The 75mm Unitron refractor from 1985–87

My first truly excellent telescope was a Unitron model with following optical specifications: Aperture D 75 mm,focal length (F) of 1200 mm.

Unitron telescopes were high-quality instruments made in Japan, available from the 1950s through the 1980s. The Model 142 shown here carried a hefty price tag of 2,800 DM in the 1983 price list.

In the spring of 1985, I was lucky enough to get the second-to-last instrument during Manfred Wachter's clearance sale in Tübingen-Bodelshausen, Germany

During my visit, I was able to speak at length with Mr. Wachter about his career as a telescope manufacturer and his partnership with Kosmos and Lichtenknecker in the 1960s.

The Unitron’s high-quality optical tube, featuring an adjustable objective lens cell, was mounted on a sturdy mount equipped with engraved setting circles and a solid wooden tripod. It was rock-solid! The package included a wooden case for the telescope and eyepieces, and another for the mount.

The Unitron telescope delivered sharp images of the Sun, Moon, stars, and planets, and met the theoretical performance standards for a 3-inch telescope.

This was the instrument I used for observing from 1985 to 1987.

Back then, I used to take my telescope out into the field at almost every opportunity.

In 1987, the Unitron was sacrificed to cover the down payment for a 45cm mirror set from Coulter Optical.