1950s Darkroom Timer -
SINGER Master Time-O-Lite
I think this is from the 1950s, based on design and materials. Here is a darkroom timer, used to time the exposure of prints you are making in the darkroom. It works as follows: you turn the main pointer hand using the round black handle to however many seconds you wish to expose your print. The secondary red hand will travel along with it. You can see a small metal flange turned up from the main hand, which keeps the red hand from going beyond where the main hand is set. Then, once you push the button, the red hand starts a countdown to zero.
See the below "outlets" on the side of the housing. The low-energy red light lamp in your darkroom is plugged into SAFELIGHT, and the lamp which will expose your print, the lamp that is integral to the enlarger apparatus, is plugged into ENLARGER. Once the system is activated by the countdown timer, the red light turns off and the enlarger lamp turns on, exposing your print for the number of seconds you set it for.
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The dial glows in the dark. Classic light-activated phosphor material glows a kind of green after exposure to light. Presumably this is light of low enough energy that it won't expose your prints.
This timer was made by SINGER, the company famous for sewing machines. Evidently made by their "industrial timer division."
It does have an industrial look and feel to it. Housed in a metal case with a kind of "glazed" finish. I don't have it set up in a darkroom, but it seems to be functioning properly.
Thanks for looking. I hope you will like it.
Alan
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