Pertrix №646

Why are the most cool and interesting things usually the rarest and hardest to find?

You can collect flashlights for decades, and may you can't get this. Around a few thousand pieces made of that, but by now a few hundred, or less could remain.

The first version of the 646 was made around 1934.The piece that I presented here now is a later, but not the latest version.

The 646 was the Pertrix brand's most expensive product. All of the parts are non-magnetic, made of copper. Copper was an expensive material in this period, the military industry used a lot of it.

 

All parts of the flashligh are non-magnetic, because it's had a compass on the top. With iron parts, the compass would not work properly. It’s an unique function among the WW2 german flashlights, as the copper outer casing.

The compass is usable at night too, because it receives light from below. It's a nice, spectacular function!

Another unique solution: the slidable front panel. If you press the shiny spring, the front panel slidable down.

Now visible the big 50 mm reflector with the thick cut glass. The hole in the reflector illuminates the compass when turning on the flashlight.

The top of the slidable part is rotatable in both directions. We can choose one of the color filters (red, green, yellow) or the gap light.

The switch is slidable too. The upper position is the safety, the middle the morse, and the bottom the constant light. Nickel plated like the handle, panel rails, focus adjusting knob.

Too much nickel plated parts for the military use. Very decorative, but it’s too shiny, easy target.

I think it was never been used in the field. It’s a beautiful item, but not for daily battlefield use.

It could have been a nice gift, an interesting gadget in this period, very good for hiking, but it's not a military equipment-like thing.

It works with two D batteries. The type of the battery is stamped in the battery holder - Pertrix №211¹

I can’t found anything about the original battery, but may was very similar to this:

https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/varta_pertrix_211_mono.html

Perfectly replaceable with the still available Varta D/LR20 type. This is an interesting thing, the battery sizes have not changed in the time.

It has focus adjustment with the rotatable knob on the right side.

Inside you can see the focus mechanism. It’s a rotatable rod with a gear. It moves the bulb socket up-down. Nice details!

The spring contacts are often corroded, rusted, broken or missing. At this item these are in good condition, it's a big luck. After some cleaning it began to work.

The back side of the compass.

On the back of the door it have two sockets for the spare bulbs.

At the catalogue-numbers of the spare bulbs:“3625+736” 

The 3625 number it means the 2,5V/0.3A Osram bulb, the 736 is the same, but in the Pertrix brand.

The bulb socket is removable and indestructible.. But the backside contact is often missing.

On the back side it have a belt clip, and two leather straps. With these they were able to wear it on the uniform, or on the trouser strap. But, I think they have never done that. It’s too heavy and big for that. More than half kilogram, 642g with the batteries...

Very hard to find this type of Pertrix, even more difficult in working conditions. My piece is not perfect too. It's worn, corroded, but working, and it's have all of his parts. At the contact of the aluminium rivets and the copper parts always beginning the corrosion. At the contact of the aluminium rivets and the copper parts always beginning the corrosion. This piece have too this undesired progress, unfortunately. But I hope I can keep this condition.

It was the most expensive item in the Pertrix supply, 5,5 RM with batteries and bulbs. That was a half of a monthly salary almost. The monthly salary of a simple soldier was 14 RM in 1944.

Much more expensive like the similar product of the Daimon brand, the Daimon 2262 Trio, this was 4.45 RM.

But more on that later...

Wartime Flashlights 

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