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Old 19th Nov 2018, 10:14 am   #1
Phil G4SPZ
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Default Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Not electric itself (so Mods please delete if considered inappropriate) but a friend of mine owns this intriguing tool designed to remove the shade ring of early electric lampholders. Possibly dating from the 1920s, it consists of a cylindrical wooden handle topped by a rubber-lined cup, which grips the shade ring with sufficient friction to permit it to be unscrewed. Bakelite shade rings certainly became brittle and stiff to remove when exposed to heat. When electric lamp shades were narrow, this must have been a boon to every modern household.

An internet search has, unsurprisingly, revealed nothing. Few can have been sold, and even fewer probably survive.

Has anyone else seen anything like it?

Phil
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Old 19th Nov 2018, 8:22 pm   #2
Lucien Nunes
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

There are current versions on sale today - search for 'shade ring wrench''. Somewhere I have the Westinghouse one that fits their US-style rings.
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Old 20th Nov 2018, 8:21 am   #3
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Thanks, Lucien! You learn something new every day...
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Old 20th Nov 2018, 10:11 am   #4
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

I daresay this is common knowledge, but if you apply a little talcum powder to the Bakelite threads when the shade carrier is new, and also at subsequent removals, you won't need a fancy wrench.
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Old 20th Nov 2018, 12:20 pm   #5
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

There's also no need for their being done up tight anyway.
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Old 20th Nov 2018, 12:27 pm   #6
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Is this patent the same Morrisons as the present grocers I wonder? There are certainly none on sale in my local branch.

I remember the story of the lady used to gas mantles trying to light a new light bulb, with a match to burn the sugar off, new fangled things.
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Old 20th Nov 2018, 6:46 pm   #7
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Quote:
I remember the story of the lady used to gas mantles trying to light a new light bulb, with a match to burn the sugar off, new fangled things.
"Caution, one lamp looks the same as another"
was no doubt perfectly true, (I suppose it eluded widely differing voltage ratings available), but the warning was not exactly helpful to the householder in knowing what to do about it.
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Old 20th Nov 2018, 8:17 pm   #8
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

More likely to be implying that their lamps were better than the competition's.
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Old 21st Nov 2018, 12:35 am   #9
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Quote:
Originally Posted by russell_w_b View Post
I daresay this is common knowledge, but if you apply a little talcum powder to the Bakelite threads when the shade carrier is new, and also at subsequent removals, you won't need a fancy wrench.
Well, it wasn't common knowledge to me, Russell, so thanks for the tip! Talc is also quite good for lubricating curtain tracks, but I digress.

I think the main point of the wrench is that some shades were too narrow for the hand to get right up and grip the shade ring.

I doubt that the patentee was the same Morrison who now operates supermarkets, but you never know!

I'm sorry that I cropped the photo a bit tight and cut off the bottom of the box, which I'm sure bore words along the lines of "So insist on Bloggs's light bulbs! Refuse imitations!"
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Old 21st Nov 2018, 10:55 am   #10
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

I have one of these...

...somewhere!
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Old 21st Nov 2018, 9:18 pm   #11
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Here's the 1929 'SUNCO' version. A snip at 4/-.
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 12:12 am   #12
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

And here's GEC's versions from 1912.

Thanks for the tip about talc.
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 1:41 am   #13
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Fantastic!
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 2:39 pm   #14
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Love it!

I vaguely remember seeing a similar sort of tool used in a lighting shop for fitting/removing the knurled brass rings used on some lampholders - it was a thin metal tube which had been multiply 'crimped' lengthways so it looked like it was splined. The inside of the splines were themselves knurled. The splined-ness of the tube gave it some elasticity so it could fit over the different sizes of knurled rings.
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 3:16 pm   #15
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

I can remember making a couple of new rings from a nut taken from a compression fitting.
I can't remember the pipe size now but the old ones were brittle plastic and had turned to dust. The light fitting is still fine though.
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 3:54 pm   #16
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

What goes around... A new LED fitting my Daughter has in her house has three shades, too narrow to get your hand in, well mine anyway. It came with a plastic tool to fit the shade locking rings.
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 5:28 pm   #17
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

I made a plastic tool to fit the slices of pipe nut for mine.
Now I know what the tools look like perhaps I might find one at the flea market.
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 6:12 pm   #18
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Some of those things look like they could double-up as tooth-extraction pliers. Ouch!
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 6:22 pm   #19
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Morrisons grocers date from 1899 so maybe it is the same!
Amazing that there seem to be various makers of these tools.
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Old 22nd Nov 2018, 11:06 pm   #20
Phil G4SPZ
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Default Re: Morrison’s Patent “Facile” Electric shade remover

Well, the friend who owns the item in post#1 also owns a second, different, example. I’ll be seeing him on Sunday so I’ll try to remember to photograph that one too.
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