Best astrograph for under $500

I hate to say it but "astrograph" and "under $500" is a nearly impossible combination. 

Just my .02…

Rafael Amarins:
135mm F2.0 Full Frame Telephoto

I'm looking for something with a focal length of at least 300. Sorry I should have specified.

Rafael Amarins:
135mm F2.0 Full Frame Telephoto

I'm looking for something with a focal length of at least 300. Sorry I should have specified.

I would highly recommend keeping the focal length no more than half of that if you want reasonable results from a Star Adventurer.  300mm is wayy too much, and the weight of something like the scope you first suggested FARRR exceeds it's capacity.    The only saving grace for a longer focal length is if you have a camera with large pixels, say at least 5um.

Roki 135 is a tried, tested, and proven little platform.  You're going to have an extremely difficult time beating it for the price you are willing to spend.

Meh…

If you can find the right used telescope you could get a better one for under $500. Maybe a little bit bigger than 50 or 60mm. A telescope you can pick up and checkout before you buy ideally.

Your best bet is going to be a good quality camera lens, or a small newtonian with a quality coma corrector.

Your mount is really going to limit your options in that respect… 

Some of the older Nikon 300mm f/4.5's are incredibly flat and sharp, then you've got the AF-S 300mm f/4 too… You might even find a 400mm f/4.5 in your budget used, but I've not tested one of those myself… I had a lot of experience with the 300mm f/4.5 with a full frame sensor a few years back, the results were truly stunning!

Canon have some absolute ripper lenses too. The Canon 135 f/2, 200 f/2.8 (prime, not zoom) are both amazing
Rokinon/Samyang 135mm f/2.


Newtonians from 130mm to 150mm at f/4 will be great, but in a decent breeze, your results may vary because of the mount..

Askar FMA180  or Skywatcher Evoguide 50ed. I have the Skywatcher and it’s pretty fast at f4.8 but you will need the Starizona field flattener. Both should be under $500. Watch Pretty Average Astro on Youtube he demonstrates one very well. Poor man’s Redcat 51?

I can probably save a bit and get this would it work: https://a.co/d/ab2EyHQ

One second thought, no I'll probably get the one you recommended, I'd need around an 11mm spacer for my camera and the flattener you recommended. But I can only find 10mm ones. Any suggestions?

The SW 72ED is a very nice scope for a beginner but I had big trouble balancing it on the Star Adventurer. You need a sturdy tripod for sure and a longer dovetail bc the one that comes with the 72ED is unusable. But it delivers nice results and if you are careful it is workable.

Check out my first images for reference.

As other people have pointed out, the Rokinon 135mm is a superb little lens, not heavy at all and pairs well with the SA. Dont underestimate how fast it is, you will get results in no time.

I edited the post, I think I'll get the smaller one than upgrade my mount to like an heq-5 or something then get a guide camera and a larger scope.

Cosmetatos:

Astrotech AT60ED FPL53 Lanthanum with field flattener 360mm   Canon 300mm F4

 This is one of the best choices and leaves room for improvement once you upgrade your mount, your camera, autofocuser etc.

The Evoguide50 is really good value as it is under your budget of 500$ (even after including the flattener -get the starizona one), BUT - the focuser is not that great, difficult to add autofocuser in the future and personally I had some slight tilt issues - I could not get all the corners to be in good focus

I can always start using the evoguide 50 as a guide scope for a better telescope.

Sw 72ed and ovl field flattener might count as a budget astrograph?

If you squint while looking at it ;)

$400