KEATS & BEXON Engine?

Hi all,

Just got this old leather strap skiving cutter machine by KEATS & Bexon along with an old small lathe, a ROLLO ELF.

Spent some time on it today and it came up nicely:

The chap I got it from said that he used to have a small engine with 2 flywheels by them but I cannot find any reference to one. Anyone have any thoughts please?

Regards,

Martin

They get a mention on Grace's with a nice photo of what may be a similar engine

Edited By JasonB on 05/05/2016 16:06:58

JasonB, what a neat item, what sort of size would that be please? Petrol or diesel? A project for you....

Thanks,

Martin

The main crankcase casting and the general layout look very similar to an Associated "Hired Man" (i do have a set of castings for one) the cylinder casting and hopper are slightly different having the bolts on the outside where the hopper joins the water jacket, also has spark ignition rather than an ignitor but the large plate suggests an ignitor could have been an option using teh same casting.

Would have been petrol, about 2 to 2.5HP and 18-20" flywheels I should think.

Should not be too hard to knock one up

This old machine is a welt roller for shoes, usually men's, it was used to consolidate the welt prior to stitching the sole to the upper via the welt. My late father-in law was a traditional shoe repairer like his father before him and used one of these. They are of no real use nowadays as true welted men's shoes are virtually extinct. Some shoes have dummy welts that look the part but perform no useful function in the construction of the shoe.

Eric

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An Endangered Species : **LINK**

[for info.]

MichaelG.

Lambton, Thanks for the info, what role does the cutter perform on this machine please? I thought it was for splitting leather either straight through the thickness or at an angle as the cutter has cant adjustment.

Interestlingly the market for this type of machine is VERY strong either from a collector point of view or indeed for actual use.

We sell quite a lot of this type of stuff to besoke shoemakers all over the world, people who want the old machinery and tools. We just sent a small 19thC pointed awl to USA, it made £22 plus shipping. We have started this at £100 and I hope for quite a bit more than that, a not so hot one went fpor £275 middle of last year that needed work.

MichaelG, nice link, we have in fact sold to workers at that firm, serious shoes. Try GAZIANO & GIRLING, don't know how to link that.

Regards,

Martin

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Nice shoes, too ... and honestly priced for the quality.

MichaelG.

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P.S. ... here's your link for GAZIANO & GIRLING

Yes: They look very smart, but a level or two above my range 

Edited By Michael Gilligan on 05/05/2016 18:38:49

For the Rollo Elf, put that in the search window, and you will come up with a couple of threads, worth reading.

Ian S C