Is this a good star chart for Telrad?

Hello,

Looking at picking up my first star chart. I have a Sky Quest xt 6 (6" dob) and I have a telrad on the way, i've heard of about alot of the books/star charts that are out there but i'm a little wary of which to choose? Some thing that is pretty appealing is the Sky Spot Finder Charts

http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?t=&pid=4959&m=

Can anyone verify that this is a good place to start for a chart? They look easy to use and really durable. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I also notice taht Anacortes also sells a Aurora Astro Dim Fuzzy Finder which can be purchased for specific books (i.e. peterson's field guide, nightwatch, star hoppers guide to messier, etc.) Are these good to use with the mentioned books?

Thanks!

Hello Casey! 8)

Not sure if you are aware, or if you have seen them yet, but there are many resources online with FREE Telrad Star Charts that you could get started with...

Check these sites...

http://www.utahskies.org/deepskyIndex.shtml

http://www.atmob.org/library/member/skymaps_jsmall.html

http://www.astrohbg.org/messier.php


Clear skies, and good luck! 8)

I consider the Sky Spot's Messier Telrad Charts a "must have", not only for the novice sky hound, but for a grizzled old dog like myself. I have used the 2 volumes for years and like to have them close by at public star parties. Not only for locating the objects, but having constellation lines and star names in the general area helps the public "see" where the scope is pointing. The included size, distance and other facts are great for those "How big/far is that?" questions.

Sure, there are free Messier charts online, but the bound laminated books from Sky Spot will not be ruined in the dew or blown away from your dropped clipboard on a windy night. The size and weight of each volume is easy to use one-handed while pointing out objects to others. Many times I have been asked by others at public star parties if I had my "Messier books" handy.

My only negative comments are the slick/shiny laminate used can glare back the red light and make it difficult to read at certain angles. A more matte-finish, non-glare laminate would have been better. This may not have been available years ago when I originally purchased my set. The other is on dewy nights, some pages tend to stick together, but it is a minor point. I did tab the edges with those stick-on page tabs (in groups of 10) to make finding/flipping through the books easier, especially when wearing gloves.

While these books are invaluable when making a run at the Messier Marathon, they cannot compete with a good, all sky atlas. With a bound, laminated Field edition of Sky Atlas 2000 and these Messier quick charts, you will be set for many hours of enjoyment under the stars.

Hope this helps,
Jeff

As a newbie I like to download a free copy of skymaps.com sky chart for the month. This at least lets me know what I'm looking for in my night sky relative to any given night/month. I look at the Messier items on the chart. I then go to most any online Messier site to see what I'm supposed to be looking for visually since most now have an astrophotograph of each Messier item.

I have all the books, but I'm lazy. My favorite is this site for pictures, http://www.ngcic.org/dss/dss_messier.asp

M92 is one of my new views this month and I was surprised, beside the comet.

I do plan to get more knowledge on the sky, but right now I want an easy way to get in some meaningful viewing time. I make my list from the skymap.

The gentleman who sold me my first reflector noticed that I had a Palm and pointed out that the Planetarium program has a telrad finder built into the star charts. As a beginner, I find it far better than star charts because you can put it on night vision mode and look at the stars in real time right there beside your telescope.