ok, im pooped, maybe someone can help me? neptune meter co...

[chong2]

ok, i dug this about a month ago, it was a few feet from my 1912 v nickle. in historic part of El Paso TX. its not a significant find, but still damn cool. i have ebayed these and people have ones with numbers up in the millions. mine has a fairly low serial #. i have researched, called. nada. i just got off the phone with the company that moved to AL from NY. phone # used was 800-633-8754. the lady said she had a chart with serial #'s she can date it by. i gave her my # and she said 1993!!!!!!!!!! no way jose!!!!!!!!, i was like ma'am can i email you a pic of it, she said sorry, she wouldnt recieve it. she was very kind tho. can you guys help me get a date on this thing? a date, not circa.....please......

[Ant]

It a cover for a glass water meter gage, the one that goes in front of a house.

[chong2]

thanks ant, i know what it is, just looking 4 a date

[Ant]

Oh sorry.

I don't think it's that old either. They haven't been using water meters very long. I know of homes that were built around the 60's that have covers like that, maybe even later. The reason it might look old, if it isn’t, is because brass or copper that is used to cast covers like that won't take long to start looking like that, especially after being in a humid concrete box for several years. Sometimes I find covers like that on old lawn sprinkler valves too.

Just a guess.

[chong2]

the company started with thier meters in the late 1800's. when i spoke with the woman, she said the moved the plant to AL from NY over 40 years ago. if u google these, people sell these as "antique" ink wells. with extremly high serial numbers................

[chong2]

links , thiers dont even have the pat date on the back. look at the serial #s!!!!!!!!!!!!
the one i found, has to be a little older than 1993, or even 60's.
sorry for the frustrated writing, its just this piece is making me crazy!!!!!!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ANTIQUE-NEPTUNE-...QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-SOLID-BR...QQcmdZViewItem

[chong2]

come on people

[sniffer]

just because they moved the plant has no bearing on the age. It's probably like most items of that nature, i.e. water meters, gas meters, manholes, fire hydrants, etc. companies that pass the strict licensing and training requirements are given contracts to mass produce the items, and they in turn sell across the US. chances are pretty good is was made in 1993 and shipped and installed close to where you found it.
If you still have questions, check with the municipalities where you found and have them do a trace, the number on it would correspond to a physical address, which should give you an approximate age

Sniffer

[trikikiwi]

Any chance the 'helpful lady' was just reading '93' and assumed it was 1993 and not 1893?
Mike

[chong2]

thanks sniffer.
trikikiwi, good question. a possibility, ill give her a call back!

[QUICKSILVER (appletree)]

There are 3 patent dates 92, 94, and 96! so that tells you this bad boy was first patented in 1892 then the last is 1896! they renewed the patent every 2 years, I've heard of that meter company so I would say that meter lid is from 1896-1898!!!!

[La Beep]

NEPTUNE HISTORICAL FACTS TIMELINE

1892
First Neptune
meter built
17,202 Trident meters *** So you know it not in this batch.
are produced and sold
from 1892-1895
1895

1909
Introduced the industry’s first
compound meter
Celebrated
shipment of
millionth ***This one is more likely.
Trident meter
1913

1915
Introduced the Trident
Protectus, the industry’s first
successful meter for fire service
Acquired
Thompson Meter
Company
1926

1940
6 million Trident meters
shipped since 1892
First remote water meter
reading system with
single counter
Introduced the first programmable
ARB encoder — ProRead
1964

1972
Moved from
Long Island City, NY
to Tallassee, AL
Introduced
magnetic tape
meter reading
1974

Taken from: http://cache.search.yahoo-ht2.akadns...icp=1&.intl=us

[River Rat]

Great find, Chong. I saw the one on ebay and did a little research too. Glad Quicksilver and LaBeep helped out on the research of the years. Kudos to y'all

RR

[sniffer]

now that's called indepth information, good one La Beep

[Burdie]

Wow now that is research. WTG

Burdie

[chong2]

quicksilver, riverrat, labeep, thanks for the research. too cool, just what i was looking 4. i havent gotten to call that lady back, but i will monday. being a trident meter, it has to date between 1895 to 1915. hense the 300,000 serial number, and 1915 the hit a million sales . again thanks everyone 4 ur help!!!!!!!!

[Bigcypresshunter]

I have a Neptune brass cover. I will try to find it and get mine IDed as well. Thanks Beep.

[relichunters]

I think the lady is right, those things can corrode quick under ground.