First off, that is not a J-bend. A J-bend is a straight length of pipe with a 90deg bend on the end. The pipe is question here has a 180deg bend and it is properly called a "Return Bend". When that return bend was initially made they began by making a straight return bend without a cleanout hole. They then drilled a hole at the cleanout location slightly smaller than the desired finished opening and the tubular brass of the bend was then swaged out to form the finished shape and size at the cleanout location. A short piece of threaded brass tubing was then inserted into the opening and soldered in place and finally they screwed the cleanout cap on the end of the threaded brass tubing. In this case over time the threaded brass tubing corroded and fused into the cleanout cap so that when the cleanout cap was turned instead of the cap unscrewing the solder joint broke and the treaded tube came out of the return bend. If you examine the section of brass tubing extending out of the cap in the last photo you can see where it was originally soldered into the tubing. That problem is quite common when working with old tubular brass fittings and generally Plumbers do not even attempt to remove the plug, but rather they take the entire return bend off to open the line for cleanout. It was mentioned that this is an "S" trap, which is illegal, but that is not correct. It is true that S-traps are now prohibited by code and may no longer be used for Plumbing, but here we run into an issue of semantics. "Plumbing is defined as the act of initially installing a piping system whereas the act of repairing an existing system is defined as "Maintenance". When performing Maintenance we are required to maintain exactly the original configuration, therefore given that an S-trap was code approved when that line was first installed you are required to replace it with an S-Trap. If you were to move that sink or do a rehab on the bathroom that involved changing the location of any fixtures or the physical configuration of any of the piping you would then be performing an act of plumbing and as such, all plumbing within that room would have to be brought up to the code that is in effect at the time the rehab is performed.

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Thanks Allison! I hope that didn't come across snippy. What I meant was some of the best deals I find in antique shops are those little hole in the wall - stuff piled high and under stuff, etc. You can get some good deals. Not the upscale places. I do love vintage silver and of course you can find some pricey stuff. I also find a good bit on ebay (people sometimes really don't know what they have!) and etsy (vintage). I appreciate you keeping a lookout. I'm fine with silver plated, vintage/antique would be great if I can find it for a good deal, but a new piece would be fine also. dlm200 - I'm not in a hurry, that's part of the fun - the search, finding just the right thing. That tray is GORGEOUS! $4????!!!!! Allison I forgot to answer your question - I would use the tray as shown in the pic I posted - on a side table, perhaps a chest I have in my dining room, something like that. tina

aas178- As I understand it, you have a chrome-brass piece that looks like it goes through the escutcheon plate, but is so short that not enough thread sticks out the backside of the plate to provide a non-leaking connection at the wall. Here is what I don't understand: It sounds like the company provided you this threaded piece; but why would they send you something that clearly doesn't work with their escutcheon plate?