Vintage Horticultural and Garden Machinery Club

I did visit the site of the Auto Culto factory, the only remains from that time are a few cobbles in the road, the factory site is now riverside flats.
Thames bridge house, which was the company address in the late sixties is still standing though.

Liam, Nice to see it coming along!
The early metal handlebar machines have the serial number stamped into the bar, the ID plate is a later thing (though wooden handlebar machines always had a plate).
Jim.

I’m currently planning to visit Newark, most probably on the Saturday.
I’ll post a similar announcement when I’ve finalised my plans.
There is the postal order option as well!

Jim

I should also say that I’ve used the mkIX in both rotavator and ploughing configurations, with both engines – the BSA is the better engine, but if you’re ploughing, traction will be the issue, not power!

Firstly, apologies for anyone who has emailed the register address, and not received a reply. The web page has been off-line for some months, due to the server being hacked, and me not finding a suitable hew hosting company yet. I’ve also had issues where a reply to an email has been rejected by other peoples mail servers, either for security or…[Read more]

That would be handy for me as well!

The usual one is the timing has slipped again…..

If so, remove the flywheel completely, and clean the internal taper of the flywheel and the external taper of the crankshaft, ideally with brake or carburretor cleaner, but clean petrol will do. Also ensure that the tapers are undamaged. Slight burrs can be dressed out with a fine file or emery…[Read more]

I’ll stick with my loud two-strokes, both ancient and modern, thanks…….
Or, if the allotment is your hobby / food source, and you still have to work, you take all the mechanical help you can get!

If you have a spark, check the ignition timing and compression.
The timing has been know to slip on these smal Villiers engines, as the flywheel is only held on a taper, and people either don’t clean the taper, or don’t tighten the flywheel nut properly!

Auot Culto did make a turnover plough, shown in the picture on a model D (or E – difficult to tell from the flywheel side). It looks to be the same as yours. The brochure it came from had a price adjustment for 1939, and shows the model DX, but all of the attachments are shown with the previous range of models, so is probably from 1938.

could be an earlier lighweight model (412, 415, 515, 512 etc). Manuals are here:

http://www.g1jbg.co.uk/autoculto/autodat.htm

After a quick check, the Autogardener rotor box will not it the Mk ix

I’ll check tomorrow, but I don’t think that the Autogardener rotor box will fit the Mk ix. Some odd bits do turn up for the mk ix occasionally, but not often. Mine came with both the plough and the rotovator, but the rotovator was worn out (long term job, as I have to make anew rotor shaft).
Chester Hudson did have some bits, but I don’t know what…[Read more]

The midgiculto doesn’t have a starting lever – three forward speeds, no reverse

Thanks Andy!
A few more bits have turned up over the last couple of days (Thanks Richard!), and I’ve realised that I’m missing three models (at least) from the list (D,E and F). I’ve also reviewed the pictures I’ve taken over the last year or so, and realised that I have some better pictures to add for some models, so I think there will be a…[Read more]

If it’s homemade, it’s very good!
You need a set of wheel weights anda balnce weight now.

More attractive lines (to my eye) than the later version!

I grew Cara and Casablanca this year, which are supposed to be blight resistant, but they seem to have succumbed (they’re supposed to be a second early, but normally do quite well as a main crop in my soil). Slugs are always a problem on the clay soil in this part of hampshire