RootsChat.Com
General => The Common Room => The Lighter Side => Topic started by: amber42 on Tuesday 24 June 14 08:35 BST (UK)
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Any ideas what this is? An iron with a bit on the side. My father found it. He says he thinks it is just put together as a conversation piece I thought I would post it and see if you agree or did it have a purpose?
Oh dear photo hasn't come out! Dont know why. Sorry!
Trying another photo.
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Does it drip water on to the garment being ironed?
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Don't think so as top of pipe is small and don't know how you would feed it with water to drip. I wondered could you put a candle in the top? But then movement of iron back and forth would surely blow candle out.
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Don't think so as top of pipe is small and don't know how you would feed it with water to drip.
Is that funnel shaped thing at the top of the pipe not hollow then? Is it open at the top?
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Yes it is. Perhaps a rubber pipe could be attached as the pipe stands a little proud in bottom of funnel as funnel itself would be too small to hold much water.
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I go along with Mike's reply #1 .......... I think it allows water held in the bell to drip and form steam to aid the ironing ... a sort of early steam iron.... only problem with that is that the pipe at the lower end must be 'pinched' to limit the flow of water and the photo does not show if this is so.
Joe
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Looks like a homemade add on. The pipe seems to obstruct the handle in the view we have. I would have thought that was there to feed a liquid onto the surface being worked, wether water onto cloth, like joboy said, or some other liquid and worked material. The feed could be controlled by just pouring into the cup has needed or a piece of clothe or cotton wool could be be put into the cup to restrict the flow.
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I think ........ ::) ??? that it was to 'heat' the iron with?? some kind of little boiling system..
;D ;D ;D maybe put some oil or something in it and it goes down to the iron and heats it..
Maybe the first portable iron?????
just me thinking... and you know what thats like :) ??? ??? :o
xin
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To feed a liquid or water would make sense for a one-handed person.
But is it still easy to handle it as iron?
If not, it might be a secondary use as candlestick.
Just a heavy thing to hold a candle.
In Germany there is a TV show "Dings vom Dach" - things found in the attic ...
Rudolf
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I too thought it could be an early steam iron...scroll down to see something similar:
http://hubpages.com/hub/Moms-old-Iron-Signpost-of-Technology
http://victoriancollections.net.au/items/4f72c00397f83e0308606d07
Carol
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Further to Joe's question ... Is the bottom of the pipe open, or does it feed into the sole plate?
A week or two ago I went to an antiques fair and saw a couple of old irons. I wish I had taken more notice, but they had round 'balls' sticking up from the irons, which I thought were to hold water. They looked more rubber than metal though and were not so raised above the iron as this one. Maybe the receptacle in the picture held a container of water with a drip pipe going down inside the pipe as has already been mentioned.
It seems a fairly inefficent system when water could just be sprinkled or flicked onto the garment prior to ironing.
Added: images posted by treetotal are similar to the ones I saw.
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I'm starting to backtrack! Originally I thought it might have been an early steam iron but:
1. None of the images I have found look anything like this. The iron does seem to be a normal flat iron with this attachment added later,
2. I wonder whether you could even use it as an iron, with that bend in the tube being so close the handle. Kerrenhapuch - could you try holding it as if you were using it as an iron and let us know how it feels?
I wonder whether Rudolf is right - the iron is just being used as a heavy weight to support the "thing". Any sign of candle wax in the funnel?
Mike
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The pipe at the bottom is not pinched, so the water would flow straight out. The pipe is slightly curved so as not to restrict your hand as you hold it.
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Yes it is. Perhaps a rubber pipe could be attached as the pipe stands a little proud in bottom of funnel as funnel itself would be too small to hold much water.
How much does the tube protrude?
I'm wondering whether it's a home made steam iron. If a rubber tube could be attached to the pipe, steam could be pumped through and down to the iron. The funnel could be to catch any leakage. It's a bit Heath Robinson-ish though.
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I agree the pipe looks like it was soldered on.
Was thinking of HOT something going into the top could burn you if it spills when ironing.
My thought was to keep the plate hot but not sure how
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It wouldn't work for me....I'm left handed...and the base on other early steam irons have a deeper base to hold the water..I'm with Rudolph...I think it's a flat iron fashioned to function as a candle holder or an oil lamp or burner.
Carol
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The pipe does not go into the iron. The pipe bends just where your thumb joint is. It would be functional as an iron but not comfortable if you had large hands.
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To feed a liquid or water would make sense for a one-handed person.
But is it still easy to handle it as iron?
If not, it might be a secondary use as candlestick.
Just a heavy thing to hold a candle.
In Germany there is a TV show "Dings vom Dach" - things found in the attic ...
Rudolf
I think I'll go along with Rudolph it could be a rejigged old flat iron as a candle stick and the flat iron's weight would keep it stable and not fall over easily.
Joe
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Trying to post another couple of photos. It keeps saying change file name. Don't know how!
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Hi Kerren,
It means that there is already a photograph of the same name on RootsChat. If you picture is called cat.jpeg you need to change it to something different like cat721.jpeg
Regards
Sarah :)
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Thank you Sarah. Am trying again.
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Another view.
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Hi, I thought it was some kind of home made candle stick / lamp holder :-\ I wonder what the bit at the back is for, looks like a screw attachment.
Frank.
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Thank you Treetotal your links are very interesting. I think I go with the candle holder. It certainly is a conversation piece. I just wonder what the person who made it would think of the interest his/her iron has engendered.
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Hi, I thought it was some kind of home made candle stick / lamp holder :-\ I wonder what the bit at the back is for, looks like a screw attachment.
Frank.
Agree candle holder-- iron made ornamental.
Not sure about the back---
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It looks like a slug iron,not for ironing slugs but hollow with a door at the back [this one]. You heat up an iron slug and put it inside and close the door, that way you don't get smoke smuts from the fire on the iron, plus you can have several slugs so don't have to stop ironing to wait for the iron to heat up. The add on is a later embellishment, the reason the pipe sticks up inside the cup is because of the nut on the threaded pipe.
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It looks like a slug iron,............................... you can have several slugs so don't have to stop ironing to wait for the iron to heat up.
I'll have to get the wife one of those then ;D
You can see that it has a slug in now you know what it is.
Frank.
Ps Not for ironing slugs made me chuckle.
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Thanks for all the ideas. I had a lovely mental picture of someone ironing slugs!
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Good evening,
That looks like part of an electric light fitting. There would have been a bulb holder screwed on above the nut with a simple sprung wire butterfly to hold the glass bowl/funnel/tube or whatever in place.
The flex would have gone through the tube and out of the bottom to a socket hence the gap at the bottom of the tube.
Just of to get OH from work but will try to find some piccies later.
John915
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All that conductive material and electricity :o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o
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I think he is referring to the iron being converted into a lamp Jager.
Oh...and welcome to Rootschat :D
Carol
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After I have seen the last fotos:
Agree lamp holder - electric light, no candle!
Made between 1940 and 1950?,
but still up to date: pre-STEAMPUNK
Rudolf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk)
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Thankyou nfor the welcome, I was referring to the lamp conversion, probably a 2core flex, no earth for the typical table lamp. Mounted on a metal nobect.
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Gravity fed liquid starch dispenser with flow control (plug) missing.
Regards
Malky
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Good evening,
As promised a photo albeit of a modern fitting but would have been almost identical. Couldn't find a pic of the sprung wire butterfly but anyone who has had a globe ceiling light may have come across one.
John915
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The only problem with it being a lamp holder, is it would be in the inverted position facing downwards, eliminating the shadow from the base of the bulb and the holder, not facing upwards. Also, if there had beem a twin flex connected through the pipe running down to and past the hot iron, how would one heat the iron without damaging the flex, remembering that in those days, any electrical cable utilised in the household would have been insulated with a rubber coating.
Regards
Malky
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Good evening,
The iron would never be hot, it has just been used to make a table lamp out of. The cup piece is typical of the units used to hold glass globes etc. giving all round light. Given the possible age the flex would most likely have been twisted, twin rubber cable with the old cotton braiding around it.
John915
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Like I said earlier, deadly.