Basic gear from the mid-twentieth-century Federal Republic of Germany

[David Wilson]

Thanks for the "likes", Sam and АлександрД. Jawohl, Sam, a reunited Germany, and the Free State of Bavaria in particular with its huge Munich Hofbräuhaus, will have been celebrating Oktoberfest, so Prost!

But back we must go first to the North German city of Hamburg where West Germany's main diving equipment manufacturer was based. You raise an interesting hypothesis, Sam, about the early Barakuda masks originating in a single design, mould or blueprint.

Now I promised to review the many new Barakuda diving masks for 1973. Here's one of the mask pages from that year's Barakuda catalogue and let's begin with the Miami-Super mask, model No. 3 on the page:

German: "MIAMI-SUPER, grün und blau. Hervorragendes Modell mit superweichem Sitz und großem Gesichtsfeld, aus hochwertigem Kautschuk. Blau. Mit Sicherheitsglas. Metallsprengrahmen. Verstellbares Kopfband. Best.-Nr. 1209 00."
Rough translation: "MIAMI SUPER, green and blue. Excellent model with super-soft fitting and large field of vision, made of high quality rubber. Blue. With safety glass. Metal snap-on rim. Adjustable headstrap. Order No. 1209 00."

So a typical oval mask by the look, fitted with a wide-view safety-glass lens, metal rim, top-screw and an extra-soft skirt for a comfortable and leaktight fit.

 

[David Wilson]

On to the second "new for 1973" Barakuda diving mask on the page: the No. 4 model Bobby.

German: "BOBBY, orange. Tauchmaske für Kinder. Mit Kunststoffscheibe, ohne Sprengrahmen. Best.-Nr. 12400."
Rough translation: "BOBBY, orange. Children's diving mask. Fitted with a plastic lens. No snap-on rim. Order No. 12400."

So another junior mask, ensuring the next generation of divers was properly equipped for entry to the water. Orange was becoming a popular colour for basic gear around this time with the bonus of greater visibility.

 

[David Wilson]

Our third and last Barakuda diving mask for review today is called "Lesbos" and named after the island (Greek: Λέσβος) off the Hellenic coast in the North East Aegean Sea. Model No. 5 on the page.

German: "LESBOS. Anspruchsvolle Maske mit gutem Sitz. Aus Gummi, mit Kunststoffscheibe und Sprengrahmen, orange. Best.-Nr. 121000."
Rough translation: "LESBOS. Sophisticated mask with a good fit. Made of rubber, comes with a plastic lens and a snap-on rim. Orange. Order No. 121000."

The Lesbos mask's degree of sophistication receives no further explanation. Another oval mask with an orange finish and a plastic lens fitted with a snap-on rim.

That's enough for today. We'll take a closer look at another 1973 Barakuda catalogue mask page next time.

 

[David Wilson]

Today we'll review some Barakuda diving masks appearing for the first time on page 3 of the Hamburg company's 1973 catalogue.

First in line is the "Nervi" model, whose illustration is No. 9. The mask is probably named after the former fishing village of Nervi, 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Portofino, now a seaside resort in Liguria, in northwest Italy.

German: "NERVI, orange. Erwachsenen-Tauchmaske mit Kunststoffscheibe, ohne Sprengrahmen. Best.-Nr. 121700. DM 4,95."
Rough translation: "NERVI, orange. Adult diving mask with plastic lens, without snap-on rim. Order No. 121700. DM 4.95."

So another mask with an orange finish, pitched at adults and marketed with a low price tag to match the presence of a plastic lens and the absence of a snap-on rim.

 

[David Wilson]

Next up is the Paxos mask, No. 10 on the catalogue page below and probably named after Paxi or Paxoi and Antipaxoi or Antipaxos, the smallest island group within the Ionian Islands.

German: "PAXOS, orange. Preiswerte Maske für Erwachsene, aus Gummi, mit Kunststoffscheibe und Metallsprengrahmen. Verstellbares Kopfband. Bestell.-Nr. 111500. DM 6,95."
Rough translation: "PAXOS, orange. Economy adult mask, made of rubber, with plastic lens and metal snap-on rim. Adjustable head strap. Order No. 111500. DM 6.95."

So, like the Nervi, the Paxos targets budget-minded adults, but it comes with the bonus of a metal snap-on rim surrounding the plastic lens.

 

[David Wilson]

Now we come to the Rhodos mask, likely named after the goddess and personification of the Greek island of Rhodes and a wife of the sun god Helios. The island of Rhodes may have inspired the name of the smallest US state of Rhode Island, but another explanation is that the latter derived its name from the Dutch "Roodt Eylant", meaning "Red Island", because of its reddish appearance.

The Rhodos mask is No. 12 on the page:

German: "RHODOS, blau, orange. Tauchermaske, mit Weitsichtwinkel, SIGLA-Scheibe. Best.-Nr. 150500. DM 12,90."
Rough translation: "RHODOS, blue, orange. Dive mask with wide viewing angle, safety-glass lens. Order no. 150500. DM 12.90."

So priced at DM 12.90, the Rhodos is the dearest mask to be reviewed today, a rectangular model with a safety-glass lens promising a wide field of vision.

 

[David Wilson]

The fourth and final mask to receive a closer look today is the Leucas, the former name of the Greek island in the Ionian Sea now known as Lefkada, Lefkas, Leukas or Leucadia. The Leucas is No. 12 on the catalogue page:

German: "LEUCAS, rot, schwarz. Tauchmaske mit Sicherheitsglas. Best.-Nr. 121500. DM 10,90."
Rough translation: "LEUCAS, red, black. Diving mask with safety glass lens. Order No. 121500. DM 10.90."

The Leucas resembles the Rhodos in lens material and in shape but with a smaller vertical dimension.

Next time, we'll move on to the new compensator masks introduced in the 1973 Barakuda catalogue.

 

[Sam Miller III]

@David Wilson
note mask #12
reflection ? or ???

Sam

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

The fourth and final mask to receive a closer look today is the Leucas, the former name of the Greek island in the Ionian Sea now known as Lefkada, Lefkas, Leukas or Leucadia.

Just a minor correction. There has been no renaming of Lefkada. In Greek, the dipthong of the combination of the Greek letters epsilon (ε) and ipsilon (υ) make the "ev" sound. A better anglicization would be Levkada (which is sometimes seen). Think of the island of Evia (Εύβοια in Greek). Same thing.

Enough of the Greek lesson. We apologize for this interruption and return to the scheduled programming.

 

[David Wilson]

@David Wilson
note mask #12
reflection ? or ???

Sam

Well spotted, Sam! I had noticed the circular phenomenon visible at the top left of the Rhodos mask before posting yesterday's contributions and wondered what it might be and whether it might have something to do with the German noun "Weitsichtwinkel", which literally means "far/wide vision corner/angle". I don't recall other Barakuda catalogues using the term and I speculated whether this referenced some kind of small telescopic lens embedded in the safety-glass face-plate. My later thoughts were that such a device would have been described at greater length if it really existed. I've looked online and "Weitsichtwinkel" seems to serve as a German rendering of the English "Wide view(ing) angle", which is true of this mask considering the breadth of its lens. I'm still puzzled by that circular mark, though, and remain uncertain whether it's a trick of the light or some technical enhancement.