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Old 12-21-2016, 03:42 AM
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Tubejunke Tubejunke is offline
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Special (?) Simpson 260 VOM?!?!?

I recently saw this meter on Praybay and I am wondering how much truth there is to how the quy had it advertised. Basically he said that there was no series designation on the meter scale as many others do have, but not all. He also noted that there was no "serial number" where most have one somewhere on the body or face. Finally he noted that the Simpson logo and the 260 logo were in red lettering instead of white.

I went through the Simpson260.com webpage and never even found a meter that looks like this one, much less has red letters. I did note that some older series' like series 2 I think don't have the series designation on the meter scale, but those models dont have the same switching configuration as mine.

At any rate, I fell for the story and battled a rather large number of bidders to wind up with upwards of a C note tied up in a mint condition, yet still a simple 260 VOM. I could easily get two or three for that money; perhaps not in that condition, but condition doesn't read volts, ohms, and mills! :scratch2
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Old 12-21-2016, 04:43 AM
WISCOJIM WISCOJIM is offline
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Could you give the auction link for larger pictures?

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Old 12-21-2016, 04:50 PM
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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
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Old 12-22-2016, 12:07 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jr_tech View Post
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....
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Old 12-22-2016, 12:47 AM
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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
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Old 12-22-2016, 07:39 AM
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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.
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Last edited by Findm-Keepm; 12-22-2016 at 09:47 AM.
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Old 12-23-2016, 03:04 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Findm-Keepm View Post
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.
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Old 12-23-2016, 09:38 AM
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Old 12-23-2016, 09:40 AM
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Old 12-23-2016, 05:48 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tubejunke View Post
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
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Old 12-23-2016, 10:33 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tubejunke View Post
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.
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Old 01-26-2017, 09:07 PM
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With those knobs? Pft. I got like ten of those. I admit, never seen one with red lettering.
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Old 01-27-2017, 02:24 AM
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Ya know, it came from Praybay, and I probably let my curiosity get the best of me when the mentioned these differences. I didn't overpay really and it's a great meter. Anyone could make the letters red. Probably nothing special beyond being in near mint condition.

Thanks for all the input folks. I guess I can set it on the shelf for occasional use. That's the thing with really nice old stuff; cars are a prime example. If you have a really nice one, then it becomes a trailer queen to show people that it exists and YOU have one. LOL! I know a Simpson meter is a far cry from a restored 59 Cadillac; it's just an analogy. Honestly, if I didn't have a Series 8P workhorse, I would put the old one to more regular use. I would get better leads!

I carry the 8 to work with me just to mess with the other techs who can't understand it.......
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