I am going to help n old time out selling this rare tool, he has used it for checking coils, he says its early rail road but I have no idea so we are asking for help and value for this large electrical tool
Westo Electrical Instrument corp.
C,M & ST PRY
SIGNAL DEPT
12-4-1916
pretty neat amp and volt meter with extras
here are a few photo's any help appreciated, Bob
Anyone???
Robert,
The railway instructions take this from being an "interesting electric device" to being "Railroadiana" which is like a part for a Chevy being for a Cadillac. The price goes UP.
I can't tell you by how much, but that stuff like this almost never shows up. You'd probably get more information from a railroad collector's site.
I have no idea what the loose bits are for.
Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul RR.
The Milwaukee Road. :-)
Very cool piece!
The brass faced Weston meter in and of itself could have been used for a number of various applications.
Someone bought it and then put it in the wooden box and added the rheostat and shunt.
For all practical purposes, the Weston meter itself is really no different than the common "bow tie" meters that were used in various ways including electric automobiles, such as my dad's 1900 Waverley Electric.
Erik, The value is not in the Weston meter (although it does have value by itself), but in the entire box and paperwork. Maybe the railroad shop built the box, or maybe it was made by a railroad signal manufacturer; either way it is a rare piece of railroadiana, and therein lies the market value.
I'm already aware of that.
Could be a relay test set. Signal relays must be tested for pickup, holding and drop-away current. Anything fond out-of-spec is repaired at the signal shop and sent to the field. May also be used for testing signal mechs.
Garnet
(ret'd CPR Signal Dept)
Just got a pic from a friend of a piece of rail where he's at right now.
Up on the web it says CARNEGIE 1898 ET 1111. I told him I want that piece of steel rail! He wrote back me too!
He then writes that he'll see if he can get SOME the next time he's out there. Railroadiana? Yup.
Folks not schooled in this area are surprised to learn that a voltmeter and an ammeter are the same thing.
When being used as a voltmeter, the voltage (think "pressure") across the terminals deflects the needle, thus indicating the strength of the pressure, or voltage.
When being used as an ammeter, the current is passed through a resistance of some sort, and the voltage drop across the resistance is directly proportional to the amount of current passing through, AKA amperage.
I can see at least three, and maybe more, resistors in the pile of parts. The long, wire-wound tube inside the box, and a smaller, flat piece of something, again wire-wound. Then there's the thing in then upper right corner of the box, consisting of two heavy terminals with a flat bar between them.
With any of these, you would choose the resistor best suited to the amount of current you're trying to measure, pass the current through it, and measure the voltage between the two ends.
Obviously, a large copper bar would not experience much voltage drop if, say, the load being measured is a flashlight bulb. Conversely, The current needed for, say, a large signal device would burn out the small wire-wound resistors. Either way, if the resistance is known, the amperage through the circuit is directly measureable with a properly-marked voltmeter.