I've recently had to clear my parents household effects...
This is possibly the most interesting piece of furniture:
it's a drinks cabinet: here it is open:
But the really cool bit is - here's it safely shutting with no hands involved: those wings are gently closing as the 'drinks platform' sinks slowly out of sight - I had time to raise the wings, retreat, focus the camera and take the picture...
It always used to baffle me as a kid - how's it done??
I spent a little time looking at it, and am seriously impressed: there's a hole about 3/4" across in the bottom, with what I think is an oiled leather flap lying across it on the inside, fastened at one side: as you open the 'wings', it is sucked up and out of the way by the air rushing in. When you've finished your session (!) and go to close it again, the air being forced down by the descending 'platform' that all the drinks and glasses sit on pushes the leather flap down against the hole, and air can only escape slowly around its edges... The whole thing sinks slowly and gracefully, with a satisfying hiss as the air is forced out...
I'm impressed with the confidence of whoever built it - the whole thing relies on the tolerances with which the platform is fitted inside the outer case. In the 40 odd years I've known and played with it, it's never jammed, stuck or failed to work...
Anyone like to hazard a guess on age? I'm thinking Edwardian, looking at the relatively restrained style and 'squareishness', but have no real ideas...
This is possibly the most interesting piece of furniture:
it's a drinks cabinet: here it is open:
But the really cool bit is - here's it safely shutting with no hands involved: those wings are gently closing as the 'drinks platform' sinks slowly out of sight - I had time to raise the wings, retreat, focus the camera and take the picture...
It always used to baffle me as a kid - how's it done??
I spent a little time looking at it, and am seriously impressed: there's a hole about 3/4" across in the bottom, with what I think is an oiled leather flap lying across it on the inside, fastened at one side: as you open the 'wings', it is sucked up and out of the way by the air rushing in. When you've finished your session (!) and go to close it again, the air being forced down by the descending 'platform' that all the drinks and glasses sit on pushes the leather flap down against the hole, and air can only escape slowly around its edges... The whole thing sinks slowly and gracefully, with a satisfying hiss as the air is forced out...
I'm impressed with the confidence of whoever built it - the whole thing relies on the tolerances with which the platform is fitted inside the outer case. In the 40 odd years I've known and played with it, it's never jammed, stuck or failed to work...
Anyone like to hazard a guess on age? I'm thinking Edwardian, looking at the relatively restrained style and 'squareishness', but have no real ideas...
