Polaris 130mm

[jwnrw]

This gets some really good reviews as a good starting point which will give long service to a newbie to intermediate sky gazer. I have had my hands on one of these, and while the tripod and mount are the sturdiest, they certainly are better than many other entry-level products. While I would prefer more aperature, to be honest, I think a dob will simply be too much to lug around and store. Anyone with experience on this scope? I thought I'd add a couple of decent eyepieces and a telrad or rigel finder as well as some tripod sand bag weights and tripod shock absorbing feet. I am taking my time on this and am in no immediate rush so long as I get something in the next few months.

[Lady Fraktor]

Adding weight to an already unstable tripod does not improve things much other than add weight.
The vibration suppression pads will help more and doing things such as using super glue in the plastic to metal joints will be move beneficial for tripod stability.
Re-greasing and tightening the nuts/ bolts on the RA/ Dec axis will get rid of some of the slop as well.
The telescope itself is good though I am not sure if the focuser is still a plastic one or not. There is a more stable metal one sold aftermarket if wanted.

[jwnrw]

Focus Scientific - our local astronomy store do a ton of after-market adjustments to the tripod to make it substantially more stable. The do pretty much what you recommend above. Insofar as the focuser is concerned, that, frankly is my big bugaboo. Ideally, I'd like a 2" eyepiece with 1.25 adapter for wider-angle views. What do you recommend? I am guessing that I'll have to drill holes -- ugh, really didn't want to do that to a brand new scope.