Erector Set / Meccano

Erector Set (trademark styled as "ERECTOR") was a brand of metal toy construction sets which were patented by Alfred Carlton Gilbert and first sold by his company, the Mysto Manufacturing Company of New Haven, Connecticut, in 1913. In 1916, the company was reorganized as the A. C. Gilbert Company. The brand continued its independent existence under various corporate ownerships until 1990, when Meccano bought the Erector brand and consolidated its worldwide marketing with its own brand. Erector coverage focuses on the historical legacy of the classic Erector Set; for later developments under the "Erector by Meccano" brand, see the Meccano article. Basic Erector parts included thin metal beams with regularly spaced holes for assembly using nuts and bolts. A frequently promoted patented feature was the ability to fabricate a strong but lightweight hollow structural girder from four long flat pieces of stamped sheet steel, held together by bolts and nuts per U.S. patent 1,066,809. Flat or curved pieces of sheet metal in various shapes and colors could be added to the structural skeleton. Hardened steel rods and screw clamps allowed the construction of hinges and the transmission of mechanical power via rotating parts such as pulleys, gears, wheels, and levers. Unlike some earlier wooden construction sets, Erector could be used both for static structures and for dynamic structures incorporating mechanical linkages and other moving components. Modular, standardized construction sets like Erector provided the ability to build a model, then take it apart and build something else, over and over again. Both AC-powered electric motors and battery-powered DC motors became available, usually equipped with gears to increase their torque and effective mechanical power. Later sets added miniature light bulbs and simple switches to control electrical power. Erector is a versatile constructional medium. In addition to building models, it is used to prototype new ideas and designs.