Telescope, Signalling Mk.V

[MikB]

I've posted this question before, a few years back now.

Signalling Telescopes ("Tel. Sig.") Mks. III and IV with dates from around 1912 to 1917 in conditions varying from decrepit to excellent are reasonably often found as WW1 relics. Mk. VIs are sometimes advertised as WW1 although the mark was not adopted till 1926.

But an exchange of memos between WD Inspectors at Woolwich and Taylor, Taylor and Hobson, of which I got copies from the PRO, reveals an astonishingly daft attempted innovation by TT&H in 1916.

It seems that they wanted to replace the two eyepieces, ('Low' x15 and 'High' x30) issued with previous marks, by four separate lenses apparently slotted in and out of 'spring boxes'. If I'm reading it right there would have been sixteen possible configurations, only 2 of which were correct! Imagine trying to do that in the trenches. Certainly either the WD inspectors or TT&H's own engineers failed to manage it correctly in trials.

Add to that a complaint that the new model didn't quite reach the previous model's punishingly heavy weight, answered by a proposal to thicken the metal in the barrel to compensate!

It seems very clear the whole idea should've been strangled at birth (along with its proposers) - and it may be that it cost TT&H the telescope prime contract, as Negretti & Zambra seem to have had it after 1917.

Has anybody ever seen a Mk.V? Did the idea really pass directly to well-deserved oblivion as it should have?

Regards,

MikB

[MikB]

Still nobody knows nuffin', then?

Regards,

MikB

[philsr]

With potentially six different versions og the Tel Sig also GS from MkI to MkVI, what are the differences?

I light of earlier correspondance I suppose that we can omit the MkV, but what about the rest.