5A switching load aren't they?
Yes, a lot of these switches were rated for 5 amps maximum, and as you can see the GE type above is marked "For A.C. only." The tunbler switches with their quick make/break action were suitable for D.C. as well, which was still in use in some towns in the 1950s.
Anyone know any history on the 'Walsall Patent' switch?
There was the Walsall Electrical Co., which goes right back to the 19th century.
Crabtree was also based in Walsall, and if you look at that switch the design is remarkably similar to that of the typical 1940s/50s Crabtree tumbler switch:
![[Linked Image]](https://www.electrical-contractor.net/PC/CrabtreeSwitch.jpg)
I'm not sure whether Crabtree was actually spun-off as a separate enterprise from Walsall Electric, but it seems a possibility.
http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=36193#s22 [This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 02-10-2007).]
