News:

"The phone is a remarkably complex, simple device,
and very rarely ever needs repairs, once you fix them." - Dan/Panther

Main Menu

Manhole cover

Started by McHeath, April 11, 2009, 03:31:52 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

McHeath

Went over to the beach for a couple of days this week, Cambria Calif, and found this manhole cover in town.


McHeath

The hotel we stayed in also has a phone booth:

McHeath

And for you Mid Century Modern folks, here is the lobby of the hotel:  (wife reading in chair)

HobieSport

Thanks for the pics, Heath.  Funny how when we get interested in a subject, (i. e. telephones, or anything else, I guess) that we suddenly start noticing it everywhere, whereas before, we never would have given it a second thought.

I like that Bell System hole cover.  It would look nice as a front door step/ welcome mat. ;) ;D

Ellen

Quote from: HobieSport on April 11, 2009, 03:53:42 PM
It would look nice as a front door step/ welcome mat. ;) ;D
Yeah, I'm surprised it is still there   ...?  And look at all the bolts holding that thing together.  I have a niece who was known in her youth as being able to "take apart an anvil and lose the pieces".  Just saying.




ps Anvils don't come apart.

rp2813

Lots of those types of covers still in use in my area.  I guess this is the same kind that they say one needs a special tool to remove, as we have been hearing locally due to a saboteur cutting a fiber optic cable and interrupting service to many thousands of homes and businesses back on Thursday.
Ralph

McHeath

Back in the 80's I worked for my father's underground utilities company and we installed a lot of telecom cables in conduits and central manholes for junctions.  It would be very easy to do what happened over in San Jose this last week, that lid can be pulled open with a simple steel bar, and good old lock cutters will slice the cables.  It's really very surprising that this sort of thing does not happen all the time, the power grid and telecomm network are easy to damage.  A couple of years ago a car hit a power pole outside of town and blacked out the whole town for most of the night. 

I've not seen a Bell System manhole in my area, most of ours are generic and were either made locally at a now defunct foundry, or in India.  I really like the design on the Bell Manhole Cover, very clever with the gears and bolt heads. 

HobieSport

#7
What I don't get is who would cut the cables in the SF Bay area last week and why ???  Sure I can understand an accidental cutting of cables during construction, or a car or a tree hitting electrical or communications equipment, but why do it deliberately?  Kind of scary all the harm it did.  I don't really want to speculate what the motives were. :P

Anyway, it is indeed a beautiful Bell manhole cover!  Makes me want to take a mold and cast a big concrete porch tile or something...

I've heard that in some areas of the country that there is a problem with manhole covers being stolen just to sell for cheap scrap.  Pretty sad.

McHeath

We are having a lot of metal thefts in our area.  Any loose metal, and not so loose, is being pulled out or off or up and sold as scrap for money.  Even street light wiring is being yanked out, for the copper.  A buddy of mine had his catalytic convertor sawed off his truck in a parking lot last year.  Last couple of days we have turned away 4 different guys at the door looking for work, wanting to mow our lawn, roof the house, prune the bushes, etc.  That's more than ever, and it's pretty much a daily happening now, someone at the door looking to do work.  Our trash is gone through every single week, we put it out on Thursday morning and there are people stopping in all morning to dig through it before the trash truck comes and gets it.  People selling stuff in traffic is also common now, flowers, candy, fruits, when you are stopped at a light they will start walking up and down the lanes looking for buyers.  We get panhandled a lot as well when out and about, especially at gas stations, but even at stores in parking lots.  A few weeks ago a woman even walked into my classroom one morning and tried to sell me Avon products! 

AET

Definately like the manhole cover!  All the ones around here just say Neenah Foundry on them.  Also, like the lobby, the ceiling lamp and some of the furniture tickles my fancy.
- Tom

rp2813

I think that cover design is 60's vintage.  I kinda sorta remember them showing up in areas that had new construction back then.  Don't know if Pacific Telephone was allowed to come up with their own design or what, but don't think I've seen this type of cover anywhere outside of their territory in California.

As for why someone would intentionally cut a fiber optic cable, being a former AT&T employee I've been involved with work stoppage preparations over the past several months as the contract for certain union positions expired recently and the company is anticipating a strike, possibly as soon as the week of 4/13.  Cutting a cable is a federal offense so it seems strange that anyone would resort to that before a strike is even sanctioned, but it's the first thing that came to my mind.

Interesting that the cable that was cut actually serves mainly Verizon customers, so whomever did the cutting missed their target entirely.

Ralph
Ralph

McHeath

Hmm, sabotage as a result of the contract stalemate.  Wonder if it was that?  AT and T sure has a hefty reward out, guess they are hoping that will shake something out of the trees.

bingster

#12
I think that manhole cover design might have been universal, as we have them here, too.  I've always thought they were pretty neat.

Quote from: McHeath on April 11, 2009, 11:57:18 PMI've not seen a Bell System manhole in my area, most of ours are generic and were either made locally at a now defunct foundry, or in India. 
I really don't understand this.  We have Indian manhole covers showing up here, too.  I can't imagine how it's possible that they're cheaper, given what it must cost to ship such heavy things halfway around the world.  If we can't even make a clumsy thing like a manhole cover, maybe we should just pack it in and send everybody back to Europe.
= DARRIN =



McHeath

Yeah funny eh, even manhole covers are being imported.  AT and T shuffled all phone production overseas in the late 80's, yet weirdly enough Cortelco still makes 2500s in the Deep South. 

Dennis Markham

Hey, you guys are not being politically correct.  They're "person hole covers".