but as I said I am open to suggestions.I have been looking at Reflectors because they are not as expensive for one and I like the way they look.How would the C6R stand up against the C8N as far as Astrophotography is concerned?
I will say this I am open to ANY and All suggestions. Thanks

Okay... let me toss comment on this....

NUMBER ONE get a SMALL SCOPE. Very light one. Focus on that. Yes, apature rules, but long exposure helps reduce that. Reflectors tend to be cheaper then refractors, often by a large margin. In fact a 6" SN style works great. Now, couple things you need to make sure of...

1) Upgrade the focuser, you want motorized if possible, and definitely one with SMALL steps, and locks.
2) Get way too big of a mount. Spend your money HERE. You want your setup under HALF the max of the mount if you can manage it. 99%, if not 105% of your issues will come from this piece of the puzzle alone. Overkill here is good. Very good.

As for the f numbers... the lower the f (ie f/4) the lower the power of your imager, and the less tolerance for error. I prefer lower F/#'s, but if you want to do higher power work like planets, you will want to consider bigger F#'s. Powermates and other tools can adjust that F/# after the fact so do not stress to much about it. I did all my work at F/4 till I had to sell the rig.

The C8 is as big as you want to go, and even then you'd be better off with it on a losmandy G11 or something of that class. F/5 is good, but remember with reflectors, especially faster ones you'll get coma (stars become streaks towards the corners).

People RARELY shoot afocal for astrophotography, you'll be doing prime focus.

Ideal setup would be a CG5 ASGT mount with an ed80 to start, it's small, light, ok f ratio, and short focal length. Then for visual add a 6" or 8" dob, but that's probably pushing your budget.

Would you clarify as to what you mean by 6" SN so I will be sure I understand what you mean for sure.

A 6" SN is a schmidt-newt, a reflector with a corrector to allow a faster f ratio and shorter focal length.

Just make sure you'll have enough for other accessories, like the t ring, t ring adapter, remote shutter release, a telrad is a good idea for the new scope, and upgrading the focuser to a lower profile one is probably needed on most reflectors.

Ok that is what I thought,Thanks.Any Ideas as to which scopes to look at?One scope I am looking at is the Meade - 6 inch LXD75 SN-6AT with UHTC and as I had stated earlier the Celestron C6N GT any othe suggestions?

I have been looking at the Meade 6"SN

That Meade OTA is great option, but the focuser that mead puts on those OTA is total junk, and I would highly suggest you replace it ASAP. The LXD75 mount could do it, but I think you might be pushing it a little. If you can not afford a better mount at this time (which with your budget you can not), then get the LXD75 and plan to upgrade it later. The LXD75 could be a good starting platform to get your feet wet, and if you stick with like 60 second exposures it probably will perform fine.

And please do not get us wrong, good astrophotography is hard, time consuming, its frustrating and many give up on it completely. It also can get VERY expensive fast. Trying to do it on a budget like you are will make it much harder, but you budget is workable for entry level stuff. That is about the budget I was working with when I got my start.

after thinking it over, a telescope/camera combo is like an EP- (different power) so i would agree with Z on something like an 80mm ED to start off more or less wide field, you can always get a cheap newt or larger aperture for visual and slap that on the mount- which would be good for imaging the planets also- for the mount, just to let you know the ASGT is available new at a special price of $599- you can get an 80mm cheaper from astrofart, and probably an 8" dob later on from somewhere like B&H photo at a bargain price, some tube rings and then have both the 8" EQ and dob mounted scope

I'd pick the CG5 ASGT mount over the LXD75, though the meade is still pretty good.

If you can pull off getting an ed80 now along with a CG5 ASGT and then get either a dob or say an 8" OTA for visual work down the road, that's the best way to go. If you can only manage 1 OTA, 6" SN is probably the one to go with.