Summary

Blackout ripple glass slotted headlight covers used on motor cars in Melbourne during World War II. Melbourne did not have a complete blackout during the war but a 'brownout' meant that streetlights were dimmed to provide some deterrent to air raids.

The Melbourne Argus sternly warned in 1942 that 'The motorist who continues to drive at night with unmasked head-lights is selfish and a fool - he defeats the purposes of the brownout and blinds other motorists who have complied with the wishes of those trying to protect the city from air raids. / It is not difficult or expensive to mask your lights in conformity with the regulations, for it is possible to buy metal headlight masks which have been approved by police ARP authorities - but do not buy a mask not approved officially. / To do your own lights you require a small quantity of black paintblack enamel, black household paint, blackout paint, or old tyre paint. You need a couple of square feet of paper with a black surface, such as the paper used for making envelopes for photographic printing paper, or even thin leaves from a photograph album. / Remove each headlamp glass and globe. Paint the lower half of the globe black, giving it 2 coats, or more if necessary, to prevent light coming in. / Cut a piece of newspaper to the shape shown at the right. with the length of each straight side equal to the distance from the front of the re-election to the lamp socket. Fit the paper into the re-flector, and, using pencil and scissors, experiment until you have a piece that will exactly cover the lower half of the reflector up to half an inch above its centre. / From this pattern cut 2 pieces of black paper and fit them snugly into the reflectors of the 2 headlights, wedging / them into position by inserting the globe into its socket. / If the headlamp glass is flat, cut a disc of black card slightly wider than the glass, then cut a strip lying. deep across the centre of the disc. Insert the disc behind the glass so that the slit is horizontal. If tile headlamp glass is curved, paint the upper and lower halves (on the inside so as to leave a strip lying. deep across the centre. This requires care and patience to prevent the paint from running and to get it thick enough to stop all light. / Globes should be removed from interior car lights or those that illuminate the boot or steps. Cover the reflectors of parking, tail, and stop lights with black paper. Insert 2 thicknesses of newspaper behind the glass of parking, tail, and stop lights, and black right out with paint the white or red side and top panels of the rear lights and parking lights. / It is not necessary to do anything to parking globes that are inside the main headlamps provided they do not exceed candle power, and provided the headlamps have been blacked out in accordance with the advice given at the beginning of this article.' (26 Jan 1942, p. 2)

Physical Description

Two circular blackout ripple glass slotted headlight covers.

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