Okay, the whatzis was an M65 Battery Commander's Periscope, on the M48 mount, with a small tripod that actually was developed for the intended replacement of the M75, the M43. Bill, Blake and I (and I'm sure others of you) used these instruments back in the day, before they were replaced by frankly more useful laser instruments. These things are heavy, being made of brass and steel, with a fair amount of glass in the optics. The odd color that many of you commented on was an artifact of bad...