Why not fit a LED "parking" lamp unit to the headlight? No beam to speak of BUT it is a highly visible emergency front light if you are stuck out after dark. See here http://www.norbsa02.freeuk.com/goffyleds.htm
B.T.H Magneto-Generator Series 'A' Comet
- Thread starter Michel
- Start date
Why not fit a LED "parking" lamp unit to the headlight? No beam to speak of BUT it is a highly visible emergency front light if you are stuck out after dark. See here http://www.norbsa02.freeuk.com/goffyleds.htm
The early series A singles were fitted with the BTH mag Dynamo even though the rest of the electrical equipment was Miller. The Miller mag Dynamo which uses a more conventional field winding type Dynamo started to be used in mid 1936. The BTH been discussed has nothing to do with the modern unit that is now available new.
Confusing compounded! BTH is the original product range of British Thompson Houston that disappeared as a product name in 1960 and BT-H is the name adopted by the company producing the electronic mag. Never was a hypen so important and an aid to preventing confusion I am not known for being pedantic but I always use it. So when I say my Grey Flash has a BTH mag and the Racing Comet has a BT-H nothing more needs to be said.
Probably not that simple Tim.
The British Thomson-Houston Company (with the hyphen between the "T" and the "H") was a huge group that made all sorts of things. We are interested in magnetos here and I think it is fair to say that if talking about magnetos in general conversation we would say "B", "T", "H" rather than "B", "T", hyphen "H" which is a bit t0o much of a mouthful. The company produced equipment that carried their trade mark which was BT-H inside a circle. In advertisements they wrote about B.T.H. and also displayed the BT-H inside a circle trade mark.
When Tony started to make the new magnetos he bought the name from G.E.C. or whatever conglomerate owned the name at the time and he put the BT-H inside a circle trade mark on the magnetos he produced. When Tony retired he sold the company on as a going concern. The current manufacturer trades as B.T.H. Components Ltd and puts the BT-H inside a circle trade mark on the magnetos. With apologies to Shakespeare, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet".
Last edited:
Elihu Thomson lived about an hour south of me and I would often drive by his house, which he gave to the town after he died. The hyphen seems to be optional as BT-H themselves used both versions even in the same ad:
It was a fantastically big company and this is a good place to look if you have an interest:
http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/BTH#Magnetos
David
It was a fantastically big company and this is a good place to look if you have an interest:
http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/BTH#Magnetos
David
Now just for fun, my TTR has an AEI magneto. Any takers on that? By the way it throws a massive spark.
AEI was the holding company for BTH having purchased BTH in 1928. They traded under their seperate names but we're basically the same company. BTH name was dropped in 1958. AEI/BTH was then in 1967 bought by G.E.C. (Not General Electric in the USA) which had also bought English Electric. I used to work for English Electric Valve (GEC) in Lincoln. The Lincoln factory had been AEI in the 1960's but had nothing to do with magneto manufacturer. That was done elsewhere.
Well AEI was a holding company that owned BTH, put the hyphens or circles where you like! Then GEC took over AEI in 1967, MY father had worked for BTH from when he left school and had worked his way up to be a Chief inspector, a job worth having in those days and a job that he thoroughly enjoyed, then after the GEC takeover in 1967 he received a letter in his wage packet from Arnold Weinstock CEO of GEC I guess, telling him his services were no longer required, as my father saw his job as a job for life he was not best pleased. Anyway Robert, my suggestion is that an AEI Magneto is in fact a rebadged BTH magneto as they were one of the same company.