Erector Set No4, 1915 (Mysto Manufacturing)
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Erector Set No4, 1915 (Mysto Manufacturing).jpg) (i)
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Arch Two , Area 5 1916 |
An early Erector Set No.4, in its original two-tray wooden box.
The box has a lift-off lid, with parts held in the base, and in an additional wooden tray. The lid is lettered in black-outlined red and black-outlined gold, with the Erector logo in black-outlined red and gold, and a pink hand holding a black-outlined silver Erector girder, all against a bare wood background. A parts list is pasted into the inside of the lid.
Mysto Manufacturing
Although Alfred Carlton Gilbert's patented Erector construction system is usually associated with the company name A.C. Gilbert, Gilbert's first proper commercial enterprise before the construction set idea was the selling of a range of magic trick sets under the name "The Mysto Manufacturing Company". The magic set product line continued after the company was renamed after its founder, along with science sets.
An interesting footnote to Mysto is that the company was initially probably one of the main "mainstream" magic trick suppliers, and Gilbert used the slogan "Hello Boys" on its advertising. At the time, Mae West hadn't yet made any films, and hadn't yet fully developed the stage persona that made her famous – she was working on the stage, but doing stage magic. So West may well have been familiar with Mysto's the slogan, and may have "borrowed" it for her "Hello Boys!" catchphrase.
Box lid text
- THE WORLD FAMOUS CONSTRUCTION TOY
- The Choice of Every Boy
- Educational - Interesting
- ERECTOR
- THE BUILDER WITH REAL STRUCTURAL STEEL GIRDERS.
- MAKES LARGER, STRONGER AND MORE MODELS.
- The Mysto Manufacturing Co.
- New Haven, Conn., USA
Dating
The manual in the box has lost its cover, but contains references to prize-winning designs and their designers for the company's 1914, 1915 and 1916 competitions. The manual and box were also produced when Gilbert's company was still called The Mysto Manufacturing Co..
A quality-control slip inside the box says that it was checked and passed QC in September 1915, so the 1916- manual must have been added later, either by the company or by an owner.
Parts list
Transcribed from the internal lid label:
CONTENTS OF ERECTOR NO.4
- P32-3 ×17 3-inch girders
- P32-6 ×17 6-inch girders
- P32-12 ×27 12-inch girders
- P21 ×30 Perforated Strips
- P21-F ×2 Perforated Strips Formed
- P 1 ×23 Small Right Angles
- P 2 ×50 Right Angles
- P 3 ×4 Acute Angles
- P 4 ×8 Obtuse Angles
- P 5 ×4 Straight (Angle Pieces)
- P 7 ×4 Double Angles
- P25-S ×81 Short Screws
- P25-L ×18 Long Screws
- P26 ×99 Nuts
- P39 ×8 Wood Screws
- P27 ×22 Set Screws
- P 8 ×5 Small Wheels
- P17 ×4 Large Wheels
- P11 ×2 Gear Wheels
- P12 ×2 Crown Wheels
- P13 ×1 Pinion Gear
- P14 ×1 Worm Gear
- P22-2 ×2 2-inch Axle Rods
- P22-4 ×2 4-inch Axle Rods
- P22-6 ×2 6-inch Axle Rods
- P22-8 ×2 8-inch Axle Rods
- P24 ×1 Crank
- P23 ×1 Special Crank
- P19 ×4 Base Plates
- P18 ×1 Round Plate
- P29 ×19 Washers
- P31 ×6 Clips
- P37- ×6 Collars
- P40 ×4 Screw Eyes
- P30 ×1 Flat Contact Strip for Trolley-Car
- P51 ×1 Electric Motor (69 Parts)
- P33 ×1 Screw Driver
- P34 ×2 Hanks of String
- P41 ×31 Paper Fasteners
- ×1 Manual
Links and references
- Merle Carnegie, The Mysto Erector : story of the Mysto Manufacturing Company (2013)
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