Tom McGill, Ottawa, Illinois, asks: Have you ever heard of a CD 164 Hawley that also has Sterling embossed on it? Any help appreciated.

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In reply to Tom McGill: There is a definite relationship between the STERLING insulators and the later Harloe Insulator Company at Hawley, Pennsylvania. But inasmuch as we do not have the complete picture, it's best to not put into print that which is pure conjecture. Data on these very small, short-lived glass works is extremely difficult to come by!

From Bob Alexander, Winter Haven, Florida: I have what I think is the smallest insulator made for a standard pin. It is only 2-3/4 inches high and 2 inches wide. Color is amber black glass; very crude and has a million tiny bubbles. It looks somewhat like a Canadian, but was dug up in Lakeland, Florida. I also know of another one which was found in Florida which is a very nice cobalt blue color. 

One of the strange things about it is that this pony has mold seams which indicate it was made from a 4 piece mold. The cobalt one was found on a pole, so I think they are "real" and not fakes. There is no embossing on the insulator, and the threads are kind of shallow, but it screws into a regular pin fairly well. The threads seem to resemble the threads on the American beehive, but without the glass "bubbles" in the dome. (The picture shows it next to a regular purple BT Co. of Canada. The wire groove is just an indentation, not really a groove.)

I wonder if you have ever heard of anything like this and also if it might receive a new CD #. Everybody I have showed it to says that they had never before seen anything like it. Thanks for any help you can offer.

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In reply to Bob Alexander: These very small, crude and unidentified pony insulators are strangers to me. Since there is a considerable variation in CD #102 at present, I would suggest that they be left there for the time being at least. In your photograph you have put your insulator alongside one of the tallest CD #102. If it were placed alongside the smallest Star, there would be less contrast. Even so, you are probably right about its being smaller than any other CD #102. Your reporting of this little mystery jewel is much appreciated--even though no data is available!

Jim Dobbins writes from Detroit, Michigan recently found this clear glass insulator at a show, and I can't figure out how much it's worth or anything about it. (Picture in Milholland's Glass Insulator Reference Book No. 2, page 143) So could you please tell me more about it and let me know how much it's worth.

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In reply to Jim Dobbins: The insulator you have is the Case Transposition Insulator, Hemingray No. 1088. These are a relatively recent invention, probably first used during the early 1950's They are designed to fit, in groups of four, into a lightweight metal alloy bracket for forming point transpositions. These can be either mid-span brackets, where the circuit is transposed between poles; or similar brackets mounted on the crossarms.

Embossing on these is very hard to read as a rule. The drawing you have made indicates a mold number 10, the 0-I (0wens-Illinois) trademark in the center; and the mold year (56) at right. Some of them do show the number 1088 as well.

Since these are recent and very plentiful in some localities, they would have no great value.

From Ed Smith of Seminole, Florida: My son and I have found a C.D. 145 with a single #4 on the back and a #4 on the top. We found the #44 listed, but not just a single #4. Is ours unusual?

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In reply to Ed Smith: Looks as if you may be a recent Crown Jewels subscriber! Your "B" CD #145 has caused quite a bit of interest and comment in past issues. That mold set is unusual in style, with the very heavy, broad base. They have been found with numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4. These are shop or lot numbers, rather than a style number as is the 44 you referred to.

These insulators aren't extremely rare, having been found in various spots all over the country. But they aren't extremely common either. A number of collectors have tried to get the complete set of four; but my guess is that not too many have been successful.

Curt Boster, Columbus, Ohio, writes: A few years ago I purchased this insulator, a C.D. 155 arc embossed Whitall Tatum No. 1. It appears as if it is a normal insulator, except that it is a silver carnival color. Could this be a rare piece or a fraud? Any information you may have would be appreciated.

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In reply to Curt Boster: According to your description, your Whitall Tatum No. 1 was made during the 1940's probably during the War. The complete markings on the insulator would give its exact age. During those years, well over twenty million "arc embossed" Whitall Tatum No. 1 were made. They were mass-produced on the most modern presses, and under the stress of wartime demands. We have no information whatever concerning any experimentation with any type of iridizing or surface treatment at the Armstrong (Whitall Tatum) plant during that period, or at any other time, for that matter.

From Pat Gavan, Mt. Dora, Florida: Just recently I purchased four (4) insulators that I cannot find any information on. I went thru all back issues of "Crown Jewels" that I have, but could find nothing; so--once again I am calling on you for help.

The insulators are (f) Hemingray No. 9, (b) Patent May 9 1893, aqua, many sharp drip points. But they are NOT CD 106. They are very close to the shape of the Mexican "no name" which is CD 106.4 (or 406). They also resemble, in shape, Hemingray No. 15 (old #5), as shown in the catalogue reprint of Hemingray insulators on page 85 of the Gary Cranfill--Greg Kareofelas "Comprehensive Reference" of glass insulators.

Also, on a "regular" CD 106 Hemingray 9, the ridge above and below the wire groove measures 2-1/4" in diameter; mine measure 2-7/16" in diameter at the ridge ABOVE the wire groove, and 2-3/8" in diameter at the ridge BELOW the wire groove. This is not the shape of a CD 106! Other than those differences noted above, these insulators are "similar" to the CD 106.

Another "new" insulator I have recently acquired is a "Star" pony that seems to me to be a CD 101. I have other Star ponies that are CD 102.

My inquiry back last August certainly did uncover complete information on that cast iron insulator bracket, the "Chubbuck". Thanks to Jack Tod for digging out the patent information. He was correct in his assumption, the name and date were almost impossible to make out.

If the above is "old hat" to you, don't laugh; just charge it up to the enthusiasm of a collector who, tho old in years, acts like a child with a new toy when he thinks he has discovered something different. After all, isn't that what this hobby is all about??

Many thanks for whatever you might uncover about the above insulators.

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In reply to Pat Gavan: In the case of insulator styles that have been made over a long period of time, there is always a considerable amount of variation. Since the early 1900's the Hemingray No. 9 has been remarkably uniform; but during its early years there was a great deal of non-uniformity due to variation in the molds (buyers weren't so particular then) and variation from unit to unit as they were made on hand presses. The purpose of the CD numbers is not to describe an insulator exactly, but rather to classify it approximately. Therefore, all the Hemingray No. 9 are CD #106, except for the very latest ones which are CD #107. Those that you describe with the wide wire groove ridges are common any time you get into a bunch of very old 9's. But they are found in an almost infinite number of diameters, not just a narrow and a wide. Also, as you mention, sometimes both ridges are wide, and sometimes just one ridge.

I agree that the widest of these do look just like a small W. U. No. 5. The two were made at about the same time; and it's entirely possible that the same mold maker who made the molds for the W. U. No. 5 also made the No. 9 molds with the wide ridges!

In regard to your other question: I have not seen a Star that I would classify as CD #101. But it's possible. There is, though, a tremendous amount of variation in the CD #102 Stars.

Tony Vuke, Bloomington, Indiana, writes: I would like to know a few things about some insulators I found.

#1. No drip points, no inner skirt, icy blue, no embossing, seam line over dome, threaded. This one I found in Canada. I can't find anything about it: it's value, who made it, and how rare it is. I am hoping you can help me.

#2. No drip points, inner skirt, olive green, F.) Brookfield, B.) No 48. This insulator I found in Bloomington, Ind. I can't find it in any books. Why is the N backwards?

#3. No drip points, inner skirt, dark olive green (with streaks of amber), F.) BROOKFIELD, B.) __________. This last one I found in Bloomington also. I haven't seen one like it anywhere.

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In reply to Tony Vuke: The first insulator I do not recognize from the drawing and information given. Most of the very old unembossed Canadian insulators are unidentified.

The other two insulators are Brookfield No. 48. This was a very common style during the period 1911 to 1920. But the style number was engraved in the last mold set used, and very few have this No. 48 on them. Although some of the Brookfield insulators show their style number from a much earlier time, most of the common styles were identified in this way only at the very last.

The "N" is backward because the mold engraver was in a hurry and got careless.

The coloring that you mention is due to much cullet used in Brookfield insulators during the last 15 or 20 years of their manufacture. They were made from mountains of scrap green bottles, and a few amber ones mixed in.