I too own an old Universal Landers Frary Clark Mf'd. percolator. Mine is quite rare and was produced in the mid-20's, I believe. I prefer my pot to the urn solely for transportation ability and you don't have to tip it to get to the last drop. These coffee makers are perhaps the best ever manufactured, and produce an exquisite cup of joe. The reason is the base of these percolators are solid copper and coated with nickel plate for aesthetics. Copper produces much better heating properties than stainless steel. In theory, should a dent or two be made in these or the nickel plating come off, they can be fixed on both levels.

Several other comments have been made that they are NOT automatic. This is quite true. They have no thermostat inside nor any integral shut off built in. You have to do the timing of your coffee. 7 minutes for weak, 10 for strong. These were designed to not require filters, however, I suggest using filters - the standard natural brown accordion, push them down over stem in center - for two reasons. One, you will not have grounds stuck in the basket holes, and two, Cafestol and Keowohl in regular quantities are bad for you; Google them. These pots may take longer to brew, but make coffee much more correctly. Newer percolators - since the 1940's - had larger holes in the basket. This meant that although the water went thru faster and coffee was done sooner, you often ran the risk and ended up over-boiling your coffee. You also usually ended up wasting a half-to-a-full-cup of coffee due to grounds passing by the filter and thru the basket holes. Companies loved it... you ran out of coffee faster and had to buy more sooner.

If you ever buy one of these and it has the original - or close to original - cord, inspect and voltage test thoroughly. I had one that had an on/off switch but later bought one that was period appropriate and had no switch. These coffee pots do not suck energy when first plugged in... when unplugged, they do not draw enough to be a problem, no need to upgrade to a switch cord. Clean by putting baking soda without filter in basket, run 10 minutes, then do with 1:1 ratio of distilled white vinegar, same time, then distilled plain water. These last a lifetime.