Ohio Brass 10 inch porcelain suspension. I received several of these from the Niagara Falls area in 2005. Olive green with sloppy, lumpy, black glaze highlights on top as well as underneath. It appears as though the gren glaze was applied first, on both top and bottom, then the disc had a second coat of black glaze applied to the bottom while the dics upside down, causing the excess black to run up over the topside.

I have several other OB discs with a variety of glaze issues, some of which seem to be from how the glaze was sprayed on. A two tone pattern with a distinct separation of colours in a crescent moon shape. [id=203273688] shows a couple of others. Notice the hook, that it has worn more than half way through.

I have seen dozens of OB suspensions with uneven glazes, multicolour and lumps from too much glaze, all have similar caps which may indicate the approximate date of manufacture.

After I posted this picture I received a few replies asking if mine had an early Patent date. The caps on the ones I have are badly rusted, enough that the OB is not readily discernable on many of them. If any do have a Pat date, I cannot find any indication. I do have one cap that is galvanized and which has - US PAT 9 19 18 followed by three more lines of mostly illegible letters and numbers.

Why some caps are badly rusted and some are not, I can only guess. Possibility this was the time when a move was made to galvanizing metals. Early caps were not galvanized and rusted, later production caps protected by the galvanizing did not.

Robert Ray sent me the Pat date on several discs he recently found. From the picture these caps look galvanized.

U S PAT'D...... .1-25-10 11-1-10 ......7-17-17 .......792-86 (this number varies)

The use of these discs is widespread as Jim Decker also reports these discs, found in California, with the Pat dates.

[id=268168082] vintage photograph shows the glazing process.

I consider this the prettiest suspension, glass or porcelain, in my meagre collection. Others discs may be worth more, others are harder to find, but I like this one best of all.