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Austria;     Lieberman & Gortz

 

                 Austria

 

 

Goerz CP.  8 x  40 Wien - 1915
The binocular was produced in Vienna. At the time it was built up on the market were many variations of that instruments and produced by many companies.
It is a binocular for a directive-aiming from rangefinder.

The body is heavy cast iron construction, painted in dark blue and finished with hammered texture. The design of the hammer texture was developed after the WWII.
The binocular looks like a toy. The objective tubes are only 11, 5 cm long. The objective tube and the prism house are length only 19 cm. The ocular houses are mounted at an angle in relation to the prism houses.

Goerz 20%


The optics at the time of the binocular production is not coated. The filed of view is very small - only 5Ëš 45’; exit pupil 5 mm. All this parameters are engraved on the right hand plate of the telescope.

                                               Goerz plate 30%
 
 
 Grid pattern reticule in the right hand ocular with provision for night illumination is fitted.

Goerz ilumination..20%    Goerz graticule 20%
      
                                                                                  
Two filters: very heavy neutral density  and orange are built in. The discs with the filters are rotated with the knurled knobs. The knobs are fitted under the ocular plates (picture above and on the right side). 
Adjustment for inter ocular distance by parallel changing of the halves. The eye cups can be tilted to the side:
 
Goerz oculars& adjustment20%


Production number: G 2073

 

Artillery - Goerz for web


Artillery - 8x Goerz  Viena for web


 

 

 

 

 

                                                                         Lieberman & Gortz
                                     Lieberman & Gortz short history
Introduction

In our collection we have the binocular, which has description: Lieberman & Gortz.
Some collectors presumed as it is an extension of the German Goerz Company opened after the WWII.
This supposition is incorrect.
We would like to give a short history of the Company.

I. History of the Company
The Company was established in the late 1940s, in the UK.  It was named ‘H&G Headquarter & General Supplies Limited’. The main office o f the Company was in London.
It was the Company which supplied many optical items as: binoculars; prisms; opera glasses; range of telescopes; microscopes; compasses (magnetic and prismatic pocket size; car compasses; navigator’s boat compasses).
Later on the Company supplied other stuff; jewelry, tape recorders; cameras and projectors; radios, camping and some tools.
All items were described and pictured in the catalogues, which were printed by the Company. Every item had given own special catalogue’s number.
The items were ordered from the catalogues.
                                                                                                    Binoculars catqloque 1955;30%                                                                                                                                                                                                                The one of the first catalogues, ca. 1955

In the first catalogues were offered many second hand binoculars. As H&G described the binoculars, in their catalogues “Many of the individual offers of Binoculars in this Catalogue were used by High Ranking Officers of the Army, Navy and Air Force”.
The old binoculars pictured and described, in the first catalogues were: Carl Zeiss – U-Boat 7 x 50; 7 x 50 UDF; Leitz – 7 x 50 beh; Hensoldt – 10 x 50; Ross 7 x 50; Kershaw 6 x 30.

                                      U-boat 7x50blc in catalogue 1955-1956;12%          H&G Catalogue - Kershaw;30%
                                                                                                                            Zeiss and Kershaw binoculars offered for sale

Next models of the binoculars sold by this Company were new binoculars, which were sold under the brand name of “Lieberman & Gortz”. Binoculars were produced in France, Japan, England and few in Hong Kong. 

II. The binoculars models sold by Lieberman & Gortz
 1. French models
The first new binoculars under name Lieberman & Gortz were produced in France.  The binoculars were poor quality.

     French 21x47;10%     French 45x70;10%        French 8x26;10%
                                                               
French models; 21 x 47 ; 45 x 70;  and model 8 x 26

                                         
 2. English models
Next models of the binoculars were produced in Japan and in the UK in ca 1960-1961. The English models were produced by Ross London.  It was economy version of Ross models.

                                                                       Ross named as Solaros ; 12%
                                                                        
The 16 x 60 model named ‘Solaross’

The other Ross model was 40 x 70 named “Cross Channel”. The body of that binocular is in our collection.

                                                   L&G Ross 40x70 Cross Channel; 12%
                                                                      
Model   40 x 70 named “Cross Channel”

On the right plate is Lieberman & Gortz logo – L&G and magnification. The left size is the binocular name “Cross Channel”.

                                                                                  Ross 40x70 named as Cross Channel ; 10%
                                                                        
Model   40 x 70 named “Cross Channel”


The prism house of the body is the same as a Solar Ross model, but the objective tubes are much longer with the longer focus objective lens.
The Company sold the war time binoculars 7 x 50 original Ross and Bar & Stroud as well.

                                                           Ross 7x50; 10%
                                                                        
     7 x 50 Ross used during the WWII

 
 3. Hong Kong models

                                                         L&G Hong Kong prod; 12%
                                                           
Lieberman & Gortz 7 x 50 Telstar produced in Hong Kong

  The binoculars produced in Hong Kong gave reasonable quality images; however the Japanese manufactured binoculars gave better optical performance and quality control.

 4. Japanese models
The Japanese binoculars were good quality and they were specifically marked.
In our collection we have Japanese documents (1953-1974) about the meaning of the optical markings on the binoculars and telescopes body.
The Japanese binocular produced under name Lieberman & Gortz is in our collection.
It is model 8 x 30 “Super”, with coated lenses.

                           L&G Japanese 6x30 Super;12%      L&G Japanese 6x30 Super;10%
                  
8 x 30 “Super” Japanese model sold by Lieberman & Gortz, in our collection; Copyright pictures Anna Vacani

Descriptions on the plates specify;

  • Left plate: a name of the model – “Super”; magnification;  field view (7.5Ëš) and production number
  • Right plate; Lieberman & Gortz and information about coated lenses.

                                            L&G Japanese 6x30 Super-plates;12%

                                 L&G Japanese 6x30 Super-left plate;10% L&G Japanese 6x30 Super-right plate;10%
          
    8 x 30 “Super” Japanese model sold by Lieberman & Gortz, description on the plates; Copyright pictures Anna Vacani

    The most important information about the real producer is in the engraved numbers, on the bending bar bridge.

                                                                               L&G Japanese 6x30 Super; J no bottom;12%
                         8 x 30 “Super” Japanese model sold by Lieberman & Gortz, engraved numbers ; Copyright picture Anna Vacani

 The left (white) numbers indicates that the binocular was produced by Akebono Kogaku Seiki Seisakujo.

As we have learnt from Japanese documents: “Binoculars from Japan are rigidly inspected to make sure that every component is of top quality and that all mechanisms are in perfect working order. All optical products that have passed these rigorous standards are tagged ‘PASSED’ by the Government’s Japan Telescopes Inspection Institute. The JL mark - only those binocular and optical manufacturers meeting Japan’s Government Standards of inspection and quality may use this authorized symbol [...] The letter E (right side in the picture) referring to the metal work manufacturer and the letter B indicating the manufacturer of the finished product”.   
Those markings were applied only for the binoculars exported from Japan.

III. Conclusion
At the end of the Lieberman & Gortz Company there existed a chain of about 40 shops.

Today we could name the Company as ‘Mail Order Company’.  The Company was closed in the early 1980s. To the final year the Company was selling binoculars. 
Parallel to L&G Company another mail order shop was opened, which was selling binoculars, named: “J.A. Davis & Son LTD”. 

We hope that this short history will clear the air around Lieberman & Gortz binoculars and it will not be confused with the German Goerz Company.

 

 

 

 

 

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