ECN Forum Forums Photo Discussion Forums Electrical Nostalgia Ever see anything like this?

Couldn't see that... My monitor has a 640 x 480 max resolution...

Mhhhm,... and the bottom receptacle is labeled "250V 15A"

We found one like that and a plug at the old parsonage. Plug didn't look like 300 ohm but ???

If one side of "strange" outlet is labeled ground and/or connected to the metal fixture strap, then I would guess it was intended for an A.M. radio antenna.

The 300-ohm feeder commonly used on U.S. TVs is a balanced system and should have neither side grounded.

Resesrch has turned up some new details about the upper receptcle. It is a standard Western Union category 0.007 data connection--a/k/a telegraph key.

[This message has been edited by Bjarney (edited 05-03-2002).]

Bjarney you are right!! On the upper part of the duplex the slant pin is for the "long wire" antenna for old and/or short wave radios, and the vertical pin is the antenna system ground. These were available also as singles without the a/c power. We had one in my folks house. Since I have been a radio ham since youth, that connector fascinated me. They became obsolete when NFPA decided mains electricity and antenna connections don't mix, and can be hazardous to radios and human beings if wired backwards!

Bjarney,

So you are saying that there was a telegraph key that plugged into the upper receptacle? Was the 110 volt getting into the upper receptacle at all or were they just using it for the use of an antenna/grounding connection?

Sorry, I was joking about the telegraph. AM radio antenna and ground was the intended use. The center metal barrier was to keep things separate from the lower 120V.

Ragnar:

No. Our "typical" 110-volt receptacles and switches used to be rated for:

10A 250V/15A 125V

It's hard to see because of the globs of paint on the brown plastic.

I have a couple of these oldies at home (standard sockets, not the winking thing you see there)

Anyone have any idea when they stopped rating most devices this way? And why?

I've seen newly manufactured on-cord miniature switches and surface-mount wall switches still carrying the 250-volt/10-amp rating on the plastic shells....

Maybe the manufacturers never got around to re-casting the molds for these things.

A standard NEMA 1-15 or 5-15 plug and receptacle can carry 250 volts across it without complaining. I've done it plenty of times at home.

[This message has been edited by SvenNYC (edited 06-08-2003).]

LOL,
That's a good one Bjarney!!