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Thread: Emergency Doors

  1. #31
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    Here's a picture for sale on eBay showing an emergency door under construction at the Mosler factory in 1953.

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  2. #32
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    One of the first images in this thread was this:

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    I've identified the location as CFS Carp in Ontario, Canada, a cold-war bunker. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CFS_Carp as well as http://www.diefenbunker.ca and http://jenandwillsnorthamericanadven...fenbunker.html. In particular, the following image which also shows the vault has a passageway around it complete with mirrors, intended to foil burglars trying to break in through a wall. Why this is an issue at a cold-war bunker is not clear.

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    And while we're at it, the main door (Mosler? Diebold? Taylor?):

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  3. #33
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    Here's a nice image of an emergency door next to its main door (Mosler). This is the former First National Bank in Rochester, NY, 35 State Street. The building hosted an art show in 2010.

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  4. #34
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    The rotunda at the former Cleveland Trust building has several nice Hollar vaults; the building is currently being renovated. A photo essay at http://www.artographyonline.com/blog.../rotunda-vault includes imagery of an emergency door that's unusual in that it is a small chamber with two separate doors:

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    We've seen double-door or "vestibule" main doors but this is the first such emergency door I've run across.

  5. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by wylk View Post
    The rotunda at the former Cleveland Trust building has several nice Hollar vaults; the building is currently being renovated. A photo essay at http://www.artographyonline.com/blog.../rotunda-vault includes imagery of an emergency door that's unusual in that it is a small chamber with two separate doors:

    Click image for larger version. 

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    We've seen double-door or "vestibule" main doors but this is the first such emergency door I've run across.
    Makes perfect sense though, if the main door is upgraded to a increased level of security with a second door it would be necessary to do the same with the emergency door. The reason less photos exist is that emergency doors are not generally as easy to access or see.

  6. #36
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    Also, note the positioning of the pressure bars- most round doors with radially positioned bars use 3, each at 120 degrees apart in a 'crow's foot' configuration- that's the first time I think i ever saw 4 bars mounted radially like that- they were more commonly mounted horizontally across the door

  7. #37
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    I also believe that in this image, the pressure bars are in their "closed" position, meaning that if somebody tries to close the door they are liable to bend the pins if they try too hard.

  8. #38
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    Quote Originally Posted by MaxVaultage View Post
    Also, note the positioning of the pressure bars- most round doors with radially positioned bars use 3, each at 120 degrees apart in a 'crow's foot' configuration- that's the first time I think i ever saw 4 bars mounted radially like that- they were more commonly mounted horizontally across the door
    Hollar was not the only maker who used a 4-point pressure system in a "squashed X" configuration. Here is a George Damon door (Main Seneca Building in Buffalo, NY) as well as a Damon patent (901,425):

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  9. #39
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    First of all thank you for reviving this interesting thread.

    Some large institutions would have a main door, controlled by combinations, and the an emergency door with keylocks. Certainly those emergency doors were very rarely opened. The ones I saw all had day gates.

    The idea of using the emergency door for ventilation was, and probably still is, very common in the middle east.

    One image I saw early on in the thread is that Chubb one with the TDR door and the guy in front of it. The door is 6' tall so that man can't be 3' tall. I know they used to use small people to photograph against products to make the product look larger than it actually was, but that engraving, or whatever the term is, is ridiculous.

    (My mother claimed to have known a man whose job it was to make specially small furniture for show houses on estates. Whether the story was true, I don't know).

  10. #40
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    Quote Originally Posted by wylk View Post
    Hollar was not the only maker who used a 4-point pressure system in a "squashed X" configuration. Here is a George Damon door (Main Seneca Building in Buffalo, NY) as well as a Damon patent (901,425):

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    Good find, and not a big surprise to see that oddball inventor George Damon also used the 'squashed X' as you called it.
    But, with only two companies so far known to use it, they remain a tiny minority compared to those with 3 bars phased at 120 degrees, or 4 bars mounted horizontally parallel.

    Always like to see examples of Damon's doors though, although some of his designs seem almost absurdly eccentric they are always beautifully made and show incredible attention to detail.

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