Newspaper Article About Los Angeles Sirens

Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:27 am

I just stumbled across this article, and thought it might be of interest to the members of this board.

http://www.larchmontchronicle.com/Archi ... hiveID=700

Apparently the author's main source of information is my website, including the made-up nick-names for the various siren types! At least there is a mention of the site at the bottom of the article.

Thu Apr 05, 2007 7:08 am

Funny nicknames!

Thu Apr 05, 2007 11:57 am

Congratulations on having your Web site sourced!
birdhouse = ?
wire spool = SD-10?
rotating = Thunderbolt?
flat-tened (flattened) birdhouse = ?

Thu Apr 05, 2007 1:55 pm

Guesswork:

Birdhouse 2/5/7, various Darleys, etc.?

Flattened - ACA Screamer?

ACA Screamer

Maybe a cell-type electronic could be described either way, but since LA apparently hadn't put in anything new for many years, doubtful.

Thu Apr 05, 2007 2:58 pm

According to what I've been able to learn, along with some help from Hacksaw and Adam, the models for the Type and Nick-names used on my site are as follows:

Type 1, "Rotating" - Federal model 500T
Type 2, "Birdhouse" - Federal model 5
Type 3, "Wire Spool" - Federal model SD-10

Type 4, "Flattened Birdhouse" remains a mystery.

Here is a link to one of many LA City sirens of this type. http://wirechief.com/sirens/199.htm

If anybody can provide any information on this one, I'd be most grateful!

Dennis

Thu Apr 05, 2007 5:09 pm

If that's the "birdhouse", I'd take a guess that the flattened birdhouse is an ACA Banshee. However, since most of the sirens there are Federal, I'm probably wrong. (Also, is Banshee the right one I'm thinking of?)

Thu Apr 05, 2007 11:32 pm

Type 4 doesn't look like a Banshee or Screamer, and I'm going by both the old ACA 1957 Catalogue cover and more modern pictures.

Maybe a Darley variant? Did B&M make Outdoor sirens?

Fri Apr 06, 2007 2:04 am

When I lived in Los Angeles (1966-1971) we had one of those down the block. Of course, I was a kid and not into sirens at the time, but on the control box it said "Scream Master". I'm not sure if that were a brand or a model name, but I remember as a kid that whenever it went off all of the other kids in the neighborhood would say, "there goes the scream master again..."

B&M had outdoor sirens, however as far as I know they were all horizontal (like the Sterling M), and I don't believe there were any in the Los Angeles City or County systems.

Not sure if this is helpful, but it's a clue.

John

Fri Apr 06, 2007 2:36 am

That siren could have been a Decot with a Model 5 housing, or a custom Model 5.

Fri Nov 23, 2007 5:58 pm

I think LA may have lost another 500T recently

I drove along Sunset Blvd from PCH to Westwood on Tuesday evening, and I was UNABLE to spot the Paul Revere Middle School 500T. It stood along Sunset just east of Mandeville Cyn. Rd. on the edge of the Paul Revere Middle School football field, and there is a fairly thick stand of trees there as well. I usually see it while driving by, so it's unlikely that I missed it although it may be obscured in the trees. I was in a hurry and was unable to get a second drive-by.

I don't get down that way very often, so if anybody else is there sooner, please take a look. If it's gone, I hope it didn't get scrapped.

Charles