What is it ?

[shooterg]

Seems like we have a wealth of knowledge on many subjects here and this may not be the right place to post but here ya go ! This thing appears to be some kinda optical plumb bob and I cannot find any data on it. Hoping someone here used one and can tell me wth it is . It was sitting next to a dumpster so whoever had it couldn't make themselves toss it in !

The scope is fairly high magnification and the image seen is inverted.

Made by Bendix Aviation , some guessed it's a bombsight but I think not.

[poppy42]

Ah maybe some kind of bomb site?

[lefty o]

simple, its a plumbaligner. says so right on it. id say its for getting machinery level when installing.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

I think that I saw one like that on American pickers and yes it was a bombsight
or maybe not https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norden_bombsight#/media/File:Norden_bombsight-IMG_6401-gradient.jpg

[cwtebay]

I believe that is an optical plumb Bob of sorts. Laser plumb bobs are the modern equivalent, used to establish true vertical.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk

[skeettx]

The plumb aligner is used to inspect the plumb line deviation in civil engineering, it's a kind of common surveying instrument.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32827164104.html

[Beerd]

It's a pretty cool dumpster diving find anyway.
..

[BD]

It's an optical plumb bob. Used when the distance involved is too long, (more than 20' or so), for a plumb bob on a string as any air movement at all messes with the string. These days most of that work is done with a single station from the ground. I never cared for the laser versions as the dot gets too big, and too faint, in the daylight at any distance. I also have an innate bias against automatic lasers as you often don't find out that they've started lying to you until it's too late. I'm staying old school, optical auto levels, plumb bobs on strings and a theodolite. More reliable, and more accurate We do have a new Hilti PLT300, but I haven't personally used it yet and while it can be faster, it's still +/- 1/4" or so in the real world. Maybe my grandkids will trust it?

[Elroy]

Flux Capacitor..LOL

[varmintpopper]

For Highrise construction, Tunneling, Towers, Mine Shafts or anywhere you need accurate precise plume measurements, accurate to 1/16 inch in a hundred feet.

Good Shooting

Lindy

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

nice looking vintage tool...looks like High Quality.
The wooden stand and brass furniture, makes me think of the quality of vintage wooden carpenters level with brass furniture.

[country gent]

A lot of ww2 air frames were built with plumb bobs of one sort or another and strings for straight lines. Same with ships. I believe this was used in the hangers building planes