How about this one:



Not Model T you say?

Well, have a closer look here:



For those, like me, with not so great eyesight:

Cool picture...

Clearly that is the real reason the Great War ended.

Seriously, what is it?

Matt

I wish I could begin to even guess what this is. Must be important because a lot of effort went into it.

It's a search light

Could you do the zoom in on the electrics box, and of the device itself?

Looks like a spot light and the box could be the voltage control but I don't see a power supple.

They used some kind of gas

Neat photo. Thanks for sharing

I think it was likely a carbon arc lamp as was used in early movie projection but I have never researched it.

Appears to have a spool mounted where spare tire could go, with heavy hose, assuming water, assuming to cool it down?
Looks like driver's door is bolted shut.
Above driver's seat is a backup lantern in case the search light fails.

I suspect that it is a carbon arc searchlight. When I worked at Newton Motor Sales (a Ford dealer) in the early 60's, we had one of these mounted on a '39 or '40 Ford flatbed truck. We rented it out for store openings and that sort of thing. I never got to run it, but I know that in operation it got hot!

I suspect carbon arc also (thamks for the zoom on the electrical box) when working a carbon projector lamp... it would need incremental adjustment to keep the arc color at the right 'color' / temperature. I suspect tha might be what the remote dial does.

When I was at college in the 50's, I was in a group that ran movies and we had two carbon arc projectors. I think it was automatic, I don't remember much else than we initially set it up and then we watched the movie waiting for the dreaded "dot", at which time we had switch projectors and set up the next reel. Looking back, I wonder how it worked!!!