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Japanese External Reverse Porro Prism Binoculars. WEBSITE MUSEUM |
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OTHER BINOCULARS #3 & OPTICAL SIGHTS (MOSTLY MILITARY) |
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WWII German dkl ( Joseph Schneider Optische Werke Kreuznach code) D.F. 10x80 Antiaircraft Artillery (Flakglas) Binoculars |
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My German dkl WWII Flakglas binoculars and it’s cradle and tripod photographed on a snowy day were primarily designed for directing the aiming of antiaircraft searchlights associated with the 88mm antiaircraft artillery, and the elevation and horizontal scales are for that purpose, and the accessory lighting harness was for that night time purpose. But these were also used for general aircraft spotting, and for general observation. They were produced in large numbers by six different manufacturers from 1939-1945, and because they came in a wood case and U.S. military shipping was cheap for the troops to send war souvenirs home for morale, a lot were shipped back to the USA as souvenirs by soldiers who captured/ liberated or looted them. This particular unit is dkl marked, which is the WWII manufacturer code for Joseph Schneider Optische Werke Kreuznach, located in Bad Kreuznach Germany, and who was the second largest producer of these after Emil Busch (cxn), see example above. The “ D.F . ” marking is for Doppelfernrohr (Double telescope). The blue X marking indicates use of cold weather grease #1442, introduces Nov 1 1942, and the red X indicates use of another cold weather grease. The cradle and circle mount on this unit is correct and functional, though the cradle is missing the right side handle, but although my tripod is quite similar in design to original with sliding tubular legs, it is not original, or of the period. |
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1928 Swiss made Kern Swiss Army 6x24 Armee-Modell Military Binoculars |
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My 1928 Swiss Kern Aarau 6x24 military Armee-Modell binoculars were manufactured by the optical firm of Kern & Co (which was also a maker of geodetic instruments), and was located in the northern Switzerland municipality of Aarau. The Swiss Cross + on these binoculars is a government property mark, and this property mark appears in four places on these binoculars. These binoculars do not have a ranging grid or graticule. Kern apparently commenced binocular production in 1925, and these were produced 3 years later. A 1926 dated version of these exists in another collection with serial # 95, so the serial number 2,836 on this suggests Kern produced at least that many binoculars in their first 3 years. |
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1945 Barr and Stroud CF41 7x49 WWII British Admiralty (Navy) Binoculars (Scottish manufactured) |
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My Barr and Stroud CF41 military binoculars are one of the 70,000 produced in a very long production run starting 1935, and with the model military stocked until around 1973/74. The AP1900a marking designates these as having colored filters controlled by dual levers for challenging weather conditions, and this model does not have a ranging gratucule. (the model CF42 had a gratucule for ranging drop of shot). These binoculars have the yellow broad arrow UK Admiralty (Navy) property mark plus the standard broad arrow Ministry of Defense property mark, and have 4 desiccating/ drying ports. So these binoculars are essentially a military naval design specific model. According to the University of Glasgow (Scotland) Barr & Stroud archives, by their serial number these binoculars date to the middle of 1945 WWII production. |
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1934/1935 Barr and Stroud C.F.31 7x49 Scottish Manufactured Civilian Binoculars |
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My Barr and Stroud C.F.31 7x49 binoculars with serial number 10,575, according to the University of Glasgow Barr & Stroud archives, were produced in either 1934 or 1935, around two years after the start of Barr and Stroud binoculars production. These binoculars are marked as distributed in the UK by the firearms and sporting goods manufacturer Cogswell & Harrison Ltd. in London, and that company has origins that date to 1770, and it still exists today). These binoculars were probably sold at retail through Cogswell & Harrison’s large network of UK retail gun and sporting goods dealers. |
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1947-1951 Barr and Stroud 7x24 CF29 Scottish Manufactured Civilian Binoculars |
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My Barr and Stroud CF29 7x24 binoculars with serial number 96,151 were, according to University of Glasgow Barr & Stroud archives produced between 1947 and 1951, and reflect Barr and Stroud’s quick post WWII move back to supply the civilian market with products after military contracts disappeared. Like the wartime and prewar binoculars of this general pattern, the prism housings and objective caps and some other parts of the CF29 model are made from the early bakelite form of plastic, used in 1920’s jewelry, WWII German binocular cases, but now mostly known for auto distributor caps. It is somewhat brittle. |
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Royal Navy antiaircraft watch in 1942 with CF41 |
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The desiccating ports are marked “ C ” and “ B ” and “ British Patent No 435220/1934 ” |
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Pre WWI era WWII used Australian Military MKV Spl 4 1/2 x Le Petit Binoculars (French Manufacture) |
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My Australian Military marked 4 1/2x MkV Spl. binoculars are Australian military property marked D D (mark used after 1926) and represent what was probably a WWII expedient issue (the Spl / Special? marking) of a civilian donated French made non prismatic binoculars. In both WWI and WWII the massive mobilization and need for coast watching, artillery, and air defense observation far outstripped any domestic abilities to supply military binoculars, so that the UK, US, and Australia grabbed all usable civilian stocks and advertised for civilians to donate their (better quality) binoculars. What makes this more interesting is that they have a tag of having been serviced by the AEME V shops Instrument Section at the Cliff Port Phillip area VIC (Victoria) in 1944 . AEME is the Australian (military) Electrical & Mechanical Engineers (established in 1942). These are a pattern of binoculars that would have been familiar to US Civil War officers in the 1860s, and they were fairly obsolescent in WWI; and absolute dinosaurs in every way by WWII. (like handing a WWII soldier a bag of black powder and a civil war muzzle loading percussion musket) ! |
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UK and Commonwealth Military Property mark of pattern I associate to WWI. |
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DD with broad arrow Australian Military Property mark post 1926 |
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“L. PETIT FABT. PARIS” L. PETIT (maker) PARIS |
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1941 WWII British Taylor-Hobson No.2 MK. II 6x30 Army Binoculars |
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My British Army Binoculars Prism No.2 Mk. II were made in 1941 by the British camera lens manufacturer Taylor-Hobson , who by 1939 were providing 80% of the world’s film studio camera lenses under the Cooke brand. In 1939 Taylor Hobson was given government funding to set up a factory in Leicester which went on to produce 2,000 No. 2 6x30 military binoculars a month for the war effort. It is interesting to note that The No.2 Mk.II pattern of binoculars was adopted in 1909 and was previously produced for WWI (see my 1916 No 2 MKII binoculars produced by Sherwood & Co on the previous page). The Taylor Hobson company still exists and today and produces profilometer metrology instruments. |
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British workers making Taylor Hobson No.2 military binoculars including these in WWII in their Leicester factory |
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1940 WWII Russian 6x30 Novosibirsk Instrument Making Plant (NPZ) Military binoculars |
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Female soldier in WWII with these type binoculars. |
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Two elongated pentagon shapes that are part of the hammer and sickle coat of arms as well as the “ N ” prefix to the serial number on my 1940 Russian military binoculars indicate that the binoculars were made at the Novosibirsk Instrument Making Plant ( Новосибирский приборостроительный завод ) in Novosibirsk Russia. |
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The Novosibirsk Instrument plant: 1905-present. |
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For information on German 10x80 binoculars I highly recommend the book “Eyes of the Wehrmacht” by Stephen Rohan. |
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Contact: miniature.binoculars@gmail.com |
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TWO WWII French Army BBT Krause MG/ Minist è re de la Guerre 8x30 military Binoculars with left ocular graticule, #35419, #4390 |
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The French optical firm BBT Krauss was formed by the 1935 merger of the optical firm Societe des Establissements Krauss with the optical firm Barbier, Bernard, et Turenne (BBT). My two different BBT Krause 8x30 binoculars, serial #35419, and the earlier serial # 4390 carry the MG Minist è re de la Guerre French military property mark. Both are marked “Grand Champ d écigrades ” (wide angle). Both have a left ocular graticule/ range grid with the graticule rotation ring fairly unique to certain BBT & Huet military binoculars. My first binoculars appear to have metal solder repaired and not repaired conflict shrapnel damage. Shrapnel damage to front line military equipment in war is not all that unusual, but most such damaged equipment is scrapped/ buried/ destroyed, so it is always fun to come across war damaged equipment that someone has saved for posterity. And I like war shrapnel damaged stuff as material reflections of realities of conflict (casualties were and are the result of explosive delivery, with bullets mostly an afterthought). |
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Kern Aarau Civilian 8x30 Alpin Stereo binoculars marked to Swiss Retailer Stump Co Ltd Interlaken |
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My Kern Aarau 8x30 Alpin Stereo binoculars are marked as as having been sold at retail by the firm “Optiker Stump Interlaken”, which is Stump & Co. of Howeg 39, (Hotel Victoria) in Interlaken town, in Switzerland, observed documented active 1939(ad)-1944 (probably longer), and founded by optiker/ optician Josef Stump (1886-1953). Interlaken has long been a famous tourist destination in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss Alps, and a main transit hub to the mountains and lakes of that part of the Swiss Alps. This demonstrates the strength of the sales of binoculars and cameras in scenic venues to visiting tourists, which then becomes an integral souvenir of the trip to take home, so that the retailer/ town marking is part helped them to sell more binoculars as trip mementos. |
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WWII French Army BBT Krause MG/ Minist è re de la Guerre 6x24 military Binoculars serial #54364 |
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My BBT Krause 6x24 French Army binoculars serial #54364 carry the MG Minist è re de la Guerre French military property mark. They similar to the BBT Krauss binoculars above, but lower power, less wide angle, and without the graticule/ ranging grid. |
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SEE NOVOSIBIRSK BINOCULARS OTHER BINOCULARS #11 |
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1945 WWII Russian 7x50 Novosibirsk Instrument Making Plant (NPZ) Military binoculars |
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My 1945 7x50 Russian military binoculars were made during WWII at the Novosibirsk Instrument Making Plant ( Новосибирский приборостроительный завод ) in Novosibirsk Russia. This pair of ninoculars does not have a graticule/ ranging grid. |
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Russian sniper in WWII with binoculars. |
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WWII German cxn (Emil Busch AG Rathenow code) D.F. 10x80 Antiaircraft Artillery (Flakglas) Binoculars, wood case, accessories |
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My German WWII 10x80 Flakglas binoculars, with manufacturer code cxn, were made by Emil Busch AG Rathenow, and were primarily designed for directing the aiming of antiaircraft searchlights associated with the 88mm antiaircraft artillery, and in fire directors, but they were also sometimes used for other aircraft spotting and general observation tasks. It is quite unusual to find any of these with their original case and accessories 81 years later, and this is a typical Busch wood case. Emil Busch was the largest manufacturer of these 10x80 Flakglas binoculars. The blue triangle indicated 1442 cold weather grease. |
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1940 Новосибирский приборостроительный завод Бинокль российской армии |
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1945 Новосибирский приборостроительный завод Бинокль российской армии |
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NON MINIATURE BINOCULARS & OPTICS: MOSTLY MILITARY |
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THREE Barr and Stroud CF41 7x49 WWII British Admiralty (Navy) Binoculars (Scottish manufactured) with patented expanding eye shades |
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Like many naval binoculars, these contain internal lever controlled filter disks to improve vision for various weather and lighting conditions. |
