E.1, E.2, and E.3
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E_14B
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Around 1946, Hemingray (under the direction of Owens-Illinois, who
bought them in 1933) made several experimental insulators, marked
with an "E" embossing: "E.1" (used on both CD 100.6 and CD 128),
"E.2" (CD 122.4), "E.3" (CD 233), and "E_14B" (CD 128). The CD 100.6
is very rare and I don't have one, but you can see a picture
here.
The experiments were about glass formulas, not insulator
designs. I had heard that the opal glass was for testing
resistance to a salt-water environment, which is why they were
found in Florida, but it's also thought it had something to do with
the carrier system. This was when it was being
deployed, and since CS carries multiple signals on a single wire,
a wider range of frequences is used. The conjecture is that ordinary
flint glass was too lossy at certain frequencies so they were trying to
find lower-loss formulas.
The E1-3 glass has a "vaseline" look and is described as "lemon".
The E-14B is
commonly found in ice green, but also in off-clear and beautiful shades
of opal. The opal batch runs from near clear to milkglass; every shade
can be found at the dump. Opals were found mostly along the Florida East
Coast Railway, but also near Lake Okeechobee and elsewhere. The opal
glass is very soft and dissolves in acid; be careful when cleaning!
Some insulators found lying on the ground had their underground parts
missing—dissolved by the acidic soil!
Read The E-14 B Story
from the December 1976 issue of Crown Jewels of the Wire magazine.
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| Group of Hemingray_CS E_14B experimental insulators, fragments and slag (most from Muncie dump); front and rear views |
Hemi
CD 128: |
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| Hemi
CSA: |
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Fry,
Locke,
Hemi: |
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Lemon E.1, Opal E_14B, Dark Yellow CSA |
Clear, 2-Tone, Dark Yellow |
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Opal comparison |
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Back/Bottom-lit |
| Daylight |
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