Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Not only that, but if you disassemble a pull-chain mechanism in one of our sockets, you'll find that there is a little bit of insulation -- enough to keep the chain from getting energized -- at the point where the chain pulls on the lever inside to turn the switch contacts. The metal "actuator" is not part of the circuit. It's isolated by some sort of plastic collar or washer of some sort. You'd have to find one and take it apart to know what I'm talking about. :shrug:

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

No, it's a Presto product.

Anyone care to guess what these are? I think I know, but I could be wrong. I forgot to put a ruler in the photo but they are about 1.1" from the top of the threaded part to the bottom of the finned part.

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

They look like inserts that are used to convert bottles into lamps.

Drill a hole in the bottom of the bottle (carefully). Thread a cable through the hole and through the opening at the top of the bottle. Slide one of these over the cable and force it into the bottle opening. Connect the cable to the lamp holder. Screw the lamp holder onto the threaded section and voila another Mateus Rose bottle converted into a priceless lamp;D

Keith

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Great minds clearly think alike. I've seen different adaptors where the flex emerges from the fitting itself which saves the somewhat awkward job of drilling a hole in a bottle.

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Hi,
Yes, I remember the 70s too! ;D Wine bottle lamps were all the rage way back then.
I've got one of those twisty adaptors as well. I bought it as a kid with my pocket money and never used it anger.
Cheers, Pete:wave:

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

They must have been sold in packs of three , I have two Bottle Lamps , and one spare fitment that I use as my B/C lamp tester

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

I remember the technique of drilling holes in glass bottles being demonstrated on the "Mason Master" stand at one of the DIY exhibitions they used to hold in London in the 1950's, which I have used successfully since. Support bottle horizontally, make a ring with putty or modelling clay around the location of the hole, fill it with oil, and drill through the oil using a masonry bit in a hand drill, drilling slowly while applying fairly heavy pressure. Nowadays a slow speed electric drill, not available in the 1950's can probably be used. Smooth off the hole with a piece of carborundum paper [wet & dry] wrapped around a suitable piece of wood such as the handle of an artist's paint brush to remove any sharp bits. Put some fine gravel in the base for extra stability.

I used to have a Mateus Rose lamp, but the Triple Vintage cider bottle was my favourite.

They used to sell table lamp kits consisting of a switched lampholder fitted with a bottle adaptor, complete with flex that emerged from a hole in the side of the lampholder. I found that, with this arrangement, the lamp was prone to get knocked over if the flex was pulled, so drilled a hole and routed the flex through the bottle instead.

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Never thought it remarkable before, but I too have a bottle lamp (flex emerges from the side of the bulb holder). It's a Yugoslavian Vinjak (brandy) bottle which has a nice wide base with about 4" of narrow neck on top. With a couple of inches of gravel in the bottom it's very stable!

I got to drink the contents first, too ;D

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Hi,
On the subject of unusual plugs, here's an early offering from MK. I think it dates from the early 30s. It's a 15amp 2pin plug with a 5amp 2pin socket in the top. The socket is supplied via two wire fuses.
To wire the plug, the cover is removed and the ceramic interior is then pulled off the thin pins. The black bakelite cover is painted brown.
Cheers, Pete:wave:

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

I hope that's 5A fusewire in there- it looks a bit thick...... :-/

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Thanks for those pics Pete - that's what I was trying to recall when I mentioned plugs with open wire fuses in post 112. Late 20's design, obsolete by mid 30's, see attached pic from Sunco 1929 listing three versions, 2 & 3 pin of MK's 15A gauge and 2-pin 15A BS gauge which MK rated 25A on account of their improved contact system. The 'new IEE rules' referred to would presumably have been the 9th edition of 1927

I have a 3-pin 15A BS gauge version not mentioned in that catalogue, pics below. What I find most interesting about it is that the polarity of the socket is reversed relative to that of the plug. Admittedly in its day the use of a 3-pin socket did not imply reliable polarisation but to deliberately reverse it I think is a bit cheeky. DP fusing was the norm in distribution boards and the 3-pin plug was somewhat novel, so perhaps they thought it trivial as DP fusing would be provided in the plug anyway.

The fuses in yours seem to have been subjected to regular incidents. Mine has had one fuse fail, probably just once, however the arc flashed over to the opposite pole (echoing the trouble with MEMDIX fuses I mentioned in the recent thread about Wylex CU's). Metal has been evaporated from both fused and unfused sides of live and neutral fuse terminals and earth, suggesting that rupture of the 5A fuse might have then triggered failure of the 15A in the board.

Prior to the 1920s it had been generally accepted that switches and fuses of opposite poles should be physically separate, the main objection having been the possibility of leakage. The relaxation of that rule seems to have led to a few products like this with insufficiently confined fuses that were prone to inter-pole flashover.

Lucien

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Hi,
Talking of adaptors that reverse the polarity, I've got a "Loblite" one that takes two 5amp plugs & a 15amp one. The 15amp socket is sideways on and the polarity is reversed. The two 5amp sockets are not.
In France, it's very common to have a two gang socket that reverses the polarity, or not, depending which socket you use.
Cheers, Pete:wave:

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Hi,
Anyone remember this? It's an "Easi Fitt" plug made by Fitall of Larne, Northern Ireland. Pulling & twisting the earth pin releases a 'cartridge' that can be wired without a screwdriver. It's then pushed up into the body of the plug & locked by repositioning the earth pin. There was nothing stopping it being plugged in without the insert thus exposing live parts.8-o I'm not really sure what the idea was behind it. Service engineers, perhaps?
Cheers, Pete:wave:

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Reminds me of a more modern version of those "Clix" easy-fit plugs with the two cotter pins that get held in place by the twist-on cap.

I don't trust plugs that don't screw on. Here in the USA we have several brands of "Automatic" or "Easy" plugs that clamp on - with insulation displacement points that pierce the rubber on the wires to make contact. You insert the wire through the housing, into the centre device and squeeze together on the pins as you insert the whole contraption back into the housing.

They never really work right. Sometimes you can pull one out of the wall and the cap comes off in your hand (with the centre thing stuck in the outlet). This happens as they get old and get abused (read "plugged in more than once"

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Are those UL and CSA marks genuine or not, if the plug's so dodgy?

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

The polarity reversal on the Loblite is more surprising as that was of later manufacture. Perhaps more likely to be a mistake than a deliberate simplification as it is with the MK.

The Fitall is a wonderful gadget, I have one attached to the 13A socket that travelled with a 16mm projector, which presumably would have encountered all sorts of different sockets as it went to people's homes and church halls to give shows. More wonderful (because it's electrcially pretty sound) is the Crater plug that does all six round pin versions. I would almost trust its 15A pins to carry 15A as they screw tight after sliding out of the plug body. I might make a video....

Lucien

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Hi,
No Lucien, it was a deliberate design as the neutral pin was fastened to the live tube of the socket and there is a diagonal brass strip from the live pin to the neutral socket tube.
Cheers, Pete:wave:

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Didn't Fitall make those plugs that had a 13a square pin, 5 and 15 amp options all on the same fitting? I think I know where there is one to show you, I will try and get a hold of it tomorrow.

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

Hi,
For a picture of a Fitall plug see thread #102 here

Andrew

Re: Another unusual plug and some other questions
 

The UL/CSA/NOM marks are legit. It's a Leviton-brand plug. Made in Mexico.

UL is not compulsory for things like this. It's "SUGGESTED" that you buy products so marked for obvious reasons, but a lot of things are sold without UL listings. :shrug: