Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

scale wise the main mechanism is about 8cm wide and the numbered dial
about 4cm dia.

They were in a box with a number of other bits, three of which look like
coin slots for half crowns.

the cog C fits between the gear cylinder B and gear cone D

it looks as if the thread A should turn to move C up and down and
provide a variable gearing ratio, but this won't turn, and seems broken

The cog E is lightly clutched to D

The teeth on the numbered cog fit all the other cogs in the main
mechanism.

a first guess would be an electricity meter, but what's the variable
ratio gear for?

answers on a newsgroup post please to: u.m, and u.d

--

bof at bof dot me dot uk

bof wrote:


Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

scale wise the main mechanism is about 8cm wide and the numbered dial
about 4cm dia.

They were in a box with a number of other bits, three of which look like
coin slots for half crowns.

the cog C fits between the gear cylinder B and gear cone D

it looks as if the thread A should turn to move C up and down and
provide a variable gearing ratio, but this won't turn, and seems broken

The cog E is lightly clutched to D

The teeth on the numbered cog fit all the other cogs in the main mechanism.

a first guess would be an electricity meter, but what's the variable
ratio gear for?

Pre-payment coin meters would need a way for the price per unit to be
changed and that would be my guess as to the purpose of the gears. The
dial was presumably connected, probably through gearing, to thread A and
it would indicate which gear was engaged, showing either pence per unit
or units per coin inserted.

Colin Bignell

bof wrote:
Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

scale wise the main mechanism is about 8cm wide and the numbered dial
about 4cm dia.

They were in a box with a number of other bits, three of which look
like coin slots for half crowns.

the cog C fits between the gear cylinder B and gear cone D

it looks as if the thread A should turn to move C up and down and
provide a variable gearing ratio, but this won't turn, and seems
broken
The cog E is lightly clutched to D

The teeth on the numbered cog fit all the other cogs in the main
mechanism.

a first guess would be an electricity meter, but what's the variable
ratio gear for?

answers on a newsgroup post please to: u.m, and u.d

bits of a parking meter?

--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember bof
saying something like:

Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

The famous Lost Bits of Babbage's Engine.

In message , Grimly
Curmudgeon writes
We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember bof
saying something like:

Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

The famous Lost Bits of Babbage's Engine.

What's the difference?

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember james
saying something like:

Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

The famous Lost Bits of Babbage's Engine.

What's the difference?

Ask the cool operator.

On Sat, 14 Aug 2010 15:33:46 +0100, bof wrote:

scale wise the main mechanism is about 8cm wide and the numbered dial
about 4cm dia.

The numbers are designed to show upright through a window, positioned
at about "2 o'clock" from the spindle. "7 1/2" is pretty close to
upright. There are 15 numbers and 15 gears in the cone so the numbers
probably do show which gear is selected.

it looks as if the thread A should turn to move C up and down and
provide a variable gearing ratio, but this won't turn, and seems broken

There might be some form of latch that prevents A turning unless it
is released.

What are the top and bottom views of the mechanism?

--
Cheers
Dave.

"Dave Liquorice" wrote in message
ll.co.uk...
On Sat, 14 Aug 2010 15:33:46 +0100, bof wrote:

scale wise the main mechanism is about 8cm wide and the numbered dial
about 4cm dia.

The numbers are designed to show upright through a window, positioned
at about "2 o'clock" from the spindle. "7 1/2" is pretty close to
upright. There are 15 numbers and 15 gears in the cone so the numbers
probably do show which gear is selected.

it looks as if the thread A should turn to move C up and down and
provide a variable gearing ratio, but this won't turn, and seems broken

There might be some form of latch that prevents A turning unless it
is released.

What are the top and bottom views of the mechanism?

--
Cheers
Dave.

And the mystery might be helped if we knew what needed to be measured in
units of 8.

S

In message o.uk, Dave
Liquorice writes
On Sat, 14 Aug 2010 15:33:46 +0100, bof wrote:

scale wise the main mechanism is about 8cm wide and the numbered dial
about 4cm dia.

The numbers are designed to show upright through a window, positioned
at about "2 o'clock" from the spindle. "7 1/2" is pretty close to
upright. There are 15 numbers and 15 gears in the cone so the numbers
probably do show which gear is selected.

Yes found another plate in the box of bits, which aligns nicely with the
numbered cog to give this:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery3.jpg

which confirms nightjar's 'price per unit'



it looks as if the thread A should turn to move C up and down and
provide a variable gearing ratio, but this won't turn, and seems broken

There might be some form of latch that prevents A turning unless it
is released.

Yes there is, but even unlatched it's jammed


What are the top and bottom views of the mechanism?

Here's the top view where you can see the cam and latch:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery4.jpg

the bottom view is just a flat plate.



So I think mystery solved, thanks to all.



--

bof at bof dot me dot uk

In message , bof
writes


Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

Its for hand rolling cigarettes


--
geoff

In message , bof
writes


Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

Its a long lost Antikythera


--
geoff

"geoff" wrote in message
...
In message , bof
writes


Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

Its a long lost Antikythera


--
geoff

Cross-post to uk.eggheads?

:-)

bof set the following eddies spiralling through the space-time continuum:

Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

The integers and halves on the dial suggest it's for checking the sizes of
shoes.
--
ξ Proud to be curly

Interchange the alphabetic letter groups to reply

In message , Prai Jei
writes
bof set the following eddies spiralling through the space-time continuum:

Anyone any idea what these are from:

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h222/bofphoto/mystery2.jpg

The integers and halves on the dial suggest it's for checking the sizes of
shoes.

I guess there must be a second device for sizes 8 1/2 up

--

bof at bof dot me dot uk