GK
The G Series was the standout brand from Olympus after the Second World War. The revamped Showa GK was launched in 1946, 1 year after the war ended.
The Showa GK featured a monocular fixed head, a simple helicoid focusing mechanism that moved the condenser up and down, and a revolving stage. There is a story repeatedly told as the story of "Eri silkworms and castor oil plants", which describes the serious state that the Ina plant faced at the time. Valuable blueprints and tools had been destroyed during the war and the development technicians and the Ina plant technicians faced a host of problems. The company was sure to face serious consequences if the manufacture and launch of the Showa GK were delayed. There was a plan to use the expansive grounds of the Ina plant to grow the castor-oil plant (a food source for silkworms) and then raise Eri silkworms (a wild silkworm species), so that it could at least be able to generate some revenues as a side business in an emergency situation. The castor-oil plants were actually planted, but luckily, they did not have to raise the silkworms.