by trusty220

Coming Soon- Vintage Machinery Registers

April 6, 2014 in Club News

We will very shortly be starting to add content to the website, and the first stage will be to add as many machinery registers that we can so that members can date their own machinery and also to have them included in the register of surviving machines. The intention will be to only publish serial numbers, dates of purchase and selling dealer; details of the current owners will not appear in any form, so if you haven’t told your wife of  your latest purchase you can rest easy, she won’t find out from here!

If any members are interested in putting their registers on here please contact Geoff Ravenhall using the contact email address for the club- don’t forget, this can be a two-way thing. You can provide information about the brand that you are passionate about, but remember also that when people see the listings they may well want to be included so your register will grow as a result.

The first register to appear will be for Trusty Steeds, both Mk1 and Mk2, so watch this space over the next few days.

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by trusty220

DVD Available for Last Year’s Trusty Challenge

March 16, 2014 in Club News

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In October, 2013, Sam Hitchman organised a horticultural ploughing day near Kineton in Warwickshire. Despite the early downpour many ploughmen turned up with a very varied selection of horticultural machinery to either compete or just play. It was also the first Trusty Challenge, so there are many different working exhibits to see from that well-known manufacturer.
All proceeds from the event were donated to a charity devoted to sufferers of Parkinson’s Disease- a charity suggested by the landowner- and a substantial donation was made.
Shortly afterwards one of our club members put together a DVD cataloguing the day’s events with both action footage and still photographs which has a total running time of approximately 25 minutes. We are selling these discs for the price of £5 each plus £1.75 p&p. Again, all proceeds from these discs will go towards combating Parkinson’s Disease.
To order one of these discs please respond using the club email address in the contacts section and Sam will be in touch.

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by trusty220

Annual General Meeting 2014

March 13, 2014 in Club News

SONY DSCThe VHGMC always has it’s AGM on the second weekend in March. Memberships run from 1st January through to 31st December, so we can’t have the AGM much later in the year because it would be largely meaningless. Similarly, if we had it in January then it may even be snowed off, so the compromise is March.
This year we decided to re-visit the old formula of hiring a room at a popular venue and allowing free entry to the venue for all members attending the meeting. I think most of you will know of the British Motoring Heritage museum at Gaydon which was originally put together by British Leyland; it now has been expanded to cater for all British makes and it really is a museum with no equal anywhere in the world.
Many of the exhibits are prototypes or one-offs made for a specific purpose, interspersed with production cars from all eras. It really is a venue that appeals to all walks of life with exhibits from Jaguar and Land Rover standing side-by-side with cars from Austin, Morris, Triumph and MG to name but a few. Of particular interest to myself was the display of MG record-breaking cars which rose to fame in the 1930’s and into the 1950’s; one of these was EX135 which took speed records in the 350cc class, 500cc, 750cc, 1100cc and 1500cc by ingenious use of a single, six-cylinder engine. To achieve the smaller capacities it was run with just two pistons, then three, and to achieve the record in the 1500 class it was bored out to just over the 1100cc size, so it was sacrificing nearly 400cc’s and it still achieved over 200mph!
 Everyone attending showed their appreciation at the end of the meeting, and one or two even brought machines to swap in the car park. It looks like next year’s venue may be already sorted out!

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by vhgmcbuddy

New Club Website….

September 24, 2013 in Club News

After a year of planning, head scratching and considering many many options available, the new VHGMC website is here! This has been no easy task, in order to do everything that’s currently required, the website brings to you more options than ever before and makes this the one-stop place for all things relating to vintage horticultural machinery. 

Did I say one-stop? Well this is the place to organize your machinery photos or indeed videos all in your own galleries, create a group of friends, and also keep a timeline of what you are doing with your hobby. You can send messages to friends, comment on their updates, discuss topics in the forum and many other options. This keeps all your hobby related information in one easy place to share – rather than having it scattered across many website services. 

We have also added news articles to the site, so if you have something of interest them we can put it on there for you. And if you are wanting something extra to read then back issues of The Cultivator are available to download free for paid members.

Currently we have pushed the  technology as far as we can, in fact there are a couple of items I wanted to do but the solutions aren’t there yet! Although we do have many other things to add and try and you may notice some tell-tale signs on the site.  

If you have any questions then you can contact me at @alan (how brilliant is that? Just click on @alan and then click on ‘Private Message’  to the right of my avatar picture) or through the ‘contact’ page, there’s also some info about the website at tractorbox too. <

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by vhgmcbuddy

Tractor World 2013 Show Report

March 29, 2013 in Show Reports

Tractor World. by Charlie Moore.

Held over the weekend 2nd & 3rd March at The Three Counties Showground Malvern and organised by Tractor & Machinery magazine. The actual show organisation was carried out by a new team this year which saw a few changes to show layout and the introduction of displays of new tractors. Saturday had the usual auction by H J Pugh and on Sunday there was a vintage sort out. A couple of weeks before the show Martin Oldaker, editor of Tractor & Machinery, asked me if I would be willing to judge the horticultural section. For some reason I said yes, (must learn to stop saying yes). This worked out well as I was planning to visit the show on the Saturday anyway.  

1st Prize winner in the ride-on section. Neil Robinson with his Ransomes MG5

1st Prize winner in the ride-on section. Neil Robinson with his Ransomes MG5

Entries in the horticultural section were down on previous years, not helped by a number of horticultural machines appearing on other stands in the show. Entries were varied in both make and model as well as condition, with some as found and others fully restored. The full spectrum of eligible machines and tools was covered, from JALO to Trusty and Ransomes MG. Interesting exhibits included a very unusual single wheeled machine, believed to be a Howard and a good original condition Allman sprayer attachment on a Colwood motor hoe

Judging was very difficult due to the wide diversity of exhibits, I soon realised what a task it is and envy anyone that judges on a regular basis. Knowing some horticultural exhibits were not in the horticultural section I asked if they were to be included, as judging them would involve me walking around the whole show looking for them. The organisers confirmed only those in the horticultural section were to be judged. This was to cause some discontent as this was not clear on the entry forms. 

Results were as follows.

Ride on Machinery.

1st. Ransomes MG5, Neil Robinson.
2nd. Motostandard, Keith Hayden.
3rd. Cub Cadet, Ron Jaynes.

Pedestrian Machinery.

1st. Trusty Imp, Geoff Ravenhall.
2nd. Simplicity motor how, David Biggs.
3rd. Howard Demon, Henry Cawood.

Hand Tools.

1st. JALO collection, Pat Biggs.
2nd. Landmaster push how, Ivan Clark.
3rd. Jobu chainsaw, Mr Thomas.

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by vhgmcbuddy

Lincoln Steam 2012

March 26, 2013 in Show Reports

Written by Steve Woollas.

August seems so long ago but Lincoln steam, or to give the event it’s correct title The Lincoln Steam and Vintage Rally took place in glorious sunshine at the purpose built show site owned by The Lincolnshire Agricultural Society, adjacent to the A15 at Grange-de-Lings north of Lincoln on the 18th & 19th of August 2012.

Lincoln is the third in a trilogy of steam rallies held over the first three consecutive weekends in the eastern side of England commencing with Pickering, then Driffield, then Lincoln, and, for many a continual pilgrimage takes place to each in turn.

People travel far and wide to Lincoln and it was pleasing to meet club members who had travelled over from the Isle of Man for the event.

Lincoln steam appears to grow each year although the showground boundaries do not, and it is testimony to the organisers’ careful and strategic planning that all exhibits are accommodated within their allotted areas. This year the programme listed in excess of 1550 entries, including some of the 100 full size steamers, a further 100 miniature steamers and over 30 musical organs. Tractors amounted to 330 entries of which 50 fell into the horticultural category. with some 230 stationary engines, 28 awning displays, 130 entries in the models hall including 24 Meccano displays and in excess of 550 vintage/classic vehicles and a large trader market there has to be something at Lincoln for the whole family to view, admire and marvel upon.  
Allen Scythe fitted with a Villers engine. It is painted yellow because it spent it's working life on an airfield.

Allen Scythe MK2 fitted with a Villiers 11C engine. It is painted yellow because it spent it’s working life on an airfield.



Tractors have their own display area with a “drive through” parallel ring and paraded each day at 2pm lead by horticulturals and the commentary lasts for around 3 hours – not all by me you will be pleased to know!

First in the ring for the horticulturals was one of the nicest Fiddle Drills I have ever seen complete with instruction sheet attached to the body of the drill, along with a demonstration of how the march along in time with the hand movement when drilling, i.e one movement of the bow in time with each step forward. Another interesting item was a 1939 Vivian Lloyd Brush Cutter. One trusty steed was present and attached to the “working end” was an unusual Howard Rotavator attachment.  

I was interested to see some early versions of some machines present including a 1937 Ransome MG2 with the early Sturmey Archer T Type engine fitted, the 1941 allen Scythe MK2 (pictured) fitted with the Villiers 11C engine, finished in yellow livery as this machine spent it’s working life on an airfield. Cliffords were well represented with two Clifford Juniors in the line up, as were Ransomes with examples of MG2, MG5, MG6 and MG40. A 1951 Monrotiller Series One in original paint and transfers made an interesting item in the Parade as did in total contrast a nicely restored 1951 Bolens with cultivator in green and yellow. 

Note: This article has been reproduced and edited from the November 2012 issue of The Cultivator and written by Steve Woollas. 

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by vhgmcbuddy

Ride On Machines

March 25, 2013 in Machinery

Trusty-tractor

There are many ride-on machines and garden tractors available such as this Trusty Steed dating from around 1950

Popular with collectors, enthusiast and exhibiters are ride-on machines. The most common are the garden tractor or ride-on mower types but there are many others too such as tracked crawlers like the Bristol, the three wheeled Gunsmith and the Opperman Motocart.

Whether you are collecting a machine for preservation, restoring & showing or to use on the horticultural plot there are machines ranging from the 1920’s through to the 1990s.

Some of the more common garden tractors of the ride-on mower types which tend to date from the late 1970’s onwards are Atco, Westwood, Roper and Mountfield to name just a few. Many of these lower-spec machines were aimed at the weekend gardener with a large lawn to mow and occassional trailer work. These entry-level tractors often had ‘bigger brothers’ with more power and capabilities.

More robust garden tractors capable of serious work such as pulling a plough on an allotment, powering a rotavator and snow clearing work include well-known brands like the American Wheel Horse tractor range (1950’s -90’s) and the 1960’s UK Martin-Markham garden tractors. These tractors and others which are suitable for ploughing are also great for horticultural ploughing events which VHGMC members can take part in at various locations.

Ransomes Crawler & Bolens Ride-a-matic

Ransomes crawler and Bolens Ride-a-matic working the ground at a ploughing event

Through the decades demand and innovation has created many diverse machines tailored for specific jobs. Machines such as the David Brown 2D (1955-61) that can be used with numerous implements like cultivator tines, a row thinner and a reversible plough – an ideal machine for crop and open field work. Another machine is the 1950’s Scottish designed Rollo Croftmaster, created for working on Scottish small holdings up to 10 acres in size, this is a compact yet substantial four-wheeled tractor.

Bonser truck

Bonser truck from the 1960’s. In excellent restored condition at a show.

Out of the field and into the yard, still classified by the VHGMC as ride-on machines there are a varied range of trucks available. Some with timber bodied rear loading areas and some with tipping bodies too. The three-wheeled Wrigley motor truck (1930’s onwards) and the Bonser truck are two well known makes and always make a good exhibit at a show.

Popular with the tracked crawler users are the Ransomes MG2 and the later MG5. These can often be seen at shows and ploughing events. Also in the ride-on-machines category are the Bristol tracked crawlers.

Many enthusiast tend to collect one or two makes of specific machines and as well as the machines themselves they will collect literature, original brochures and price lists for their specific machines. This makes a collector a very valuable source of knowledge and very helpful advice.

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by vhgmcbuddy

Walk Behind Machines

March 25, 2013 in Machinery

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A collection of Landmaster motor hoes being shown with various attachments.

The range of pedestrian-controlled machinery is certainly extensive and it is all covered by the VHGMC. Whether it was built in the 1920’s or the 1990’s it is all the same to us.

The walk-behind category is probably the largest one in the club and encompasses everything from the humble cylinder lawn mower to the larger Iron Horse type tractors that compete at ploughing matches.

Now that insecticide sprays are widely used in agriculture the motor hoe has completely disappeared, yet these were widely used in the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s to combat weed infestations and these remain one of the main collectible machines of our club members. They are generally light and easily transported yet very eye-catching, and were always painted in bright colours to increase their appeal.

Walk behind machines are excellent for showing or using.

Walk behind machines are excellent for showing or using.

Another favourite of collectors is the rotavator that has been used on allotments since it’s invention in the 1950’s and is still a firm favourite today, with manufacturers varying from Atco to Wolseley with every company in between.

The appeal of this machinery is that the collector can restore it using very few tools and in a very small workshop. It is generally inexpensive to buy and is widely available, and when the restoration is finished the restorer can use it at many of our club working events so that the work is never finished when the restoration is complete. You can actually play with the finished article, or even use it for what it was deigned to do originally – assist in growing food.

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by vhgmcbuddy

Hand Tools

March 25, 2013 in Machinery

Vintage hand-tools covers more than just a collection of garden shears or grandad’s pre-war spades and forks in the allotment shed.

There is a vast and eclectic range of tools, powered by electric, petrol or human power. Although the term hand-tools tends to automatically refer to smaller items like shears used in the garden it does also cover a broader area including pushed hoes, garden sprayers, insecticide dusters and lawn edgers to name just a few.
Garden sprayers

An excellent and interesting display of garden sprayers. These are all hand-powered with some being small for domestic garden use and around the greenhouse and the larger wheeled versions for larger application or commercial use.


This is a fascinating and growing collectors area where superb collections of items can, mostly, be gathered relatively easily. These are sometimes exhibited or displayed as a group of items such as secateurs through the decades, or perhaps as a collection produced by a single manufacturer such as the 1960’s range of Black & Decker hedge-trimmers. These displays of hand-tools appeal to the viewing public who can often remember using them or recall their grand-parents having them many years ago.

Collecting hand-tools can be a great hobby especially when one has a manufacturers brochure or a catalogue and the challenge is on to find the one elusive item advertised!

Many vintage hand-tools in the UK were made by UK companies rather than being imported from the US or Europe. So it is very easy to find UK engineered items at vintage auctions or even car-boot sales.
Secateurs

A selection of secateurs and cutting tools


Some of the most well known companies in the UK are Jalo (push hoes), Sheen of Nottingham (flame guns), Fisons, and Sisis (both making lawn fertiliser spreaders in the 1950’s & 60’s), There is quite a long list of manufacturers and a wide range of products they manufactured too.

Although there are many Uk manufacturers there are US manufacturers that imported their tools into the UK like the Planter Junior company . Their wooden-handled hoes were incredibly popular and sold in huge numbers from the 1930’s onwards. Some of their hoe models were available with a small plough and a seeder too. These are collectible, can be found quite easily and make a good exhibit.

Most hand-tools are items in their own right but some hand-tools can be attachments or additional to a much larger machine. For example the Wolseley Merry Tiller had attachments which could include a hedge trimmer and chainsaw – both of which worked via a flexi-shaft from the Merry Tillers petrol engine. Similar items were available for other makes too such as an electric-powered hedge-trimmer running from an Allen scythe and the range of implememts manufactured by the Tarpen company.

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