Zeiss blc 8x60 fat

[compressore]

Hello.

First to let you know that I do not know much about optics.
Beeing a Kriegsmarine collector I have search long time for a 8x60 fat and yesterday I got finally one.

I do have a couple of questions.
This binos were not touched for many many years which can be seen in the pics.
The painting is grey with rough elements in the paint (against slippery ?) And I can not see any traces of other paint under it. For me it looks like original and not repainted.

The price shows mould which is assume is not good but qhen i lokk trough the imagr is still good and aligned. Many screws are corroded. Nothing moves. Even not the eye caps.

To be honest I like the state how it's is (hopefully untouched) but I would like to ask:

Would you service it ? And when yes where ? (Europe)
Which manufacturing year is the number pointing too ?

Thank you very much
Christian

[compressore]

Pics

More pics
Thanks

[whsammler]

Christian,

First off congratulations on getting these in your collection.

As an optics collector myself I say “yes” to cleaning. I can’t recommend anyone at this time because non of my optics need service.

I do say NO to a restoration unless say they were repainted pink for example. My Philosophy is “They are only original once” [emoji41]



Glen
Collector of Wehrmacht Optics, Ordnance & Field Equipment.

[compressore]

Thanks, Glen.

Yrs. I would only look for servicing the optical train and I am not looking for any cosmetic changes.

Regards
Christian

[Mikedenmark]

Congrats to a nice bino.

I have seen several fat 8x60 painted in this grey colour.
I always wonder if they, per chance, may have been used in the danish navy.
The colour match danish navy grey. (not that navy grey differ a lot between countries)

I have seen one engraved on the side: Søartilleriet Nr. 8. Also grey, and evidently issued by the danish navy.
As far as I know, it was sold to a british buyer by a swedish seller. I thought it was a bit expensive, considering it wasn´t original german navy.
It is the thing one does not do, one regrets. So far, the only one I have seen.

But, for a bino of that vintage number 8 strongly suggest they had at least 8.
Each type of bino being numbered in a seperate sequence.


I do not suppose there is any danishness mentioned where it came from ?

[compressore]

Hi.
I bought it from a person who obtained it from a Scottish auctionhouse. It comes supposedly from a Scottish lighthouse estate.

Regards
Christian

[Mikedenmark]

Maybe some danish viking left it behind?
I admit, it does not seem to have a danish ancestry. Thank you for the info.
Maybe the grey one´s originate from some british agency. Lighthouse service or the like.? They could have been offered german WWII surplus in the late forties.
PS Tirpitz probably never visited Reeperbahn in Hamburg ? I had dinner at the harbour there couple of years ago. A ship passed the restaurant every 10 minutes, literally. Sure is a sailing city.

[zeissasembi]

Congrats to a nice bino.

I have seen several fat 8x60 painted in this grey colour.
I always wonder if they, per chance, may have been used in the danish navy.
The colour match danish navy grey. (not that navy grey differ a lot between countries)

I have seen one engraved on the side: Søartilleriet Nr. 8. Also grey, and evidently issued by the danish navy.

Grey like this Søartelleriet # 6 ?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Binocular...YAAOSwL81aS5La

[glaser]

Congratulations with your optics! For me servicing an object is destroying a part of its history, so I would leave never open an object to optimise it, but only clean it and maintain it in the same condition.

[Mikedenmark]

Zeissasembi
Same colour, yes, but each type of binocular was numbered in a seperate sequence between 1945 and 1955. Thus, the 18x80 type 1, the 10x80 Type 1, and the 10x80 Type 2, are all having their own seperate numbering range.
Same goes for at least one postwar type of 7x50. Of pre 1950 vintage.

After 1955, the navy seems to have entered the same numbering system as the army.
Or, at least, the new binoculars purchased in 1956, were apparently numbered in the same system as the army.
I cannot say exactly when the navy switched system. It may have been in 1950, after Denmark entered NATO.
I did find the file folders in the archives. Nice folders, but, completely empty.
Recently, I was informed that the navy presently do not have any old records, even from the 1956 purchase.
I haven´t given up hope, but these last 10 years, reports of archive material going directly in the dump has been numerous.

PS. $ 17000.- for a 18x80 ?. If that is real, then I am pretty much richer than I thought. I am aware it has been online for some time.
But I remember the lot with the 18x80´s did reach for the moon when originally sold. I refrained from bidding.

[behblc]

Restoring period paint I would not do this. Cleaning the set internally this I would do if the set required it eg fungal growth on the glass surfaces or if the set was extremely dirty internally.
(To me this is no worse than cleaning and oiling an old rifle or the engine of a vintage car, but to move into heavy restoration I would give thought to this).
The eyecups are post-war, I would replace these with a period set ( if they can be obtained ) or a reproduction set.

A nice find well done, happy to see these in good hands. Js

[compressore]

Hi.

Thank you all for your answers.
For the time beeing I will keep the binos as they are.

Any information about production year and any clue how many binos of this type were made ?

Regards
Christian

[behblc]

They are made by Carl Zeiss ( blc) code. Dates from Feb. 1942 from a batch of 500, I have one from the same batch, smooth finished pea green in colour. (2111245).
This set came from England being obtained from RN Stores.
This set was painted with a crude ugly black coat of paint which I removed, it is possible that yours may have been repainted as well.
( Is yours numbered 2111081 , diffuclt to make out what looks like the last figure.