11 Set stuff

[cletrac (RIP)]

Chris, you're right but did they have both those kinds in the late 30s? lol By the mid 40s plastic had advanced by leaps and bounds!
I got one switch mounted today. When I'm done and paint stuff black it'll look the same whether plastic or metal.
I've been pondering the construction of the doors. In our picture of them it almost looks like the edge of the left door is bent funny but I'm not sure. The light is coming from the right so the black line you see has to be the gap between the doors.
I'm going to make the doors out of 14 or 16 gauge. They wouldn't be heavier or they wouldn't need the edges folded back that inch or so. That open catch hangs down over an inch so it has to be mounted an inch and a quarter or so back from the face of the closed door. That makes the door an inch thick. The doors will look like a shallow box.The doors don't overlap the unit's sides or they would tangle with the hool up cables.

[Ron Pier]

I made some similar observation in my post #129. But I still don't think the doors look 1"? I'm more inclined at about 1/2"? Ron

[Ron Pier]

I have now scanned everything I have as big as poss. Hopefully for the slightest detail. Ron

[cletrac (RIP)]

Ron, if you look at the left picture, the door is about 1/4 as thick as the whole thing.

[Ron Pier]

The only sense of perspective I'm getting, is the rolled edge on the right hand door where it meets the left door in the middle. I just can't bring myself to see that as 1". Or am I missing something. Ron

[cletrac (RIP)]

Here's a British set made by Aeronautical and General Instruments Ltd, so I guess some Brit units made it to Canada. I didn't think the stand looked like a Brit one but after checking again they're the same as the Aussie ones.
The wireless trucks would have had them for when they set up remotely but I haven't seen any British pics like that ( but some Aussie pics). They must have stored the stand in the compartment behind the operator in the wireless trucks.
Do we know how many companies manufactured these radios? The only other that I know of is EK Cole. The one at Blanford Camp Museum is made by Aeronautical and General Instruments Ltd
I just paypaled him the payment for this set so I should have it by Monday.
I guess I'm one of a select few owners of a Brit 11 set.
The Aussie set will go in the Carrier when I get around to it.

[cletrac (RIP)]

The Aussie and Canadian 11 sets were made in 1941 and later. The cab 11 C8 and F8 were made in 1940. That means they had to be equipped with the British 11 sets. No others existed. The cab 12 8cwts could have had the Canadian or Aussie sets.

[Ron Pier]

A real nice find Dave. In the other thread you started, Chris states this about the stand.

"When the station is used on the ground the front cover is removed and two collapsible legs pulled out from inside to form a stand for the set. A ground station (Low Power or High Power) may also be equipped to be transported by vehicle. In that case Supply Units and accumulators are supplied."

I can't find any dates on my AWA set? Ron

[cletrac (RIP)]

I looked at those Australian War Museum videos starring the 11 sets. The radios used are British EK Cole sets. The videos must have been made in 1940 before the Aussie sets came into being. So I guess I have seen pictures of the British sets on their stands.
In the Erecting the 11 Set video the first time they set it up they use the two 6 volt batteries. In the second setup they use the other batteries and accumulater because they're easier to carry.

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by cletrac

Chris, you're right but did they have both those kinds in the late 30s? lol By the mid 40s plastic had advanced by leaps and bounds!
I got one switch mounted today. When I'm done and paint stuff black it'll look the same whether plastic or metal.
I've been pondering the construction of the doors. In our picture of them it almost looks like the edge of the left door is bent funny but I'm not sure. The light is coming from the right so the black line you see has to be the gap between the doors.
I'm going to make the doors out of 14 or 16 gauge. They wouldn't be heavier or they wouldn't need the edges folded back that inch or so. That open catch hangs down over an inch so it has to be mounted an inch and a quarter or so back from the face of the closed door. That makes the door an inch thick. The doors will look like a shallow box.The doors don't overlap the unit's sides or they would tangle with the hool up cables.

They had bakelite (phenol-formaldehyde + various fillers) plus all its derivatives (Paxolin - synthetic resin bonded paper, and Tufnol - synthetic resin bonded fibre) and various other engineering grade plastics in the 1930s - remember that telephones were no longer made of wood!

As for the doors: STOP!

They will be thin sheet steel with a folded edge of 1/4" maximum to provide stiffness and enough overlap when closed to exclude dust. The closing edge of one door will have a step rolled/pressed into it so that it overlaps the other door when closed. The securing clips are a three part construction - a bracket that is spot-welded (or soldered/brazed) to the case, an thick wire loop that acts as a hinge, and a shaped spring brass clip.

I'll get the camera, some spare valve/spare parts cases and a Switchboard UC 10-line out in a bit for some typical construction details.

Chris.

[Ron Pier]

Yes please Chris. Any clues would be appreciated. If you have anything like the spring clips going spare, I'd be happy to buy them....Or borrow to get some copied. Ron

[Chris Suslowicz]

Originally Posted by Ron Pier

Yes please Chris. Any clues would be appreciated. If you have anything like the spring clips going spare, I'd be happy to buy them....Or borrow to get some copied. Ron

Bah! Battery has expired in the digital caliper, and I have to go out in a bit. Meanwhile, here's a spare valve case. The clip is actually a two part brass hinge, fixed to the case with a couple of rivets. The clip is 7/8" wide and the top part is 1.1/4" or thereabouts. Need to get some batteries!

Chris.

[cletrac (RIP)]

Those look like the right clips.
I printed an inverted image of the unit and drew in where it looked like the folds are on the doors. The top fold on the right door is about 3/4" wide and the bottom and center folds about 1/4" with none showing on the hinge side. If they overlap the body of the unit this makes sense. The top is wider for dust protection, the hinge side can't have a fold, and the other two for strength. A quarter inch overlap on the bottom wouldn't get to the wires to cause problems.
The left door in Ron's pictures shows a line about a half inch on from the center edge. That could be the step Chris referred to. So maybe 20 or 22 gauge like car tin? I guess I'm talking old car tin!

[cletrac (RIP)]

The panel that the switchboard bolts to on the 8cwt CMP is called the radio instrument panel. They also mention the bracket-charging board-2nd type but no picture in the special patterns bodies book. I wonder what the two types were.
I went through all my pictures and found these showing different views of the panel. My box has the holes pictured for the mounting brackets shown. I measured the bolt spacing then did the picture sizing thing and came up with it being 40" x 12.5" and the mounting lug is 25" in from the left of the picture. The left bracket goes on just to the right of the fender ledge.
The brackets bolt to the box then angle back a couple inches before bending straight up again.
I'm not sure how the brackets are made. The part on the box has the flat face facing front and the part on the panel has it facing back. Any ideas?
They made the panel have that space between it and the locker so the canvas cover could go in the gap down to the twist buttons on the box.

[Ron Pier]

Well that is different to the British versions. The canvas is fixed with turn buckles around the edge of the box and the switchboard is mounted directly to the box/headboard.
Here is a shot that shows the three fixings and earth strap. Strangely in those other pictures of mine, the bottom bolt is absent?
Also I'm guessing the two top fixings must be outside the switchboard cabinet. Can I just see the left hand fixing in one of the pictures?

And I've started by ordering 4 strap hinges off ebay, So cheap and free deliver, that it's not worth visiting B&Q! I've scaled the hinges at 4".
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/200906367104?ru=

I'll wait for these to arrive before I start pestering my local fabrication firm for off cuts. Ron