Fake 10x50 Jenoptem? (1 Viewer)

[bfoutch]

Hi all,

Every warning sign I have read about for spotting fake 8x30 Jenoptems seems to show on this ebay listed 10x50:
Cover screws in wrong place,
Tag with 'K' marking,
Grooved focus wheel,
No 'DDR', and
6 digit serial number.

What do you all think? Do these warning signs apply to the 10x50?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/WOW-CARL-ZE...CASE-119895-/281759332090?hash=item419a2a36fa

 

[LPT]

It's a fake (in the sense it was not manufactured by Zeiss Jena in East Germany) for sure.

 

[bfoutch]

It's a fake (in the sense it was not manufactured by Zeiss Jena in East Germany) for sure.

Thank you LPT.

Then, it could have been a Zeiss licensed manufacturer who built this model? I have read that these were often of uncertain optical/mechanical quality. Is this correct?

 

[winwinbino]

Better stay away from CZJ if you're not a collector. Too many Chinese imitations.

 

[Elmer Fudd]

Nice try!

What a revolution. The serial number indicates that the binos were build back in 1907!!!

And because the binos are signed "MC" that means that they started multi coating not just in 1975 but in 1907.

To use a famous quote from a German movie about the faked Hitler diaries:

The history has to be rewritten.

There are lots of 10x50 CZJ available on ebay.de.

I bought four CZJ binos form the sellers dezember150 and schatzkistechem

Form dezember150 I bought two 8x30 of the pre75 area which means without MC. They are a lot better build than the MC versions because with the MC they used some kind of high glossy paint for the tubes inside close to the objectives.

Form schatzkistechem I bought a 7x50 and a 10x50 with MC.

All four binos are outstanding in quality - both optical and mechanical.

Unfortunately at the moment both have no binos to sell.

 

[LPT]

Thank you LPT.

Then, it could have been a Zeiss licensed manufacturer who built this model? I have read that these were often of uncertain optical/mechanical quality. Is this correct?

You should read this article if you haven't already: http://www.holgermerlitz.de/jenoptem.html
I too have read that some were built under license in Japan but don't know if this is true. My impression based on reports in the forums is that the mechanical quality of these binoculars is poor while the optical quality is satisfactory. A few years ago I bought a "fake" 10x50 Jenoptem with, I think, the same sort of markings as your example for very little because of a chipped prism and cracked ocular arm as a parts bino. Upon disassembly I found its build quality to be far inferior to that of Jenoptems (which aren't of the highest build quality to begin with) and its prisms were of a slightly different size than Jenoptem ones not fitting in a Jenoptem/Dekarem. Optically an original 10x50 Jenoptem/Dekarem with multi-coatings is a very nice binocular albeit with a bit of an amber toned view and shouldn't be hard to find. Look for ones with serial numbers from about 5000000 to 7000000.

 

[garymh]

These binoculars were manufactured in Japan during the early 1980's under licence to CZJ.

They were intended for sale to outlets such as Argos, Dixons etc. who sold lower priced goods.

 

[Steve C]

Here is an article from Holger Merlitz' site about identifying fake Jenoptems.
http://www.holgermerlitz.de/jenoptem.html