Interesting old wooden fusebox

[DPG]

Interesting item on ebay. Looks in good condition to say how old it is:

Vintage Wooden Prento Fuse Box With Porcelain Fuses | eBay

Nicely made dovetailed hardwood box.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[7029 dave]

In the ebay description it says 1950's, l would have said older BUT pvc cables maybe not. ( not talking about the new brown and blue on the terminal blocks lol)

 

[Lucien Nunes]

If the neutral bar is original, and the castellated nuts on the paxolin plate make me think it is, then it is likely to be late 1940s / early 1950s. Had it been earlier it would have been DP fused, as IIRC the changeover followed the amendments to the 11th edition. Prentice were quite a big second-tier manufacturer, cheaper than the likes of MEM, Crabtree etc.

 

[DPG]

Looks like it's sold now.

 

[freddo]

Here is my Prento 6 way DP fusebord. It's really neat and compact. The fuse carriers are in good condition, rated 15A max, though at least one has a 30A wire in it. There is a rectangular screw for each row that you turn 90 degrees and then the row of fuses hinges to the left to access the wiring behind. There was a piece of asbestos board between the 2 rows but I don't know where that has gone, it was there the last time I looked... All the conductor stumps left connected are all black as the red wrapping on the upper row has all fallen off, the black wrapping has almost fallen off. The wires look like the sort often found in lead sheathed twin.
Oh look I've started rambling again.

 

[DPG]

I like how they've used the same hinge for both the cover and the fuses rails.

 

[Lucien Nunes]

And you just pull the split-pin out and the bar comes free to give maximum access for pulling cables through conduits etc. Some countries that for a long time preferred custom-made panels with individual fuseholders and isolators often had hinge-out arrangements. Aus and NZ for example, where the whole panel would swing away from the frame for wiring access.

I recently got a glass-fronted 6-way Telac with a separately hinged section of the frame to access the wiring side. I have yet to find one with an original lock complete with original key. Sadly the person the Telac one came from did a terrible job of packing it and it was damaged in transit. Thankfully all the ceramic bits and even the glass are intact, but the wood is split in a few places and the hinges bent. I don't know why he didn't put it in a box, surely that's obvious? It's not the first time I have received a mangled fusebox through skimpy packing though.

 

[Doomed]

My mother in law has still got one in use along with rubber cables, will she let me rewire or change it? Like heck she will, doesn't want the disruption or mess, althogh I have added a second DB and rewired the kitchen when she had that done a couple of years ago.