tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3287675141745937676.post6464161562317709527..comments2024-03-20T23:43:28.613+00:00Comments on Caroline's Miscellany: Light fantastic!CarolineLDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00197813252586559665noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3287675141745937676.post-13189809594601277712013-11-08T09:56:29.137+00:002013-11-08T09:56:29.137+00:00Thank you! Explosive headlamps no doubt added to t...Thank you! Explosive headlamps no doubt added to the excitement of motoring...CarolineLDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00197813252586559665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3287675141745937676.post-30237116600996572722013-11-07T22:52:47.097+00:002013-11-07T22:52:47.097+00:00Most of these are acetylene lamps, which were quit...Most of these are acetylene lamps, which were quite bright but smelly and inclined to explode. The acetylene gas was generated by dripping water from a reservoir on to calcium carbide; you could brighten the light by turning up the drip. The second lamp, with the oval lens, has no visible gas generator -- perhaps there was a separate one under the bonnet -- but there seems to be part of a gas pipe showing behind the glass.<br /><br />Electric lamps for cars date from 1898 but were inferior to acetylene for some time, not least because the flilament in the bulb tended to break from vibration on the bumpy roads.<br /><br />The third lamp, at the right of the upper picture, is an oil lamp: you can see the works quite clearly. It would have been little brighter than a candle and quite useless as a means of seeing the road ahead.Ralph Hancockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11686354797977020917noreply@blogger.com