Printed from www.nzmeccano.com
Part 20a: 2'' pulley
This page also describes part 20c, the 2'' pulley without boss, a part supplied in the two clock kits of the mid-70's.
| 20a | 2'' pulley with boss | 1915 | - | 6 | 4 | 6 | N°7 | |
| 20c | 2'' pulley without boss | 1972 | 1980 | n/a | n/a | n/a | Clock kit part only | |
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webmasters, and you may copy it for your personal use, or for a non-
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The parts
The 2'' pulley was initially a cast lead alloy 'flywheel', derived from the flywheel on the ill-fated vertical steam engine of 1914. It was replaced in 1915 by a WW1 'economy' version, created from a single steel disc with castellated 'teeth' bent in alternate directions. Two varieties of this part are known, one of very thin steel where the teeth are noticeably distorted by the cutting process, and one of thicker steel (about twice as thick).The more familiar 2'' pulley was created immediately after this, and remained in production
without changes until the end of production. Of course, the pulley was available in all of the
usual colours through the years. The photo above shows some of the pre-war colours at the top,
and the only two post-war colours (black and blue).
All images on this site are copyright. This particular image belongs to the
webmasters, and you may copy it for your personal use, or for a non-
commercial website - if you credit the source. All other rights reserved.
Chronological variations
Although the special part 20c (2'' pulley without boss) is superficially exactly the same as the 2'' pulley (but without the boss, of course!), it is in fact slightly different. The overall width is considerably less, as shown in the photo.
Variations and oddities
None known
This image does not belong to the webmasters and is copyright.
Please do not download or copy it for any purpose. It has been
kindly provided for use on this site by the image owner,
William Irwin
Dealer spare parts boxes
The box to the right contains six 2'' pulleys. The light green label was added to small parts boxes in 1958 to identify parts that had changed colour between the medium green and light green eras. Although the parts in this box aren't light green (they're blue), the label shows they're new stock. A similar box with a yellow label (pre-1958) would contain black pulleys.
Individual part numbers
Part numbers for the parts on this page are as follows: Unique part numbersFor identification, each variation has been given a suffix to the main Meccano part number. These suffixes consist of a two-character code for the colour, and if there are many variations, a further number and sometimes letter code to identify each variation. See the bottom of the 'Parts' page for further details.
You don't need to worry what the codes are, just click on any one for a photograph.
The button above turns on and off the display of DMS numbers (where they are known). The DMS (Development of the Meccano System, Hauton and Hindemarsh) published in 1972 and added to in 75 and 82, suggested part numbers for every variation of every Meccano part. These numbers aren't perfect, but they are recognised and also referenced in the EMP (Encyclopedia of Meccano Parts, Don Blakeborough).
| Description | from | 20a | 20c |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead-alloy 'flywheel' | 15 | .pb | |
| Castellated thin gauge nickel-plated steel | 16 | .ni1 | |
| Castellated thick gauge nickel-plated steel | 16 | .ni2 | |
| Nickel-plated two-part pulley, nickel plated boss | 18 | .ni3 | |
| As above, black single-tapped | 18? | .bk1 | |
| As above, nickel with brass boss | 18? | .ni | |
| As above, early red | 26 | .re2 | |
| Dark red | 26 | .dr | |
| Dark red with green rim | ?? | .rg | |
| Red | 33? | .re | |
| Dark blue | 34 | .nb | |
| Dark blue with blue boss | 34 | .nb1 | |
| Red with black rims | 37? | .re1 | |
| Black | 46 | .bk | |
| Blue | 62 | .bl | .bl |
| Dark blue | 78 | .db | |
| Dark yellow | 78 | .dy | |
| ALL | ALL |
, Lead-alloy \'flywheel\'.',395,368,'white')){kind=link}
, Castellated thin gauge nickel-plated steel.',300,368,'white')){kind=link}
, Castellated thick gauge nickel-plated steel.',300,264,'white')){kind=link}
, Nickel-plated two-part pulley, nickel plated boss.',300,279,'white')){kind=link}
, As above, black single-tapped.',464,456,'white')){kind=link}
, As above, nickel with brass boss.',250,221,'white')){kind=link}
, As above, early red.',300,276,'white')){kind=link}
, Dark red.',300,258,'white')){kind=link}
, Red.',300,260,'white')){kind=link}
, Dark blue.',300,269,'white')){kind=link}
, Dark blue with blue boss.',450,363,'white')){kind=link}
, Red with black rims.',300,269,'white')){kind=link}
, Black.',300,278,'white')){kind=link}
, Blue.',300,275,'white')){kind=link}
, Blue.',300,267,'white')){kind=link}
, Dark blue.',199,200,'white')){kind=link}
, Dark yellow.',196,193,'white')){kind=link}
Please send us pictures of missing parts! Hints and tips for pictures
Take a picture of the part in very good light, preferably on a plain yellow background, without a flash but with a tripod.
Ideally, trim the picture to about 150 pixels per inch of the Meccano part (unless the part is particularly big or small), save it as a reasonably good quality jpg file with a filename of exactly the part number, for example 19b.ni1.jpg, and email it to us by clicking on 'Contact us' at the top of the page. Thanks!
- A greyed-out box shows that no part exists for that colour combination.
- Part number codes with a green background have an attached picture of the part, just click once on the code to show a photograph of that part in a separate window.
- Parts marked "†" were temporary or economy parts, or existed only within specific themed outfits. The previous part continued throughout or afterwards.
Further information
kbisset (at 1:04am, Sat 11th Jul, 20) |
In my gallery, image-148252 is a picture of a variation of the 2" pulley not mentioned here. It follows the two designs of the slotted 3" pulley... |
NP (at 9:08pm, Fri 2nd Nov, 12) |
The black enamelled ones are UK production that was exported to the US and are slightly less uncommon over there than here (!). The finish matches the earliest 3" pulleys and so in my view they predate the nickel ones. |
Brian (at 8:03pm, Fri 2nd Nov, 12) |
What about the width variants? I have what I assume to be a 1918 wide groove with black painted boss, even the screw. Considerably wider than traditional whereupon the tyres are a loose fit. From a US source. |
Paul D (at 5:34am, Tue 13th Sep, 11) |
Were the early lead 'flywheel' versions ever made without a boss? I have a nickel plated one of the right diameter that looks very similar to the 20a.pb shown here, except for the lack of a boss. The plating goes over both faces of the axle hole so it doesn't look like a boss has been cut or knocked off. |
Alan Keith (at 10:13pm, Fri 21st Sep, 07) |
The widths of the bossed part changed as well, not just associated with bossed/unbossed. I purchased 8 black pulleys (not sure of exact era), then 8 blue ones (again - - -). The black versions were wide, 4 of the blue were narrow and 4 were medium width. The tyres that were on the black version wouldn't fit the narrow blues, and barely fit the medium blues, with some out-of-true noticeable on the mounted unit. |