Vintage 1962 Simplex Fire Alarm Test, Wiring, and Explanation

[@TexasRailfan2008]

This helped a lot, I just bought a 4246-2 panel from eBay that is just like this, but it’s non-coded, it’s yet to arrive in the mail, but now I have a basic idea of how to hook it up.

[@FireRescue80]

This is a very unique demonstration of how these panels functioned back in the days. Please do more cause I'm very interested in seeing more of how this stuff works. Nice video!

[@brettman273]

I have at least two more ancient panels, one you saw in this video and the other is very unique; I'll be making videos about them soon.

[@FireRescue80]

@@brettman273 Can't wait to see what you have in store.

[@grand_vacation]

Aw yes, just like my elementary school days 1999-2003 lol! School built in 1951. They were murdered by Spectralert Advances in 2009! Same bells/pulls. Sameeee single stroke action. Love love love this video. Amazing to see the old panel as well. Great video, in my likes it goes.

[@FourtyFiftyEighty]

What a beautiful setup. That’s so cool good job!

[@KJ7BZC]

Awesome quality on this video, really cool to see this system in its entirety as well.

[@wheinz574]

I remembered that single stroke signal from my elementary school in kindergarten during a fire drill, but with the simplex 4016

[@siphonralarms9411]

I also watch hours of people wiring stuff up. This video was great btw!

[@MircomFan]

Love the sound, reminds me of my high school fire drills, only with Edwards 23 fire bells instead of the Simplex ones

[@achannelwithnopurpose1977]

Definitely reminds me of the thrill of wiring up an old fireshield panel. Sure it isn’t as vintage as that dinosaur but hey it came with its own set of surprises. It has a lovely ground fault and bad programming memory (you can program from the panel itself).

[@brettman273]

Fireshield.... That's EST right? I always fought with those things when I encountered them. In retrospect I do understand that they're proprietary but they annoyed me nevertheless.

[@achannelwithnopurpose1977]

@@brettman273 Yeah, EST is way worse than Simplex in my opinion. Its notorious for programming errors, false alarms, and is overall very cheap/poor quality. My middle school has an EST 3 and I remember when the school let me trip it for a drill, it took a million years to actually trip. Worse yet, my elementary school had an EST 2 that replaced a 4100+ or 4020 (dont really remember) that just failed on them not even 5 years. Thats why I always say: “Remember kids, don’t buy cheap fire protection!” whenever I encounter EST.

[@SomeDudeWithAnExitSign]

That was very cool. I would like to see more videos of this

[@brettman273]

Thanks! There's not much more to this particular system unless I get new information on it, but I have plenty of others I can point a camera at and slap together.

[@West_Kootenay_railfan]

I can't wait tell the standard electric fire alarm panel episode

[@zacharykorbet9690]

I have two simplexes 4050s and I got them out of a building with simplex T bar's do you have any idea on when you think the fire alarm system was installed? may be around the 80s

[@MatthewKelley1206]

Request musical fire alarms - Cinderella nobody’s fool played on a bunch of old fire alarms

[@officialsimplexguy]

Question: I got a simplex 4246 which seems to be setup exactly like this. However the bell circuit needs to he adjusted to match the correct voltage for the horns. Do you by any chance know how to adjust those big grey resistors to match the current? Or if there is some way to adjust it elsewhere? Thanks!

[@brettman273]

I would use a relay. Determine output voltage of panel's bell circuit, get a relay with a coil that operates in that voltage range, and run it in place of the bell. Then pass the bell power through the normally open contacts on the relay using whichever power it needs. Supervision would probably not work as the relay coil would not match the bells/horns the original circuit was intended for use with. But this old stuff is a lot more robust and forgiving than modern electronics, you can bend the rules significantly and it will usually work.

[@MrWill1985]

Who made the pull station? I know my elementary schools I attended had those pull stations and I don't know if they are simplex or Faraday or even federal systems. But I know my school system where I grew up now uses est and all of my schools were switched to est. Genesis with external integrity horn strobes at my first elementary school. Est genesis at my 2nd elementary school est genesis speaker strobes in my middle school and my high school est integrity after a renovation before my attendance

[@ceb8253]

My Elementary and middle school days

[@FyrFyter]

So your supervision is working as it should, minus the one relay coil being open. When there is a trouble in the system, the meter will not read anything, again because of the relay. Your panel is a "double supervised" type. Meaning are two trouble signals (EB1 and EB1, EB2 and EB2), one is for operational circuits and the other is the supervisory circuit. The light you jerry-rigged, is only indicating a trouble on the box circuit, not the entire supervisory circuit. One trouble bell terminal is getting 120 vAC because the entire supervisory side is incomplete, again because the relay coil is open. If you haven't seen it yet, the broken relay is a Struthers Dunn Co. 112XAX model . There are a few on ebay.

[@brettman273]

Ahh, so perhaps I was thinking about it backward? Bad really equals power to trouble indicators because that is default state...supervision is also supervising itself..?

[@FyrFyter]

@@brettman273 Yes, supervisory relays stay energized, and de-energize when it's circuit is incomplete. Giving power to the correct trouble signal. Technically operational power is primarily for fire signals, and supervisory for trouble signals. Both really work together to "check" circuit integrity. Your meter should read about 20 Milliamps in normal, and zero in trouble.

[@brettman273]

@@FyrFyter So if I physically activate that bad relay, perhaps I'd see opens on the trouble indicators as one would expect? Then since I know the box supervisory works, disconnect box circuit and should see trouble?

[@FyrFyter]

@@brettman273 Yes, if you push in the bad relay (as if it was a good relay), the trouble signal terminals should read either nothing or the odd 4 something volts you were getting. And the meter should read about 20 milliamps (technically it should be a little less because the broken relay coil is not drawing current). I've never done something exactly like that, but that is what should happen. Yes if you do that action with the relay, simulate an open in the box circuit, the meter should read zero, and 120 vAC should be at one of your trouble signal terminals (EB1, EB1 or EB2, EB2).

[@johnsidlauskas3838]

If you have any extra Standard Electric Time Co Panels I would love to have one, been looking so long for one!

[@brettman273]

You and me both my friend lol. They are hard to find, and believe it or not many are still in use; I have a contact that still works on them. Not in NY though for the most part, so I dont the encounter them.

[@johnsidlauskas3838]

@@brettman273 You had a few and thats so cool! I love the use of those Standard Clocks you have! Very fine work!

[@TexasRailfan2008]

So it relies on the individual pulls to be wired in parallel OUTSIDE the panel, but still having individual feeds back to the panel to keep the trouble bell off?

[@brettman273]

Yes. Think of it as two loops of wire that leave the panel and come back, and the pull stations bridge the loops.