In the 18th century, spring scales appeared. To produce these scales, a manufacturer would use the resistance of a spring to calculate weights, which could be read automatically on the scale’s face. The ease of use of spring scales over balance scales is what led most post offices to outfit their clerks with spring postal scales. One of the most common types of spring scales was the kitchen scale—also known as a family or dial scale. Designed for horizontal surfaces, these scales used the weight of goods in a pan at the top of the scale to force the spring down. Such scales were common in early-20th-century households and were sold by Sears and Montgomery Ward. Many had flat weighing surfaces but some were topped by shallow pans. Companies such as Salters, Chatillon, and Fairbanks made both. SALTER HOUSEWARES began in the late 1760 in the village of Bilston, England. At this time Richard Salter, a spring maker, began making 'pocket steelyards', a scale similar to the fisherman's scale of today. By 1825 his nephew George had taken over the company, which became known as George Salter & Co. and later established a large, well equipped manufacturing site in the town of West Bromwich. The business thrived throughout the 1900s, and in 1972 the company was purchased by Staveley Industries Plc. In 2002, the management team at Salter Housewares Ltd, backed by Barclays Private Equity, bought the company out from the group, to concentrate on its consumer businesses. In 2004 was sold to the US-based HoMedics company, and in 2006, Salter Housewares USA and Taylor Precision Products Inc (also owned by HoMedics) merged. Salter Brand No. 44 Household Spring Balance Kitchen Scales made of green painted metal with a large clock face dial marked in 1oz graduations and with a shallow metal bowl placed on the flat top connected to the mechanism. An adjustable screw tightened or loosened the spring to bring the pointer to zero, prior to adding the material to be weighed.. A common piece of kitchen equipment as most families used this type of scale when measuring goods for cooking or storing.On Clock face ; NO. 44 / HOUSEHOLD SCALE / TO WEIGH 14LB X 1OZ / Pro. Pat. No. 30819 / 32 / MADE IN ENGLAND / SALTER / S in trademark rope with arrow market gardeners, early settlers, fruit, vegetables, farmers, cooking, recipes, scales, weights, measures, brass, balance beam, moorabbin, cheltenham, bentleigh, kitchen scales, dairy products, cereals, wheat flour, salter housewares pty ltd, west bromwich england

Possibly used in a shop or as a travelling set of scales for a hawker.This item is an example of an early device used for measurement.A set of hanging scales. Two copper containers are suspended one from each end of a beam. In the centre of the beam is a hanging rod to the top and a pointer at the bottom.A number of scroll designs are imprinted into the beam. scales weight-measure hanging-scales

This set of scales would have been used to check the acuracy of Weights and Measures.Where it was used is unknown, but it may have always been part of the Shire.The maker was J.D.Potter,Poultry,London Middlesex,U.K. One of several sets of scales of various sizes in collection of Learmonth And District Historical Society Inc.To measure precise weights,the instruments used were a set of precise balanced scales. Set on a wooden box,( which would have contained the weights).It is made of brass and has a brass beam balance,steel pointer with index and twin pans. Date 25/1/1865.Various hallmarks similar to "jewellers".tools, and, scales, weights, measures, potter london, measuring devices

These scales were possibly used by the former Shire of Ballarat to weigh letters and other small items.A means by which articles of the day were weighed.Medium size set of scales,Brass weighing pans on a beam balance with pointer.The base is wood with inserts to hold weights.niltools.scales.measuring device. weights and measures

This small set of scales was possibly used by the Former Shire of Ballarat for the weighing of letters and other small objects.Means by which mail and other small things of the day were weighed.Small set of scales on a wooden base.Two pans one is rectangular and the other is round,the balance beam is attached to a decorative balance arm.Nilscales.tools.weights and measures.measuring device

The disc-shaped design of these 1LB and 2 LB metal weights enables them to be stacked one on top of the other. The weights are used with a balance scale to accurately weigh the mass of items such as grain, sugar, meat or potatoes. They could have been used in retail or wholesale businesses like a general store or a grain merchant’s premises. The user would place either one or both of these weights on one side of a balance scale. Goods would then be placed onto the other side of the scale until the beam between both sides of the scale was level, showing that the weight of the goods was as heavy as the weight or weights on the other side. These two weights are marked in Imperial units. An Imperial Standard 1LB is equal to 453.592grams. The British Weights and Measures Act of 1824 defined official standards for weights and measurements. This ensured that uniform measurements would be used for trade throughout the Empire. Towns and districts would have an official set of Imperial Standard Weights and Measures. Inspectors periodically used this official set to check the accuracy of traders’ own weights and measures. There would be penalties such as fines or imprisonment for people who broke these laws. The State of Victoria had its own Weight and Measures Act in 1862 and a decade later the inspectors in local councils used their local set of weights and measures to test the local businesses measuring equipment. In the nineteenth century the Victorian Customs Department carried out this role but this was handed over to the Melbourne Observatory at the beginning of the twentieth century. The Measures Branch then followed on with this task from the 1940s until 1995. Australia began converting to the metric system in the 1960s, beginning with its money. The conversion from imperial to metric units of measurement in Australia took place from 1970 and was completed in 1988 when metric units became the only legal unit of measurement. Imperial Standard weights; set of two disc-shaped weights designed to stack one upon the other. Inscriptions are marked in relief. "IMPERIAL STANDARD 1LB" [weight 1], "IMPERIAL STANDARD 2LB" [weight 2]warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, shipwrecked-artefact, wieght, weights and measures, imperial standard weight

The disc-shaped design of this 2 LB metal weight enables it to be stacked on top of another similarly shaped weight. The weight is used with a balance scale to accurately weigh the mass of items such as grain, sugar, meat or potatoes. It could have been used in retail or wholesale businesses like a general store or a grain merchant’s premises. The user would place the weight on one side of a balance scale. Goods would then be placed onto the other side of the scale until the beam between both sides of the scale was level, showing that the weight of the goods was as heavy as the weight on the other side. This weight is marked in Imperial units. An Imperial Standard 1LB, or one pound, is equal to 453.592grams. The British Weights and Measures Act of 1824 defined official standards for weights and measurements. This ensured that uniform measurements would be used for trade throughout the Empire. Towns and districts would have an official set of Imperial Standard Weights and Measures. Inspectors periodically used this official set to check the accuracy of traders’ own weights and measures. There would be penalties such as fines or imprisonment for people who broke these laws. The State of Victoria had its own Weight and Measures Act in 1862 and a decade later the inspectors in local councils used their local set of weights and measures to test the local businesses measuring equipment. In the nineteenth century the Victorian Customs Department carried out this role but this was handed over to the Melbourne Observatory at the beginning of the twentieth century. The Measures Branch then followed on with this task from the 1940s until 1995. Australia began converting to the metric system in the 1960s, beginning with its money. The conversion from imperial to metric units of measurement in Australia took place from 1970 and was completed in 1988 when metric units became the only legal unit of measurement.Weight; 2 lbs. Metal disc designed for stacking. Inscription marked in relief. Imperial Standard weight, 2 pounds weight."IMPERIAL STANDARD", "2lbs"flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked coast, flagstaff hill maritime museum, maritime museum, shipwreck coast, flagstaff hill maritime village, great ocean road, standard measure, imperial standard, weight, 2lb weight, imperial standard weight

Scale for babies with cane basket and sliding metal weights for lbs and ozs on two separate scale. Scale is worked on a beam balance principle.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, scale for babies

The basic balance scale has been around for thousands of years and its accuracy has improved dramatically over the last several centuries, the principle behind this tool remains unchanged. Its parts include a fulcrum, a beam that balances on it, a pan at the end of the beam to hold the materials to be weighed, and a flat platform at the other for the counter-balancing weights. Balance scales that require equal weights on each side of the fulcrum have been used by everyone from apothecaries and assayers to jewellers and postal workers. Known as an unequal arm balance scale, this variety builds the counterweight into the device. Counter scales used in dry-goods stores and domestic kitchens often featured Japanned or (blackened) cast iron with bronze trims. Made by companies such as Howe and Fairbanks, the footed tin pans of these scales were often oblong, some encircled at one end so bulk items could be easily poured into a bag. Seamless pans were typically stamped from brass and given style names like Snuff (the smallest) and Birmingham (the largest). Some counter scales were designed for measuring spices, others for weighing slices of cake. In the 18th century, spring scales began to appear and would use the resistance of spring to calculate weights, which are read automatically on the scale’s face. The ease of use of spring scales over balance scales. These scales are significant as they identify one of the basic preparation items for the weighing of foodstuff in the family kitchen to prepare everyday meals. This item is significant as it gives a snapshot into domestic life within the average home in Australia around the turn of the twentieth century and is, therefore, an item with social relevance. Black cast iron, medium weighing scales, with a fulcrum which the beam that balances on, there is a scoop or large bowl at one end for the material to be weighted and a flat platform at the other end that holds the weights. Around the cast iron base is an embossed strip weight and bowl missing.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

Thaddeus Fairbanks (1796 –1886) was an American inventor. of heating and cook stoves, cast iron ploughs, and other items. His greatest success was the invention and manufacture of the platform scale, which allowed the weighing of large objects accurately. Fairbanks was born in Brimfield, Massachusetts, on January 17, 1796, the son of Joseph Fairbanks (1763–1846) and Phebe (Paddock) Fairbanks (1760–1853). His uncle was Ephraim Paddock, the brother of Phebe Paddock. In 1815 he moved to St. Johnsbury, Vermont, and set up a wheelwright's shop above his father's gristmill. In 1820 he married Lucy Peck Barker and In 1824 he built an iron foundry. his brother Erastus joined him to establish E. and T. Fairbanks, a partnership to manufacture heating stoves, cast iron ploughs a design for which he patented in 1826. In 1830 Fairbanks and Erastus became interested in the raising and processing of hemp. Fairbanks went on to patent a hemp and flax dressing machine and became the manager of the St. Johnsbury Hemp Company. He also built a set of scales that would measure large loads of hemp accurately, as there were no reliable scales at the time. Upon the success of building these scales, his brothers recommended that he make and sell these for general use.  Fairbanks' most famous invention then became the platform scale for weighing heavy objects. These are commonly known as the Fairbanks Scales, for which he patented his original design in 1830.  Before this time, accurate weighing of objects required hanging them from a balancing beam as a result, particularly heavy or ungainly objects could not be weighed accurately. A platform scale, if large enough, could weigh an entire wagon. By placing a full wagon on the scale, unloading it, and then placing it on the scale when empty, it became possible to easily and accurately calculate the weight and value of farm produce and other loads. In 1834 Fairbanks and his brother formed "E. and T. Fairbanks and Company" to manufacture and sell these platform scales. These scales were well known in the United States and around the world resulting in the company doubling in volume every three years from 1842 to 1857. There was a temporary slow down during the American Civil War, however, the business took off again after the war. Their partnership was incorporated in 1874 into a firm known as "Fairbanks Scale Company". These platform scales revolutionized weighing methods of large loads and have been in use ever since. Portable platform scales are found in almost every hardware store, physician's office, and manufacturing factory throughout the United States and the world. The first railway track platform scale patent was granted to Fairbanks on January 13, 1857, as Patent No. 16,381. In 1916 the company was purchased by ”Fairbanks, Morse and Company”. Ownership of the company has since changed several times, but Fairbanks Scales continue to be made in St. Johnsbury Vermont to this day. Fairbanks had received 43 patents in his lifetime with the last one at the age of 91. He died on April 12, 1886, and is buried at St. Johnsbury, Vermont, at the Mount Pleasant Cemetery. An early example circa 1900 of the first type of platform scales used in a grocery store. This design for accurately measuring goods that were sold over the counter revolutionised the weighing of goods throughout the world. Platform scale metal black with removable tray & pan. Has horizontal brass arm with a brass slide weight black removable weight hook and 2 x 2 lb. weights. Fairbanksflagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village

A type of instrument used in the 1900s to measure very low currents by sending beams of light to the mirror and reflecting this back onto a wall using the mirror as an amplifier. Small currents in V/A can display a displacement of a few inches on the wall. This instrument has to be balanced, hence the air bubble level and adjustable feet. The meter was scaled in degrees. Galvonometer with all brass body shell removable for initital adjustments. Two observation ports. Base with levelling feet.scientific instrument, galvonometer

This beam balance was used at the Ballarat School of Mines Beam balance housed in a glass-sided wooden cabinet. Completer, but without balance masses.scientific instrument, balance, scales, physics laboratory, chemistry laboratory, beam balance

This beam balance was used at the Ballarat School of Mines.Beam balance on a black marble base, in a polished wood and glass sided cabinet with levelling feet. Complete but without balance masses.scientific instrument, balance, scales

Beam balance in timber glass case brass and metal beam balance in fair condition crystal pivots, with three leg levelling legs and small string plumb bob to establish initial balancing of the scales balance arms have removable glass concave infills, to measure powders Possible handmade glass case with double glass doors right hand side glass panel cracked

This type of balance scales allows precise measurements to be achieved by ensuring that the balance's fulcrum is essentially friction-free by attaching a pointer to the beam which amplifies any deviation from a balance position; and finally by using the lever principle, which allows fractional masses to be applied by movement of a small mass along the measuring arm of the beam. The standardization of the weights used – and ensuring traders used the correct weights – was a considerable preoccupation of governments throughout this time and inspections were held regularly. When the Weights and Measures Act was passed in Victoria in 1862 local inspectors were established throughout the colony to ensure accuracy particularly in the weighing of gold. By the 1870's each local council had a set of standards that were used to test the scales, weights and measures of local merchants and businesses.Set of small scales possibly from a travelling boxed set due to their small size, similar to those used in an apothecary and weighing gold. Scales have two round brass pans with a cross bar and chains and pointer central on the lever arm. At top of lever arm above pointer is a small leather tag from which to hold up the scales. city of greater bendigo commerce, making a nation exhibition, city of greater bendigo mining

Gold scales used officially by the Borough of Buninyong from 1863.Scales were in official use by the Borough of Buninyong from 1863.Gold scale pans suspended from a brass balance beam, fixed to a polished finish wooden box with a single drawer.Inspection stamps dated 1863, 1864, 1907gold, buninyong, borough of buninyong