Description
You are bidding on a SUPERB late-war set of a WW2 German Luftwaffe Doppelfernrohr (D.F.) 10×80 Flakfernrohr Spotting Binoculars!
In 1936, Emil Busch AG of Rathenow won a contract to produce a 10x binocular for air observation for the German military. Leitz and Möller each produced competing prototypes, but the Busch model was chosen for its lighter weight (6.5 kg vs. 9.25kg for the Möller and 8.5kg for the Leitz) and greater field of view (131m at 1000m vs. 105m/113m for the Möller/Leitz models). Production began soon afterwards and continued through the war, when the Busch design was also produced by other firms in Germany and occupied Poland. All models have identical optical systems: 80mm cemented achromatic objectives with 280mm focal length, 70-deg eyepieces, 45-deg Schmidt roof prisms. Due to allied bombing, the 10x80s were primarily used for identifying attacking aircraft and directing the large 4m rangefinders, searchlights and cannons of the anti-aircraft batteries around German cities. They also proved useful on the battlefield, and a version with 20-deg inclined eyepieces was produced for use at sea. A single half of the 10×80 binocular served as Z.F. (Zielfernrohr) 10×80, a sight for the 8.8cm artillery.
The D.F. engraved before 10×80 stands for Doppelfernrohr (double telescope). Only the early Busch models will have the manufacturer’s name, others will have the three letter code beh (E. Leitz, Wetzlar), dkl (Schneider, Bad Kreuznach), cro (R. Fuess, Berlin Steglitz), bpd (C.P. Goerz, Vienna), eug (Optische Präzisions-Werke, Warsaw) or cxn (E. Busch, Rathenow).
Made of a large tooled alloy and aluminum construction, these 10x 80power range-finding FlaK binoculars are in EXCELLENT used condition! Manufactured by cxn (E. Busch, Rathenow), they retains 95% of the original factory-applied Dunkelgelb paint! All adjustments and knobs work as they should, and the optical clarity is EXCEPTIONAL, with only slight haziness! The collimation is also PERFECT! No chips, fungus, or damage to any of the prisms that I can see, however, there are a couple of snowflakes on the objective lenses (they do not impede the function and cannot be seen when looking through). All original data and manufacture information is also present. Comes complete with the Sun Shields and Head Pad as shown in the photos, both of which are original to this set. A VERY NICE addition to any collection or display!
