INSULATOR DISCOVERIES FROM GREECE AND AUSTRALIA 

Once again we have a guest editor! This month he is Bill Ogden (Virginia, Minnesota), who recently made a trip to Greece and saw all kinds of good insulators. Unfortunately, he did not have success in bringing any of them home with him, but at least now we know those insulators are out there. This is good news because, until Bill's letter came, the only information we had on Greek insulators was an interpretation of the OTE marking, and it had only been found on U-1267 and U-1268. I'm happy to be able to share with you the following account of his trip.

C.T.E. (ORGANISMOS TELEFONOS ELLADOS) AND OTHER GREEK INSULATORS
 By WILLIAM C. OGDEN

This June I took a two-week guided tour of the Greek mainland and islands. In addition to seeing much beautiful countryside and many other interesting sights, I was able to observe hundreds of miles of open-wire communication and power lines. For a hard-core insulator fan, this was certainly a treat.

Let's consider a description of the insulators and line construction practices. The great majority of the telephone insulators are white porcelain with the O.T.E. underglaze embossing in blue ink. The O.T.E. is the telephone company of Greece; our guide said it is a branch of Ma Bell! I saw two variations of this embossing: one is simply O.T.E.; the other has the letters A/R in a triangle under the other embossing. I saw six styles of these O.T.E. embossed insulators. See sketches and approximate U-numbers of these.

The U-1938 has a metal cap covering the dome, and I'd guess this is a form of the so-called "dry spot" insulator. The U-1898 is a transposition insulator, but in many instances wasn't used as a tramp insulator would be used in America. Frequently it served as a regular insulator -- a single wire tied to the top groove. It was also used on the eight-inch, four-insulator, point transposition bracket. The wires dead-ended at each insulator, and were reconnected by jumpers. I also noted the U-1898 was used to make a point transposition without a bracket, by having two of these side-by-side on the crossarm -- see sketch.

In addition to the white, I saw a few unidentified brown porcelain -- some were a dull finish; the others a dark shiny brown. A few poles of this line carried some of the same style in a dark green glaze -- this would be a real goody! I saw one white porcelain with the blue underglaze (SPAP); I have no idea what this stands for. I saw some clear glass, which looked very much like the CD 128, or could it have been the CD 407? This was the only type of glass I saw on the communication lines. The common practice was to use wood poles with 24" or 48" steel crossarms fastened to the pole by means of a yoke going around the pole. By using four regular steel pins and four "J" pins, and reducing the space between the wires, it was possible to carry eight wires on the 48" arm; see sketch.

Some of the low-voltage distribution power lines carried four wires on a "rack" fastened to the side of the pole, using four porcelain spools; another type of rack used pin-type porcelain insulators cemented onto the pin. The higher voltage lines I saw used either pin types or suspensions. Most of the pin types were brown porcelain, but I saw many glass -- either clear or aqua -- six or eight inch suspension discs, and a clear glass pin type that resembled the medium-sized Pyrex; this style was common in certain areas. I noted some familiar shapes; one that was used quite frequently looked like one of the larger "hi-top" designs, such as the U-802; there was another that looked like the U-833 or 834. There were also several types of two-piecers that looked very similar to what one sees in the States. One of the most interesting designs was a straight-sided, top-groove insulator; probably it was about 5" x 7" -- see sketch -- I've never seen anything like this before! Frequently, the six inch suspension discs were used as strain insulators on the brace wires; I've never seen this practice in America.

I've enjoyed writing this article and sharing my experiences. If anyone has any questions or comments, feel free to contact me.

These four sketches represent the four types or styles of the white porcelain O.T.E.- embossed insulators. "A" is similar to U-1268 -- 3 x 4-1/ 2"; there is a smaller version of the same style -- similar to U-1243 -- 2-3/4 x 3-3/4". Type "B" also was seen in two sizes; the larger is similar to U-1743 -- 3-1/2 x 5-3/4", and a smaller one similar to U-1652. Type "C" is evidently some type of "dry-spot" insulator -- it has a metal cap on top; it seems to be U-1938. Type "D" is a transposition insulator, U-1898.

Sketch "E" is one of the most interesting power insulators I've seen. Dull brown glaze; about 5 x 6"; wonder who made it? Common in certain areas; one-inch pin type. 

This would be a typical example of line construction telephone -- eight wires on a 48" steel crossarm, making use of the "J" pins.

Sketch "G" is the most unusual way of making a point transposition without a bracket that I've seen. Two tramp insulators U-1898 -- are side-by-side on the arm, and the wires cross at that point. It would probably work, but would seem to place a considerable stress on the wires, pins and insulators

LAURA VAN DER ENDT FINDS TWO GOODIES!

I've spoken so often of my friend Laura that I'm sure you all feel you know her by now! What a tremendous help she has been in supplying us with information on insulators found in Australia. She has also sent numerous shadow drawings with measurements, so we can get an accurate picture of what these insulators look like. Add to that the many new markings she has contributed to our files. Laura you've made yourself indispensable! 

Pictured here she is holding a very rare dark green glass insulator, similar in shape to the more common porcelain version, U-1502, which is (was) a telegraph insulator used on the Overland Telegraph Line running from Adelaide to Darwin. We're presuming this new find in glass was also used in the same way.

The embossing ISOREX / 1030 indicates that the insulator was manufactured in France and subsequently exported to Australia for use there. As soon as we can get the shadow profile from Laura, this beautiful insulator shall have a new C.D. number.

A close-up of the same insulator.

The third picture shows an English made insulator that is one of the original Overland Telegraph Line insulators, dating back to 1890. Laura says, "The bolt on the top unscrews, to allow two wires to be held in place between the metal parts of the insulator. There are no markings at all on the insulator, but at that time all insulators were imported, so it is safe to assume they were made in England." Laura waited six years to find this rare bird.