Just bought this as a gift for my high-school sophomore daughter.
I spent many time comparison shopping on-line. Ordered it via Amazon, and it arrived in just several days.
Two boxes. Took me a bit longer to set it up than others who have posted here, but screwing together the base pieces was fairly simple, and then mounting the tube to the base was a snap.
I such as the handle, as it makes it much more portable, even though it can be nevertheless bulky and I am still working on the best method for carrying it outdoors each night for our family sky-watching.
Anyway, I Genuinely like it so far.
We bought the 3x Barlow lens too.
We began employing it in the course of the new moon phase, and Saturn was out.
Very cool to see Saturn’s rings so clearly. Then last night we utilised it to appear at the half-moon, and all I can say is..WOW! I felt like I was orbiting the moon and seeking down from 60 miles. You possibly can see shadows of individual craters, plus the clarity is wonderful. Extremely crisp image.
The 3x Barlow genuinely enhances the view, and definitely magnifies nicely.

I also like the way it is possible to rotate and pitch the tube.
I didn’t would like to purchase a ‘scope with a tri-pod since from the additional weight and I didn’t desire to pay for the tri-pod.
The base that comes with the xt8 is basic, but extremely functional. I consider it works properly, and I consider it will be uncomplicated to carry it in our minivan out towards the high country where the light pollution is reduced.
So far we are extremely happy with this buy.

click here to buy it on amazon
Orion SkyQuest XT8 Classic Dobsonian Telescope