'Maybe'of interest to some. (pic heavy)

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Visited my mates workshop to enable me to broach a keyway into a flywheel hub.

While I was there I took a few snaps of some of his more unusual machines that were once a fixture of every jobbing engineering works in addition to the usual lathes, capstans and mills he has.

But most of the pics are from a corner where he has stashed a collection of old static engines. - He plans someday (he has been saying someday for the last 25 years) to restore them. - I thought they may be of some general interest especially to those builders of model static engines.

Slotter

Scrap. ......... Lots of this EVERYWHERE.!!!

Drill bank of drill, chamfer and tapping head.

I have never heard of Pollard.

Engines :-

Wolseley ....... Now there is an old British manufacturer.

Lastly. He has recently purchased this mill. But has no technical information upon it. He really needs to know what grade of oil the gearboxs require. I said I would ask here if anyone had access to such information.

Hope these are if interest so some of the members here.

Nick

There's a Kearney and Trecker forum on Practical Machinist dot com. Someone there can likely help with lube oil specs and maybe a manual. K&T are excellent machines generally, I have used and designed cutting tooling for several of them a lot in various shops I worked in years ago, mostly machining valve castings and other parts.

Note: They are a nasty bunch to hobbyists at PM dot com generally (brutal, actually) but if your friend approaches them representing himself as a professional machine repair shop rather than a hobbyist he will be fine. JD

Forgot to mention - thanks for the pics, really like the big slotter. The multihead drill brings back a few memories - one of the first shops I worked in had rows and rows of them, the biggest had ten heads as I recall. Oil and chips 6 inches deep (at least) everywhere in that department of the shop. It was right next to the 150 ton Minster press too, so while setting/adjusting drill tooling to the last few thou we had the vibration and THUMP THUMP THUMP of the big press and the clashing noise of the scrap stock and finished 5 or 10 pound stamped parts falling out of it just a few feet away. All good fun for a young man. JD

Pollards were located in Leicester,and made very good drilling machines,both single spindle and multi spindle,those drills would run all day and just kept going with no trouble,also they were nicer machines than the equivalent Herbert which were knuckle bashers. A couple of nice stationaries ,the R and H with the Wico EK mag is unusual,and the Hesford is rare. Nice interesting shop to look round.

Manual probably available on vintagemachinery.org

Excellent pictures !.

Thanks Nick a typical small machine shop of the sixtys and seventies i have spent many hours on the radial drill machining massy ferguson cylinder heads and axle assemblies on the bank of three drills no cranes to lift them up just muscle power,and bits of scrap material and components everywhere those were the days.More pics if you can Nick.

Graham

Lovely pics , many thanks

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I can do better than pics if you are that interested Graham. ............. A while ago I took some video there.

Years ago there were dozens of small jobbing shops in every town like this one. Sadly very few left now.

I have know Denis for about 35 years now. Hell of a generous genuine nice guy. Always seems to put others before himself. - He had a son who was in the submarine service and was tragically killed.

Anyway. Here is the video.

Get your tape measure out Nick, there are a few future model engine projects in those stationary engines

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Any one in particular Jason.?

I don't think Denis would have a problem with one being stripped for such a cause. ........... So long as it was put back together again afterwards.

Nick

Proper Aladdin's cave there Nick!

Martin.

Good morning Nick excellent video brought back a lot of memories.I worked on Ward and Herbert capstans as a setter operator and occasional periods on a 36inch Webster and Bennet.We did work as diverse as tractor parts,Aston martin engine parts,special valves for buses and big 7foot dia ally castings for the early body scanners on a 72inch Webster and Bennet.At another company we did a lot of work for the local sewage company and using a 2inch pepperpot gas torch on big cast iron valves to remove the bronze seat left you with a smell never to be forgotten.Thanks Graham

Great stuff Nick

Graham,

EMIScanners?

Hi Kwil i think they were for a firm call oxford instruments they came in to us as a bare casting and we machined them all over .Graham