116 replies to this topic

[Gregory Gross]

A few years back, I found Questar’s magazine ads to be so compelling that I began collecting them.

[RichA]

Also the Questar Shoots Deep space inside front cover ad with the photo of the Lagoon Nebula by Leo Herzl with a Q3.5 piggybacked on a Q7.

 

Dave

You couldn't help being impressed with 2hr hand-guided shots of galaxies with a 90mm f/15 instrument. 

[bobhen]

Wow, 4" Unitron for $785 new.

According to an inflation calculator, $785.00 in 1960 would be $7,005.00 in today's dollars. 

 

And the median family income in 1960 was $5,600.00. Today (2019) the US median family income is $69,000.00

 

Bob

Edited by bobhen, 06 August 2022 - 08:06 AM.

[jsiska]

Other than the old Edmund Scientific Catalogs; this add - I ended up getting an 8" model. I even got a very similar deer skin leather jacket, which I've since outgrown. This was the very first advertisement for the Meade Research Series Telescopes. It was on page four of the June 1979 issue of ASTRONOMY magazine.

 

Edited by jsiska, 06 August 2022 - 09:14 PM.

[brian dewelles]

So when i was in 8th grade (1969), the edmund scientific catalog was a treasure chest but the march 69 cover shot on sky and telescope blew me away. I probably still have an affinity for big scopes because of it.

The guy found a classic 12" f/ 16.7 achromat in a shop in Manhattan and pieced together a scope around the lens. To me the ATM build is the best part, i hope he never changed it, its beautiful. When i was 13, i wanted to be like this guy and i still do.

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[Bob Myler]

How well thought-out were the Classic telescopes

found in the old Sears Master Catalogs?

 

Hopefully, a wee bit better than this....

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[ccwemyss]

I think I've always been a marketing skeptic. I did love to look through the Edmund catalogs, and bought a Deluxe Space Conqueror when I was in elementary school. It was a big step up from the Tasco 12TE, but the mount was frustrating to use. Those two scopes taught me not to trust ads.

 

When I worked in the scope shop, I bought an orange tube C8 (because I could afford it) that I was immediately dissatisfied with, and retrofitted with a worm drive, an 8x50 finder, fine adjustments for altitude and azimuth on the wedge, and better eyepieces. As I've related previously, our Celestron rep looked it over thoroughly, taking pictures and notes, and before he left, we also told him they should change the color to black (the Super C8 was announced a year later). We used to sit around the shop, prior to that, laughing about Celestron resorting to using models in their ads, since they hadn't really changed anything about the scopes in years.

 

Dealers have a meta-level perspective on manufacturer ads. That reinforced my skepticism. For example, we admired how Meade's ads were a study in leading people into thinking they were getting more than they were, but without actually saying it. 

 

What I really liked was using our Pentax refractors, but they seemed too expensive for the aperture, at least for my budget at the time.

 

But what did turn me on was Roland Christen's article about his triplet design, and talking to him about the 6" NASA glass version that he was about to advertise. That was the first scope I bought that lived up to the claims of its maker.

 

Chip W. 

[bobhen]

 

But what did turn me on was Roland Christen's article about his triplet design, and talking to him about the 6" NASA glass version that he was about to advertise. That was the first scope I bought that lived up to the claims of its maker.

 

Chip W. 

Sounds somewhat similar to my experience.

 

Back in 1978 I bought a 8” SCT that was mediocre optically but back then surplus cash was in short supply so I used it for 11-years. During those 11-years I got to observe with some other scopes but none were what could be called really high-end. Then I took a leap and bought an Astro-Physics 6” F9 triplet. That scope showed me what a high quality scope/refractor could do.

 

Bob

[tim53]

Other than the old Edmund Scientific Catalogs; this add - I ended up getting an 8" model. I even got a very similar deer skin leather jacket, which I've since outgrown. This was the very first advertisement for the Meade Research Series Telescopes. It was on page four of the June 1979 issue of ASTRONOMY magazine.

 

DSC03157 34%.JPG

I helped build the mockups for that ad.  They were non-functional, had no optics in the tubes, and were made from Cave castings that were modified in house using particle board, bondo, and welded on thrust surfaces.  Lots of fun!

 

The 8" would have been SWEET on that mount.  

[tim53]

How well thought-out were the Classic telescopes

found in the old Sears Master Catalogs?

 

Hopefully, a wee bit better than this....

off topic, of course, but this reminded me.  When we were kids, even seat belts were rare.  I remember when I was little, and we were coming home from my grandparent's house after dark, I'd sleep in the back window of my parents' 1953 Hudson Hornet.  If they'd hit anything, I'd have probably have flown through the windshield.

[jsiska]

I helped build the mockups for that ad.  They were non-functional, had no optics in the tubes, and were made from Cave castings that were modified in house using particle board, bondo, and welded on thrust surfaces.  Lots of fun!

 

The 8" would have been SWEET on that mount.  

Wow! Interesting; thanks for this information.

[RMay]

Johnny Carson would have been great too!

Johnny Carson owned a Questar 3.5…

Ron

[combatdad]

Pretty much any ad from Unitron.  They must have had a great ad agency.

From the Unitron History project: "According to Philip Fine, Lawrence Fine’s son, the advertising aspect of the business was another one of Larry’s strengths and he was very involved in this aspect of the business.  He wrote all the copy himself; did paste up boards in their study.  One of the advertisements he remembered and one he still has the printing plate for shows a Greek Goddess looking through a very early telescope.  He also remembered an advertisement that talked about all the catalogs they had laying around, and requested prospective customers to please take them off their hands.  He recalled that Larry’s wife and he and Karen thought it was really corny but soon after they received numerous requests for the catalogs."

 

For additional information and list of S&T advertisement see: https://www.unitronh...advertisements/.

 

Dave

[Terra Nova]

Johnny Carson owned a Questar 3.5…

Ron

He also owned a Unitron model 114.

[mfalls]

off topic, of course, but this reminded me.  When we were kids, even seat belts were rare.  I remember when I was little, and we were coming home from my grandparent's house after dark, I'd sleep in the back window of my parents' 1953 Hudson Hornet.  If they'd hit anything, I'd have probably have flown through the windshield.

I recently took four of my grandchildren for a short country ride in my half legal 1953 Studebaker Champion. First thing I said was ' fasten your seatbelts' and they looked but there were none to be found. 

[CHASLX200]

Johnny Carson owned a Questar 3.5…

Ron

I heard it was a C14.
 

[Kasmos]

I heard it was a C14.
 

Here's Johnny...

He also had a C14

Edited by Kasmos, 09 August 2022 - 01:44 AM.

[Kasmos]

 

 

Not a bad three to own

Edited by Kasmos, 09 August 2022 - 01:49 AM.

[Chris MN]

How about this "one"?  Ads originated by amateurs!

 

I kept this issue because I bought a C11 Ultima from this issue.

 

I looked forward to getting TSM as much as S&T.

 

Chris N

Cedar, MN

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[Darren Drake]

How about the 6 inch Unitron..

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[grif 678]

How about this "one"?  Ads originated by amateurs!

 

I kept this issue because I bought a C11 Ultima from this issue.

 

I looked forward to getting TSM as much as S&T.

 

Chris N

Cedar, MN

The Starry Messenger, I loved that. I could not wait until the day it came in the mail. I bought several items from that booklet. I wish I still had some of those to browse through for nostalgic reasons. Anyone have any that they would like to get rid of.

[CHASLX200]

Johnnys-114.jpg

 

Johnnys-Q.jpg

 

Johnnys-C14.jpg

Not a bad three to own

I wonder if he was a Tele vue lover?

[CHASLX200]

How about this "one"?  Ads originated by amateurs!

 

I kept this issue because I bought a C11 Ultima from this issue.

 

I looked forward to getting TSM as much as S&T.

 

Chris N

Cedar, MN

I loved the Starry mess from late 1985 until Astromart put em out of biss. Once i saw a friend use AM on a computer i had to go out and buy a Computer that day back in 1997. AM was hopping with ads back then.

Edited by CHASLX200, 10 August 2022 - 06:09 PM.

[CHASLX200]

How about the 6 inch Unitron..

My top dream scope.  But at 880 lbs i could never use it at my house.

[Darren Drake]

Ah how about that amazing scope that can do 700X....

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