Original U.S. WWII Era M69C Telescope With T-17 Carrying Case As Used With The 57mm M1 Anti-Tank Gun
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Original Item: Only One Available. This is a fantastic, near complete V8 telescope optic set known as the M69C. This optic comes with its original T-17 carrying case which houses the optic and even retains all three light filters. There is no date that we can find on either the optic or the case, but they are both in wonderful condition.
The Ordnance Quick-Firing 6-pounder 7 cwt, or just 6-pounder, was originally a British 57 mm gun, serving during the Second World War as a primary anti-tank gun of both the British and United States Army (as the 57 mm Gun M1). It was also used as the main armament for a number of armored fighting vehicles.
Although designed before the start of the war, it did not reach service until the North African Campaign in April 1942. There, it replaced the 2-pounder as an anti-tank gun, allowing the 25-pounder gun-howitzer to revert to its intended artillery role.
The optics are still clear and the rubber eye cap is still present and presented without any extensive damage. The carry case is in great condition with nearly all of the original OD green paint still present.
A lovely item ready for further research and display.
The idea of manufacturing the 6-pounder in the US was expressed by the US Army Ordnance in February 1941. The US Army still favored the 37mm Gun M3 and production was planned solely for lend lease. The US version, classified as a substitute standard as 57 mm Gun M1, was based on the 6-pounder Mark II, two units of which were received from the UK. Since there was sufficient lathe capacity, the longer barrel could be produced from the start. Production started early in 1942 and continued until 1945. The M1A1 variant used US combat tyres and wheels. The M1A2 introduced the British practice of free traverse, meaning that the gun could be traversed by the crew pushing and pulling on the breech, instead of solely geared traverse, from September 1942. The M1 was made standard issue in the Spring of 1943. A more stable carriage was developed but not introduced. Once the 57 mm entered US service, a modified towing point design was introduced (the M1A3) for US use. Tractors for the M1 included the Dodge WC-63 1½-Ton 6×6 and the M2 Half-Track.
Two-thirds of American production (10,000 guns) went to US Army Divisions in Europe. About one-third of production (over 4,200 guns) was delivered to the UK and 400 guns were sent to the Soviet Union through Lend-Lease. When the United States re-armed and re-equipped Free French forces for the Normandy landings, their anti-tank units received American-made M1s. Like the British Army, the US Army also experimented with a squeeze bore adaptor (57/40 mm T10) but the program was abandoned. American shell designs and production lagged behind the introduction of the gun once it was accepted for service and so, at first, only AP shot was available. The HE shell was not available until after the Normandy landings and UK stocks were procured to cover its absence. Its use by regular US Army front-line units was discontinued in the 1950s.
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