Thread: Technical name for a wood a d brass survey level

Sight level, also known as a hand sight level, used for approximating levels or gradients prior to final designs/layouts

Can you put up a picture of it please? If it has three of four adjustable feet that sit on top of a tripod, It's just called a level or survey level. If it's one that you hold in your hand and look through a telescope, while adjusting a protractor so that you can see a level bubble in a mirror, it's an Abney level. If it has a flat bottom that sits on a flat surface, has aan eyepiece at one end and an adjustable cross hair at the other, with a horizontal bubble between them, it's an Indian clinometer. It sounds like this may be what you have. Another version of a similar instrument is called an alidade. A google search for these will give you pics and you can see what you have. I've used all of them in the dim and distant past.

And then there is a Theodolite!

Theodolite. 18th century.jpg

Probably, a little more sophisticated than the device you have SD.

Regards
Paul

Now that is an ancient one, Bushmiller.

Originally Posted by AlexS

Can you put up a picture of it please? If it has three of four adjustable feet that sit on top of a tripod, It's just called a level or survey level. If it's one that you hold in your hand and look through a telescope, while adjusting a protractor so that you can see a level bubble in a mirror, it's an Abney level. If it has a flat bottom that sits on a flat surface, has aan eyepiece at one end and an adjustable cross hair at the other, with a horizontal bubble between them, it's an Indian clinometer. It sounds like this may be what you have. Another version of a similar instrument is called an alidade. A google search for these will give you pics and you can see what you have. I've used all of them in the dim and distant past.

LOL. I guess a bit of detail would have helped. I don't have it, it's at a house I'm helping them id tools... It's a simple wood and brass 18" level, approx. 1" wide x 2" tall. The top has the bubble that is protected by a brass plate. The peep hole is in the middle at one end and the other end has a wider hole with a lens that contains a cross hairs. A poor mans transit level

Box / Beam Level with Sight.

You may have a reasonably valuable vintage tool there. SOLD Antique PRESTON SIGHT THROUGH BODY Surveyors LEVEL T6082 – Vintage Tool Shop Pty Ltd

An interesting discussion. I have a level I used to build my two story workshop in the late 1970's, the head sits on a single pin on top of a tripod and works on a split view principle. A vertical measuring staff is held with a hand held cross piece that is moved up or down as required and when the cross bar becomes a single piece in the view finder that reading is noted. I haven't used it for years and have no idea of what to do with it as my laser level does the job these days and to just throw it out goes against the grain so to speak. Does anyone collect this sort of stuff?

Originally Posted by Chris Parks

An interesting discussion. I have a level I used to build my two story workshop in the late 1970's, the head sits on a single pin on top of a tripod and works on a split view principle. A vertical measuring staff is held with a hand held cross piece that is moved up or down as required and when the cross bar becomes a single piece in the view finder that reading is noted. I haven't used it for years and have no idea of what to do with it as my laser level does the job these days and to just throw it out goes against the grain so to speak. Does anyone collect this sort of stuff?

That would be a Cowley Automatic Level.

Originally Posted by AlexS

Now that is an ancient one, Bushmiller.

Alex

Yes: Allegedly 18th century. I'm actually impressed they could put something like that together in those days.

Regards
Paul

Originally Posted by Bushmiller

Alex

Yes: Allegedly 18th century. I'm actually impressed they could put something like that together in those days.

Regards
Paul

Have a look at Troughton and Simms theodolites if you have a passion for precision instruments of that era.

The theodolite pictured above is a very high precision geodetic instrument and is fitted with lamps for night observations. It would have been used for precise star observations for position (lat & long) and on continental geodetic trigonometric surveys or on precise above ground control surveys for major projects (tunnelling etc). It would have been a very expensive instrument in its day, certainly a rare instrument. Could you share the source of the image as I'm very interested to read more about it.

A later theodolite used for similar purposes is the Wild T4 described here - T4 Theodolite in Australia (xnatmap.org) These are perhaps the pinnacle of optical theodolite manufacturing - the Bugatti Veyron of the surveying world. I've used the Wild T2's before we went digital, as close to perfect as a survey / geodetic "general purpose theodolite" could be.

I've used an old Cook, Troughton & Simms level with four feet, why they didn't go for three feet like later levels I don't know. I've used Wild theodolites - didn't everyone - the one I used most had a pair of curved lines on the graticule so you could quickly calculate horizontal and vertical distances. I cant remember the model number.
I came across a reprint of an old article in the Institute of Surveyors journal about how to cultivate spider webs to replace the cross-hairs on a theodolite. My, how things have changed.

Originally Posted by AlexS

I've used an old Cook, Troughton & Simms level with four feet, why they didn't go for three feet like later levels I don't know. I've used Wild theodolites - didn't everyone - the one I used most had a pair of curved lines on the graticule so you could quickly calculate horizontal and vertical distances. I cant remember the model number.
I came across a reprint of an old article in the Institute of Surveyors journal about how to cultivate spider webs to replace the cross-hairs on a theodolite. My, how things have changed.

The lines you refer to enabled Stadiametric rangefinding, or "stadia" measurements. Most survey instrument graticules were marked for a stadia factor x 100 i.e. top - bottom readings x 100 = Hz distance. Typically used for small area topographic surveys etc. I performed a lot of topo / detail surveys for new telecommunications radio tower sites in the late 1970's and almost the entire 1980's even though we had the very cumbersome "top mounted" early AGA electronic distance measurement (EDM) units from about 1982.

Military and marine "range finders" often have a stadia factor of 1000, a reason why the height of lighthouses etc were noted on nautical charts etc.

The Swiss also pioneered another similar form of higher accuracy distance measurement using optical observation and the "subtense bar" - a precisely 2m long bar mounted horizontally and orientated precisely perpendicular to the line of observation. Horizontal (azimuth) readings were taken to targets on each end of the bar. Distance was calculated using simple trigonometry.

Both are forms of tacheometry with a "tachymeter" or "tacheometer" being a type of theodolite, or a level, with the graticule markings used for rapid horizontal measurements.

Originally Posted by Bushmiller

Alex

Yes: Allegedly 18th century. I'm actually impressed they could put something like that together in those days.

Regards
Paul

That ain't nothing!! Google what the Greeks were doing 2500 years ago. Or Egyptians 4000 years ago. What's been lost far far out strip's what is known today

Originally Posted by Mobyturns

Could you share the source of the image as I'm very interested to read more about it.
.

Mobyturns

I just plucked it off the internet quite a while back and had saved it in my pix so I am not sure exactly how I came about it. This is a link to images of vintage theodolites:

18th century theodolite - - Image Search results (yahoo.com)

However, I'm afraid I could not find the exact same one.

Regards
Paul