Special (?) Simpson 260 VOM?!?!?

[jr_tech]

Guessing this is it:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-SIMP...p2047675.l2557

I have never seen a 260 that has that style of knobs, but I am a Triplet guy.

jr

[Tubejunke]

Originally Posted by jr_tech

Guessing this is it:


I have never seen a 260 that has that style of knobs, but I am a Triplet guy.

jr

Yes, that's the one. As you can see, people were fighting me over it as far as bidding. Once I got it, I was amazed at the immaculate condition of the meter and it's manual. The thing is as close to true mint condition as I have ever seen.

In my many second thoughts and knowing how crafty people can be with words on Ebay in proving that there is a sucker born every day, I thought OK, so it has red letters and no series designation. Anyone could color the letters red AND there are a number of types that don't give the series, or at least a couple.

The most intriguing thing really is the control knob configuration. I did see pictures of others somewhere in my search with such controls, but there was no explanation of what they were. And again, there was nothing on the Simpson260 site unless I missed something by accident.

Either way I guess it boils down to I now have a super nice VOM (like I needed another meter) that bears some intrigue to certain people somewhere....

[jr_tech]

A few years ago, when I was actively collecting Triplett VOMs, I ended up paying fairly high prices for some of the more unusual models... thats life, I guess

In case you did not see it here is my thread on the 310 series models that I collected:

http://www.videokarma.org/showthread.php?t=248880

jr

[Findm-Keepm]

That's probably a series 1 - the manual shows no ZIP code (pre-1964....) and the knobs match the design patent (2509415) image, so it's definitely early....IIRC, early serial numbers are inside, stamped in silver or white ink.

[Tubejunke]

Originally Posted by Findm-Keepm

That's probably a series 1 - the manual shows no ZIP code (pre-1964....) and the knobs match the design patent (2509415) image, so it's definitely early....IIRC, early serial numbers are inside, stamped in silver or white ink.

Where can I view the manual if possible. I'm just a bit confused by all these different series and such. No ZIP code prior to 1964? Where is a ZIP code? Does this mean on the front near the bottom where the company name and such are?

And pre 1964 it would seem leaves a lot of wiggle room for dating as the 260s supposedly go back to what the 1930s or so. If the manual that is with mine is the correct manual it makes mention of the high standards of quality proven during WW2. So that manual at least must be from some point after the war.

Finally, I have been wondering if someone could have simply grabbed two of the selector knobs and mounted them on the left and right controls. I don't have the meter right here with me to see if the knobs are identical or somewhat different. I could also remove one of the normally found round knobs from my series 8 and place it on this meter to see if it even looks right, meaning that no function designation fonts are covered or other things out of line.

[jr_tech]

Originally Posted by Tubejunke

pre 1964 it would seem leaves a lot of wiggle room for dating as the 260s supposedly go back to what the 1930s or so. If the manual that is with mine is the correct manual it makes mention of the high standards of quality proven during WW2. So that manual at least must be from some point after the war.

The patent mentioned an earlier post is for the construction method used in your meter... it was filed in 1947 and assigned in 1950, so it would seem to me that your meter was likely made after 1947.
The instruction manual pictured in the eBay listing just says Chicago 44, Illinois with no zip code, so likely printed before 1964.

patent:
https://www.google.com/patents/US2509415

jr

[Findm-Keepm]

Originally Posted by Tubejunke

No ZIP code prior to 1964? Where is a ZIP code? Does this mean on the front near the bottom where the company name and such are?

Prior to 1964, postal codes in the US had a "Chicago 44, IL" convention. With the advent of the Zone Improvement Program (ZIP), codes were expanded to 5 digits, until the advent of the 9-digit codes in the 1980s.

The manual in the auction had Simpson's Chicago address with the old convention, hence pre-1964. The design patent for the original 260 dates to 1937, IIRC. So broad swath I painted, as I could not nail down an exact date, but series 2 and above are all identified as such on the meter face....

In all my years of repairing, calibrating (and collecting), I've never dealt with any Series 3 or prior, but I have a Bell Systems 260 (KS-series meter...), with no Series listed. The UL stamp inside is post 1955...using UL's guide.