Reply To: What is it?

[frankr]

Yep, as a small boy, I found an old pull-chain light socket in my neighbor’s trash.  The kind with a bare 40 Watt bulb, that still hung on a wire from the ceiling in many homes.  I tore that thing apart and discovered how it worked.  And put it back together again.  Lessee—there was an example of a ratchet device, a rotary switch, etc., etc.

Similarly, I tore apart an old mantle clock and discovered how gears work.  And when I let the wind-up spring loose, it came striking out like a nest of rattlesnakes.  A bit of patching up of my wound was required.  Needless to say, a valuable lesson in springs.