Overpriced Astro Gear

Hello all. I'm relatively new to this hobby (about two years) and I'm having a great time spending my hard earned money on stuff to improve (?) my astronomy experience. I'm not one to begrudge an entrepeneur his profit (I have my own business too), but sometimes I have the feeling that anything marketed to those of us who buy things labeled "astro" or "vue" is priced for suckers. (Who came up with the term "vue" by the way; was Nagler the first?)

My latest burr-under-the-saddle is for the dessicant being sold nearby for astronomy equipment cases. Now moisture protection is certainly important, but color indicating silica gel is not rocket science. It's a true industrial commodity, made by the ton in the U.S. and Asia. Without breaking a sweat you can find it in 5 lb. cans at industrial supply places for about $6 a pound. If you buy 50 lbs. I bet it's half that. For fun, calculate the cost per pound for the astronomy version.

Another one is the green laser pointer. Have you noticed how the price is dropping quickly on these? There have got to be factories in China working three shifts cranking these out. Be patient, I bet you'll see these in flea markets in the not-too-distant future for $5, three for $10.

I'd like to pass along one money saving astronomy tip, and maybe if anyone else chooses to respond to this posting they will do the same. After all, the more we save on asto gadgets and gizmos the more we can spend on scopes and eyepieces.

My finder has a red illuminated reticle that uses those SR-44 button watch batteries at about $3 apiece in most stores(mine uses 3, some use 2). If you're like me you forget to turn the thing off occasionally, and there goes three batteries. The weekend flea market in my area has several dealers selling cheap Chinese imported batteries (the ones I never buy for my flashlights cause I figure they are no good). Well they sell a 10 pack of SR-44s for $1.00. They seem to work fine, and when I leave my finder on I say "damn, 30 cents" instead of "damn, 9 dollars."

Any other ideas for saving money on "astro" products? Thanks,

Dennis

It is certainly true that you can spend a ton in this hobby ... just like any other. I know people that have many thousands tied up in RC cars, cigars/pipes, guns, first editions, Beanie Babies, etc. Some are in it for the entertainment and camaraderie ... others just because they have more dollars than sense.

I think many in this hobby do have a good sense of value. Some make their own parts (dew shields, solar filters, cables, power supplies, chairs) and some have even created small companies and are now making their wares for others. I say more power to them! I personally have made quite a few Autostar->PC interface cables and sold them here for 1/2 of what Meade charges.

Another indicator is the fact that this site is always filled with ads and I would tend to believe that over 65% of the items sell ... probably with an avg price of 50-85% of new/retail. I grant you that the dessicant is overpriced compared to something you can make yourself. However many do not have the skills, tools, time or desire to make this or to justify buying 5 lbs of dessicant beads. (Actually you could probably get by with about 4 to 8 oz and never have to purchase more as these can be dried in the oven and reused).

China does seems to be grabbing the lion's share of consumer goods in the US market over the past 5 years. I imagine this will continue to increase as they gain experience, build more mfg facilities and keep their trade status intact. I personally would rather buy something made in the US, but when the choice is a 102mm APO for $2200 (USA made) or $800 (made in China) ... it's really difficult to stay patriotic.

Dennis, it's not just astro stuff. NBC news had a little spot on the cost/quality of bottled water. Most city water costs pennies per gallon, but but bottled water at $1 for 12 oz. comes out to more than $10 per gallon. Yet, sales of bottled water has skyrocketed in the last decade. What I don't understand is why many people never finish the water they buy in bottles! Can those cheap 44's be had commercially?

Try http://www.mcmaster.com/ for mechanical parts for you scope (large knobs etc). SR44 batteries can be bought from ebay for about $.35 each.

Doug W.

Anytime you have a small specialty market, you will find overpriced merchandise. Some of it is priced that way simply because the manufacturer needs a high margin to make a low-volume business profitable. Sometimes it's just because there isn't enough competition to drive prices down, although the introduction of good-quality Chinese products is changing that for a lot of things.

Also, at the upper end of the market you have things that are luxury goods and priced accordingly.

But there are a lot of crossover products where you can certainly find much less expensive equivalents from non-astronomy sources. The dessicants you mention are a good example. If you don't mind the extra work of making your own packages, you can buy the bulk stuff as you mentioned. Or you can go to dessicants.com or dehumidifier.com and buy ready-made re-useable dessicant capsules for around $5.

Another example is the aluminum eyepiece cases sold for $50 or more that are essentially identical to the tool case Lowe's sells for $24.

Other hobbies are similarly susceptible to commodity products being re-packaged or re-labeled and sold for ridiculous prices. Caveat emptor as usual.