Original British WWII No.2 Mk.III 6X Binoculars Dated 1943 By Kershaw With 1941 Dated Case Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. In good working order these are a pair of POWER X 6 binoculars, as often used by Officers while overseeing the soldiers under their command. These are in very good condition, with intact eye cups and mostly intact black paint and vinyl covering. These seem to be brass and zinc or steel construction, and are not magnetic, except for some of the screws. The set comes complete with the original Khaki Canvas neck strap. Optics are clear, though a little dirty, and both diopter adjustments work correctly. The right side has a range reticle.

The Left Barrel is marked on the base plate with the specifications:

BINO PRISM No.2 MK.III
X 6
No. 183529

The Right Barrel is marked on the base plate with:

GRATICULES 1/2° A PART
AND 1/4°, 1/2°, AND 1° HIGH
KERSHAW
1943

Kershaw was founded by Abraham Kershaw in Leeds in 1888, manufacturing and repairing scientific equipment. During the Great War they were appointed to manufacture prismatic binoculars. They recruited three key workers from Carl Zeiss (London) Ltd. at Mill Hill. On 15 June 1916 the Company received an order for 25000 No 3 Mk I binoculars. The prisms were supplied by Barr and Stroud and the lens sets by Thomas Cooke and Son Ltd and Taylor, Taylor Hobson Ltd. Later Kershaw started manufacturing its own lenses. The Ministry considered they were generally better than those supplied by the other companies. By 29 December 1917, 5798 had been delivered. From 4 February 1918 not less than 50% of production was to be of Mk.II specification. Kershaw made binoculars of both Ross and Zeiss pattern construction. After the War Kershaw continued to manufacture binoculars for occasional military orders and for the commercial market. By 1930 their catalog listed 26 models.

The binoculars come in a very nice, almost unissued P-37 khaki canvas carry case with a 1941 date and manufacturer stamp M.E.Co. Mills Equipment Company was the British Arm of the American Mills Company, which had introduced Cotton Webbing based equipment for the U.S. Army. In 1908 they had worked with the British Army to introduce the 1908 Pattern equipment, and worked with the British Military ever since. During WWII, they also started making equipment for U.S. forces, who were based in Britain prior to the D-Day Invasion.

The case does not have the detachable shoulder strap, but does have clips on the back for interfacing with the standard P-37 equipment setup.

A very nice set of WWII British Binoculars, complete with case!