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Is imitation the most sincere form of flattery, or the road to oblivion?
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| Siren on Coast Spot Light Wing Platter |
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When we first found this siren we thought it was a B&M Model S8, Series M1 (the first series of motorized B&M sirens), from the 1920's. It was mounted on a Coast Spot Light wing platter using a B&M conversion bracket, and had B&M streamlined covers. It was also quite corroded.
Since the platter is from a more recent era, it was restored separately. As we were dismantling the siren to restore it, we found that it is not a B&M, but an imitation. Under the streamlined front cover was a nameplate for the Bell-Evans company of Terminal Island, California. The only reference to this company we have been able to find is in a CHP list of approved devices from the 1940's that listed a 'Bell-Evans Siren'.
Externally, this siren looks almost identical to a B&M Series M1, however there are several internal details that make it clear that this is not a B&M with a Bell-Evans nameplate. The clutch is of a type that we never produced, and it would probably have worn out very quickly due to its pin-and-ramp design. The rotor appears at first to be genuine B&M; there are even casting irregularities that match those on an old B&M rotor that we have in the museum. The problem is that this Bell-Evans rotor is smaller in every detail than a genuine B&M rotor. This leads us to believe that a B&M rotor was used as a casting pattern. Normal shrinkage of aluminum (about 2%) on cooling would exactly account for the size difference. (Casting patterns are typically made oversize to allow for shrinkage as the casting cools.)
This siren was restored basically 'as-found', without the streamlined covers. All corroded parts were cleaned and clear coated, new brass studs were made, and a new-old stock B&M dust plug was installed in the bearing housing.
This siren runs and sounds like a real B&M Series M1. We have no idea how many of these copies were ever made, and this is the only one we have seen.
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| Bell-Evans, Terminal Island |
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