tom_the_LD Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 We've got some of those Major patt 23's at school - exactly like the one on the right in the picture above! We have 3 of those, 7 of the patt 60 mimics, 4 of the patt 23 mimics and a mimic of something that looks like a patt 45. They're not fantastic, but they give off some light. They've been here for many years. If there's anything you want to know about any of the lanterns then let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vbm Posted September 15, 2009 Author Share Posted September 15, 2009 Hi BRers- Thanks for all the info. Here is a rubbish camera phone photo of one of the units I have acquired- http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f153/martindudley/major.jpg That's an original, working 750W bulb. I have three of these lanterns that I am renovating to take out on tour and would be very interested to know what they're called, their age and any other history. Cheers, vbm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boatman Posted September 15, 2009 Share Posted September 15, 2009 I think that's a "Daddy Flood" (similar to a Strand Patt. 49). It would normally be fitted with a 1000W GLS lamp, but could take 750W if needed, with most of the energy going into heating up the lantern! I hope you can still get lamps for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vbm Posted September 15, 2009 Author Share Posted September 15, 2009 I hope you can still get lamps for them. Me too! I have a man onto sourcing the bulbs or a similar/equivalent replacement, and if he can't find them, I'm confident nobody can. Thanks for the info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyJ Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 Upload from your computer to http://www.tinypic.com and it will have imageboard codes - [ img ] [ / img ] that you can throw into your post. Cheers. Here we are :) The lanterns are the narrow angle mirror spot,which is quite rare as the trunion arm has been rebalanced for follow spot use.The other, is the standard mirror spot.If ever these become surplus to requirements please let me know as they would make useful additions to our Major collection. Hope this helps, regards Royhttp://i31.tinypic.com/16ifnu8.jpg http://i32.tinypic.com/2zoav87.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boatman Posted September 17, 2009 Share Posted September 17, 2009 I hope you can still get lamps for them. Me too! I have a man onto sourcing the bulbs or a similar/equivalent replacement, and if he can't find them, I'm confident nobody can. Thanks for the info. I don't know if the 750W version is still manufactured, but BLTdirect have the 1000W version listed on their website (Link) for just under £12 each. Now, whether or not they have stock is another matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikelx Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 I can remember a Major installation in 2 "new" comprehensive schools in Nottinghamshire in the late 1960's with 2 x12waydimmers Each dimmer handle locked into a master wheel and it took some effort to fade 12 channels at once! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin D Posted October 8, 2009 Share Posted October 8, 2009 Looking at those photographs makes me wonder how many I've looked up at in various venues and simply thought was a Strand Patt 23? B-) Very easy to mistake one for the other at a glance. I wonder how many are still working out there in village halls and schools across the country. Edit: Typo's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted October 8, 2009 Share Posted October 8, 2009 I bet you've not. Side by side they are vaguely similar, but sufficiently different to not be mixed up. The Strand design was graceful and had good lines - something the Majors didn't get right. Functional but not pretty! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony g Posted October 19, 2009 Share Posted October 19, 2009 Hi BRers... Can anybody tell me anything about the (I suspect, long-defunct) theatrical lighting manufacturers "The Major Equipment Co Ltd", based in London NW10? Thanks, vbm. Major Equipment seems to have been the supplier of choice for Wiltshire schools in the 50's & 60's, very well built lanterns in my opinion, the aluminium is more pure, less magnesium than used in strands castings and therefore tougher (more malleable, hence will take knocks) , trouble is the optics arn't much good and there it falls apart! Major became Westwood Major in the 70's before finally disappearing in the 80's around the time Furse dissapeared (became a part of CCT), both makers aimed at the education market, with major serving some cinemas. Odeon had major equipment until the Rank Organisation (owners of Odeon) brought Strand on 1967, this can't of done Majors business any favours. For all those of you who like me love old kit, I'm currently scanning a load of old Furse & Major catalogues and hope to make the info more widely available sometime soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis sullivan NLS Posted October 19, 2009 Share Posted October 19, 2009 just to ask, but the blue patt 23s (SPR's ???) were made by furse, did they have anything to do with the major patt23s profile copy thingy watzits? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony g Posted October 19, 2009 Share Posted October 19, 2009 just to ask, but the blue patt 23s (SPR's ???) were made by furse, did they have anything to do with the major patt23s profile copy thingy watzits? No no connection except they are another Patt23 copy, furse's effort is as you say called an SPR (Small Profile), all pressed steel, focus the fillament perfectly on the stage!!!, the first version was gold with a cast fork, later models were blue with a teflon coated lens tube. The SPR was sold as a set with the SFR (small fresnel) known as a Dramapak (consisting of a fresnel, a profile, a stand and a simple dimmer) both were superceded in the late seventies by the SPK500. The Major patt23 clone was called an M5 (mirror spot 500W) and its fresnel friend was the SE5 (soft edge 500W), both use the same P28 holders used by Mole-richardson. A little research today tells me that Westwood Major Ltd. was dissolved in 2005, quite what they were making in the more recent years I don't know. A concurrent post has been automatically merged from this point on. just to ask, but the blue patt 23s (SPR's ???) were made by furse, did they have anything to do with the major patt23s profile copy thingy watzits? No no connection except they are another Patt23 copy, furse's effort is as you say called an SPR (Small Profile), all pressed steel, focus the fillament perfectly on the stage!!!, the first version was gold with a cast fork, later models were blue with a teflon coated lens tube. The SPR was sold as a set with the SFR (small fresnel) known as a Dramapak (consisting of a fresnel, a profile, a stand and a simple dimmer) both were superceded in the late seventies by the SPK500. The Major patt23 clone was called an M5 (mirror spot 500W) and its fresnel friend was the SE5 (soft edge 500W), both use the same P28 holders used by Mole-richardson. A little research today tells me that Westwood Major Ltd. was dissolved in 2005, quite what they were making in the more recent years I don't know. A concurrent post has been automatically merged from this point on. just to ask, but the blue patt 23s (SPR's ???) were made by furse, did they have anything to do with the major patt23s profile copy thingy watzits? No no connection except they are another Patt23 copy, furse's effort is as you say called an SPR (Small Profile), all pressed steel, focus the fillament perfectly on the stage!!!, the first version was gold with a cast fork, later models were blue with a teflon coated lens tube. The SPR was sold as a set with the SFR (small fresnel) known as a Dramapak (consisting of a fresnel, a profile, a stand and a simple dimmer) both were superceded in the late seventies by the SPK500. The Major patt23 clone was called an M5 (mirror spot 500W) and its fresnel friend was the SE5 (soft edge 500W), both use the same P28 holders used by Mole-richardson. A little research today tells me that Westwood Major Ltd. was dissolved in 2005, quite what they were making in the more recent years I don't know. A concurrent post has been automatically merged from this point on. just to ask, but the blue patt 23s (SPR's ???) were made by furse, did they have anything to do with the major patt23s profile copy thingy watzits? No no connection except they are another Patt23 copy, furse's effort is as you say called an SPR (Small Profile), all pressed steel, focus the fillament perfectly on the stage!!!, the first version was gold with a cast fork, later models were blue with a teflon coated lens tube. The SPR was sold as a set with the SFR (small fresnel) known as a Dramapak (consisting of a fresnel, a profile, a stand and a simple dimmer) both were superceded in the late seventies by the SPK500. The Major patt23 clone was called an M5 (mirror spot 500W) and its fresnel friend was the SE5 (soft edge 500W), both use the same P28 holders used by Mole-richardson. A little research today tells me that Westwood Major Ltd. was dissolved in 2005, quite what they were making in the more recent years I don't know. Incidently, to further drift into Furse history, their SPR was a replacement to the real furse patt23, strand made genuine patt23s for furse with the furse name cast into the back - when strand thought better of the idea furse brought patt23s in bulk and riveted furse badges over the strand one, problem was this was not profitable, hence the cheap and cheerful SPR was born Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony g Posted November 10, 2009 Share Posted November 10, 2009 Hi BRers- Thanks for all the info. Here is a rubbish camera phone photo of one of the units I have acquired- http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f153/martindudley/major.jpg That's an original, working 750W bulb. I have three of these lanterns that I am renovating to take out on tour and would be very interested to know what they're called, their age and any other history. Cheers, vbm I can now tell you what your lanterns called, it was designated WF10 (wing flood for 1000W max), it is in the 1965 catalogue, but not the 1939 so introduced between the two cost £17 in 1967, hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vbm Posted November 11, 2009 Author Share Posted November 11, 2009 Thanks very much, that's very interesting! That means the lamps were at least more than twice as old as the artist they were illuminating. Here's a pic of the three fixtures in use recently... http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f153/martindudley/nbfoct2009_271009PortsmouthGuildhal.jpg vbm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony g Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 Thanks very much, that's very interesting! That means the lamps were at least more than twice as old as the artist they were illuminating. Here's a pic of the three fixtures in use recently... http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f153/martindudley/nbfoct2009_271009PortsmouthGuildhal.jpg vbm Great, nice to see old kit still working, incidently all the pics in the major catalogue show them the other way up (lamp base up), not sure if running them base down will have any impact, but I suspect if you had a gel in they may overheat as the heat escapes through the "chimney" around the lampholder Best Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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