non Mac-related conquests

[aphetica]

Maybe we could have a thread for stuff like this? Just an idea.

Anyway,

Today I took trash out to the dumpster and found these screwed to some fiberboard:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aphetica/2622141252/

They were empty, but nonetheless I think they're pretty cool. I don't know why people throw some things out. They look brand new, and they're all stealthy.

Also, my father gave me this while I was in the Adirondacks recently:




I fell in love with the old GE desk fans when I found one beyond-repair in an abandoned factory while urban exploring, and now I finally have a working one. The metal blades are very very quiet.

Most of my favorite material possessions are of similar quality and vintage... They just don't make things like this anymore.

What have you conquested lately?

 

[MacMan]

Both very good finds. I especially like that fan, though it does look like it would happily chop off your fingers if you were to venture anywhere near it with them!

Last week I scored a 1970's sound monitoring meter from work along with various calibration fittings. They are all high quality, leather cased instruments from the days when scientific equipment was very expensive and built by guys in lab coats. My workplace had replaced it with a modern one and were going to throw it in the bin, hence I rescued it. Basically it is a device for measuring the Decibel level of sound, in my work's instance they used it to monitor the sound levels around the site.

pic: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3135/2621516353_50cb1c8bc0_b.jpg

I probably won't use it but I think it is a nice bit of retro gear and too good to be thrown away. As far as I know it still works but it takes a weird battery which is expensive and difficult to get.

 

[aphetica]

That's really cool. I tend to hoard old audio equipment also.

I forgot to mention that along with the fan, I got a 1930's table-top tube radio/record player. That's still in NY though, and needs a bit of restoration.

Have you tried maybe fabricating an appropriate battery for the Db meter like people sometimes do with old Powerbooks?

 

[lastmile77]

Last week I scored a 1970's sound monitoring meter from work along with various calibration fittings. They are all high quality, leather cased instruments from the days when scientific equipment was very expensive and built by guys in lab coats.

At the best "conquest" site I've ever been at (a story in itself) we found a two-pan analytical balance that must have been from the early 1900s. I believe it has a Fisher plaque on it which would be possible since Fisher Scientific was founded in 1902. The balance itself was brass and the enclosure was wood. Just checked ebay and it was much nicer than anything currently listed. My boss kept it for his office.

 

[Bunsen]

Oh dear oh dear. This is exactly the type of schwag I like to hoard as well. That fan is awesome.

MacMan, what can you tell us about the battery for the dB meter? Was there a dead one in the unit? Pics?

 

[Christopher]

Bet you that dB meter is loads better then the cheap one my church has from Radio Shack.

 

[MacMan]

MacMan, what can you tell us about the battery for the dB meter? Was there a dead one in the unit? Pics?

It takes an Ever Ready B122 according to the label inside, unfortunately the dead battery is long gone. The B122 is still available from Radioshack under the guise of Ever Ready model 412. It is an unusual 22.5V battery which I have never seen before. I'll see how easy it is to get one in the UK cheaply, otherwise I reckon I could probably mock something up.