Any ideas what this is?

[tawnyman]

Hi there, I'm wondering if anyone has seen one of these before? It's about 11" across, designed to be panel mounted, made of aluminium I think. Obviously it's compass related, has a rotating circular grid under the perspex top. On the back it has the war department broad arrow and 'Stores Ref 6b/319'. In red letters with Variation west and Variation East so I'm guessing thats a magnetic variation correction. The weight saving cutouts on the back makes me think it could be aviation related, although it is a bit large for use on a plane itself, maybe it was training related. I'd say it's not as old as ww2, possibly 50's or 60's. The perspex is roughened, possibly for use with a china pencil. Any ideas anyone?
Thanks, Julian

[Paul B]

6B/319: Plotting Board Mk.I

It certainly appears to be a part of something larger, and looks very familiar, but I just can't place it at the moment...

[KradSpam]

Artillery related maybe?

[Paul B]

If has an RAF stores code, and with a Broad Arrow rather than an Air Ministry Crown it's post 1943.

[noelh]

It looks very much like a Flight Navigation computer although if so there appears to be parts missing. It's so large it most likely is a training aid. Most pilots train using something similar. A CRP-5 or in the US an E6B. There are several variations of it out there.

[tawnyman]

Thanks for the replies. Don't know why it didn't come up when I searched for 6b/319 but it is indeed an RAF Mk 1 Plotting board, thanks Paul B! If the changeover from A.M. to broad arrow was '43 then perhaps it was made late ww2, or after, and never issued as it looks pristine, which is why I thought it was later. When do you reckon they stopped using them?

[Paul B]

All a bit confusing this so far...

Most "modern" RAF plotting gear is listed in stores section 54, Plotting Equipment.

The item in question is in stores section 6, Navigational and Optical Equipment, subsection 6B narrows it down to Aircraft Navigation Equipment, Accessories and Spares.

[tawnyman]

Same item here, Paul.

RAF,Navigation,Lancaster,Navigator,Plotting Board
Milrecs.com

So I'm glad to fing=d a name for the mystery object, even if the exact date is still uncertain.

[Paul B]

Back to basics for rough dating purposes.
The Mk.9A Bubble Sextant 6B/312 is certainly a wartime item, as is the Navigators' Grid Roamer 6B/532, so a 6B/319 code would likely have been applied to an item first introduced in the first half of WWII.