Description
Surviving Weston duplex electric car meters are quite rare, often suffering from poor storage or improper use if they were even retained. The offered example’s fine condition and unique protective case reflect both the original intended use as a dual volt and ampere dashboard gauge for early electrical cars and its later use as a portable multimeter. It bears metal plates reading “Volts” and “Amperes” along with the original patent information and manufacturing information. The serial number dates the original manufacture to around 1909. As a bench meter, the object continued to be used, with the bottom corner of the wooden box bearing a sticker confirming the object’s calibration by the “Traceable N.B.S.,” standing for the United States National Bureau of Standards.
Weston Electrical Instrument Co. was founded in 1888 by Dr. Edward Weston (1850-1936). A prolific inventor, Weston got his start inventing and producing dynamos for the electroplating industry after he emigrated to the U.S. in 1870. He followed by inventing and manufacturing electric lighting systems and bulbs and became a leading supplier of arc lighting systems, including the lighting for the Brooklyn Bridge when it opened in 1883. By 1886 he had been granted 186 patents and shifted his focus to manufacturing measuring instruments. He was joined in business by his son Edward Faraday Weston. The company was the first major producer of accurate portable voltmeters and ammeters. Indeed, they are renowned for their high quality Weston Model R Volt & Ampere Meter, a “bow-tie” style of duplex (or dual) meter for early electric cars. Western Electrical also produced other innovative electrical products including the Weston standard cell and the first portable light meter. Edward Weston was an early contributor to the founding of the Newark Technical School, which eventually became New Jersey Institute of Technology. He is in the New Jersey Inventors Hall of Fame.
One of the world’s foremost authorities on this subject, Galen Handy, discussed the history of Weston Electrical Instrument Company in a 2018 article on early electric car meters and the birth of the electric car industry:
Weston [Electrical Instrument Co.] perfected the d’Arsonval galvanometer-based moving-coil meter movement, and Weston was usually the meter of choice for an electric car company that wished to maintain an image of quality. For electric vehicles, Weston put a set of 4-inch scale meters in a relatively small light aluminum case, with the meter pointers facing each other, a patented design feature.
With a moving coil, one has the advantage of a small, light, electro-magnetic component surrounded by a large stable permanent magnet structure. This requires less current and is more linear, making them less affected by exogenous magnetic fields, such as gravity or electro-magnets.
[Edward] Weston’s background was a physician, metallurgist, and photo chemist. He was a perfectionist who demanded linearity and stability from his meters over time. He invented a new alloy for a ‘permanent magnet’ and magnetic lens structures to issue a consistent flux gap over a wide swing. The magnets were repeatedly heated, cooled, magnetized, demagnetized, and aged, to stabilize them before installation.
The ammeter shunts were made of a ‘German Silver’ alloy he formulated of copper, nickel, and manganese. …
The Weston moving coil had the advantages of a lightweight responsive movement, against a pair of phosphor bronze coil springs, with an inherent damping factor from the aluminum winding core acting as an inductive short circuit to any rapid change in movement.
Condition: Generally very good with the usual overall wear from use as expected from a utilitarian object. Leather strap probably replaced. Apparently in working condition sold only as a vintage interesting and decorative artifact and curiosity, not for use with electricity or other power sources.
References:
Handy, Galen. “Early Electric Car Meters.” Chuck’s Toyland. (2018) https://www.chuckstoyland.com/category/automotive/national-motor-vehicle-company/national-1900-1904/1903-national-1900-1904/1903-national-electric-road-wagon-model-60/weston-model-r-volt-ampere-meter/early-electric-car-meters-2018-galen-handy-3-4/ (10 September 2024).
Handy, Galen. Email conversation with George Glazer Gallery, September 8, 2024.
“Weston Electrical Instrument Corporation.” FTL Design History of Technology. https://weston.ftldesign.com/index.html (10 September 2024).
