# Hiding in plain sight..



## arKmm (Oct 15, 2017)

I've lived in this house for many years. In the kitchen for many years there has been a shelf that my mother put up to place some of her father's (my grandfather) items that he'd passed to her. My grandfather passed in 1972 before I was born, and my mother died in 2013. I've since lived in the house on my own, and although I've changed quite a bit in the place, I'd never really paid much attention to *that* shelf. I work as a Police Officer and almost all of my flashlight collection is in relation to that and I don't have any incandescent or vintage devices. 

Except, I was wrong. I do. It's easy when something has been in place for so long to not notice it, but in preparation for moving house soon I have been clearing out boxes and areas that haven't really been touched. And that shelf is one of those. And in doing so I noticed three vintage torches, which had belonged to my grandfather. However, with no-one alive to tell the story, I'm not sure where they came from.

Here they are:







I've done a bit of searching online and have discovered that the one in the middle is a Daimon Telko which I had originally thought had been perhaps from the railway industry, however is most likely a WW2 era Wehrmacht device. My grandfather was an officer in the British Army and worked as a linguist. Speaking (as well as English) Italian, French, and German, he spent most of his time providing interpreting services in PoW camps. So, I can only guess that's perhaps how the Telko came to be in his possession. I'm sure there's more to it than that to explain why he and my mother kept it for so many years, but it's an interesting story nonetheless.

The other two however, I'm not sure of their origin. The wooden device is superbly crafted but extremely rudimentary. The red metal torch is clearly more modern, but wouldn't be more than 1960's era at most I imagine.

What can CPF tell me about these?


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## bykfixer (Oct 15, 2017)

FAAAAAAAAAAANTASTIC!!

Member minimoog can probably fill in some blanks on the wooden light. If it's Ever Ready (2 words) I might be able to as well. I believe the Ever Ready box light was only produced in Great Britain a few years but the American Eveready (1 word) were produced until 1937. There were other wood box light makers too but EverReady/Eveready were the dominant makers. Fine craftsmanship was involved. 

I cannot make out the brand on the one on the right. But the lens is a difuser type. It would have been best served as a room lighter or perhaps when the user did not want to be spotted as easily from a distance... like officers would have used as a tent light to read plans by. Your grandfather may have used it during 'lights out' scenarios the way folks in America used hurricane lamps that used oil to keep a whick lit up and a glass globe to spread light. 

During WW1 and WW2 the brits were issued lights that those crazy yanks used in the 1920's. The Brits issued lights were behind the times in many respects but still very useable. While the Americans typically carried tube lights that had a smaller, more focused beams, those box lights were brighter. Much brighter. 

Plastics were being used in flashlights as early as the 1920's and plastic lenses, although more expensive to produce back then were considered more durable in rough conditions. Scratches would not affect an already difused lens anyhow. By the 2nd generation of the American issued tube lights plastic bodies and lenses were the norm. So the one on the right may be old as the one in the middle or thereabouts. 

Here is a link to a site minimoog shared with me that may help you:
http://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/showthread.php?t=130809

Enjoy. Perhaps this is the beginning of a new hobby for you.


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## magellan (Oct 15, 2017)

Congrats on an amazing find and I’ll be looking forward to any further information/revelations about your lights.


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## FPSRelic (Oct 28, 2017)

bykfixer said:


> FAAAAAAAAAAANTASTIC!!
> 
> I cannot make out the brand on the one on the right.



It says "Leclanché" from what I can make out, who are a Swiss company that make batteries. Currently they focus on large Lithium -ion cells, but manufactured traditional batteries back in the day. a quick google search shows a number of images of lights that look very similar, but not the same as that flashlight.


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## TheFlash21 (Jan 6, 2018)

Dang, those are some sweet vintage lights your Grand-Father had passed down to you. Keep those and cherish them. They are worth it.


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## bykfixer (Jan 7, 2018)

FPSRelic said:


> It says "Leclanché" from what I can make out, who are a Swiss company that make batteries. Currently they focus on large Lithium -ion cells, but manufactured traditional batteries back in the day. a quick google search shows a number of images of lights that look very similar, but not the same as that flashlight.



Before Kel-Lite made flashlights most flashlights were made by battery companies. And boy did they sell a lot of batteries to the customers.


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