Quote:
Originally Posted by David Dunlop
I have seen two versions of this item: one that fits in a rather POSH looking wooden box, and the second (perhaps a slightly smaller item) that stores in a simple cardboard tube, either blue or grey, with an instruction label glued on the outside.
Were these only issued/needed when the 19-Set was installed in a Command or Signals Vehicle where portable batteries were an issue?
And are the two types fully interchangeable, wherever needed?
David
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I have the civilian (I think) equivalent of the wooden box one. This incorporates a thermometer, so is rather more useful than the "standard" model.
I also have one in a metal cylinder, which I think is the usual "issue" type - it arrived in a "Bags, Aerial Gear" with most of the 34/20-ft mast kit and a set of stays/rigging that I'd never seen before: with glass "shell" insulators instead of the usual Bakelite "Chain Link" type and a multi-section aerial on a US-style winder
Hydrometers appeared in the WS52 station kit, I'm not sure about the WS19...
...Ah: Canadian "Set & Standard Kit" has "Hydrometer, Sec. Cell, Portable, Canadian Mk.I" listed. I'm fairly sure it wasn't standard for British sets.
A lot of British units were supplied with freshly-charged batteries on a regular basis (along with rations, ammunition & mail, etc.), rather than having their own charging set (which might give their position away), so hydrometers would not be needed in that setup.
Chris.