No 293   (Toowoomba Foundry)

Owner  John Hinde , Gladstone

Owner  John Hinde , Gladstone

John Probably got the ‘bug’ for hit-and-miss engines after seeing them at the calliope Historical Village. The ‘bug’ led him to this two-inch pump unit that had spent its working life at  Terrors creek pumping about 110 gallons an hour 300ft up a hill to the Dairy at Dayborough.

The property that the dairy was located on was sold in the mid-seventies, And John’s father ended up with about 200 acres of it. The original owner’s son inherited the portion of land where the creamery and a couple of sheds were located.

Information filtered down to John that most of the machinery from the original property was still located inside the creamery, and John was unable to resist contacting the new owner. A meeting was arranged just after Christmas day 1995.

As it happens, the new owner was  “A bit into old engines” and had intended to get the old pump working again, but being a busy fellow, he had never quite found the time.  A bit of negotiation followed, and the result was that John swapped an old marine engine for the pump unit and whatever parts there were, some bits off a  Chapman Pup boat engine and two milk crates of additional parts were thrown in.

Later investigation revealed that most of the engine was there, giving the impression that the engine had been dismantled for general maintenance and had never found its way back together. There was no magneto and no valves for the pump, but there was a new set of guides.

Upon reflection, John feels the original property owner got the better deal.

John stored his newly acquired goodies in his Father-in-law’s shed, where they became “invisible” melding amongst everything else that was stored there until Christmas 1996, when John retrieved his prize and brought it to Gladstone. After a bit of effort, the engine was freed up and rebuilt. New pump valves were made and eventually, the unit was pumping again.

With the aid of John’s son Tim the colour scheme of grey for the engine, green for the pump and yellow for the side rods was chosen. John admits that these are not Southern Cross Colours ‘But it looks quite good”.  The other variation is a standard petrol carburettor, replacing the old Kerosene one.

John runs it on display days on super with 25% Kerosene

Knowing the history of these engines is always a bonus and adds interest to any stationary engine  I suspect if you have a photograph of the Dairy at Dayboro in its heyday, John would not say no to a copy.

Owned by  Keith Parsloe, Gladstone

1940 (aprox) 

5 HP Lister Petrol Motor, 

Engine no 358 No B2

RPM  650

This motor was used in the late 40s to drive a sheep spraying outfit near Cloncurry Qld.  Keith, Began the restoration in 1994 after he had soaked the engine in a drum of Kerosene for three months; this photo was taken during one of our engine running/ Display days.

Gladstone Vintage  & Classic Car  Club  Inc

No 293 (Toowoomba Foundry) Owner John Hinde , Gladstone

John Probably got the ‘bug’ for hit-and-miss engines after seeing them at the calliope Historical Village. The ‘bug’ led him to this two-inch pump unit that had spent its working life at Terrors creek pumping about 110 gallons an hour 300 ft up a hill to the Dairy at Dayborough.

The property on which the dairy was located was sold in the mid-seventies, And John’s father ended up with about 200 acres of it. The original owner’s son inherited the portion of land where the creamery and a couple of sheds were located.

Information filtered down to John that most of the machinery from the original property was still located inside the creamery. John could not resist contacting the new owner, and a meeting was arranged just after Christmas day 1995.

As it happens, the new owner was “A bit into old engines” and had intended to get the old pump working again, but being a busy fellow, he had never quite found the time. A bit of negotiation followed, and the result was that John swapped an old marine engine for the pump unit and whatever parts there were, some bits off a Chapman Pup boat engine and two milk crates of additional parts were thrown in.

Later investigation revealed that most of the engine was there, giving the impression that the engine had been dismantled for general maintenance and had never found its way back together. There was no magneto, and there were no valves for the pump but there was a new set of guides.

Upon reflection John feels the original property owner got the better deal.

John stored his newly acquired goodies in his Fathers-in-law’s shed, where they became “invisible”, melding amongst everything else that was stored there until Christmas 1996 when John retrieved his prize and brought it to Gladstone. After a bit of effort, the engine was freed up and rebuilt. New pump valves were made, and eventually, the unit was pumping again.

With the aid of Johns’s son Tim the colour scheme of grey for the engine, green for the pump and yellow for the side rods was chosen. John admits that these are not Southern Cross Colours ‘But it looks quite good”. The other variation is a standard petrol carburettor, replacing the old Kerosene one.

John runs it on display days on super with 25% Kerosene

Knowing the history of these engines is always a bonus and adds interest to any stationary engine. I suspect if you have a photograph of the Dairy at Dayboro in its heyday, John would not say no to a copy.

No. 2502

It is difficult to imagine how much work has gone into restoring these engines, the photo above shows a load of parts arriving from somewhere; I can only presume they are for the above engine. Ronaldson Brothers and Tippett is known for creating innovative and technologically amazing engines such as the Type N and the Type CF Vertical. But while the likes of Type N marked the company for greatness, there is one particular engine that perhaps helped start the engineering revolution the company has paved the way for. This is the Ronaldson and Tippett Austral kerosene engine. The Austral engine is actually a label given to earlier Ronaldson and Tippett engines. Some Austral engines are actually Type N engines. This is not surprising. As one of the major manufacturers of engines at that time, Ronaldson-Tippett sold these engines to other companies for their own use, giving it different names for individual distinction. The earlier Type N models were called the Austral, a kerosene engine with the trademark characteristics of the usual Ronaldson and Tippett engines. For one, these Austral engines are rugged–something that even the later Type Ns have. Of course, they’re also reliable, strong, and versatile. Unsurprisingly, many people are dying to have a Ronaldson and Tippett Austral kerosene engine. After all, it’s part of the amazing history of Ronaldson and Tippett and, in turn, of the engineering history.

Three horsepower 900 rpm

The Cooper Type XC Sheering Stand was created by the C and G Cooper Company–currently known as the Cooper Industries. Founded in 1833, it is perhaps one of the few engineering pioneers that exist today. Of course, the company has changed drastically. During its foundation, it had a horse-powered foundry–ironic, considering how it invented some of the most impressive engines in history in the 20th century. The Cooper Type XC Sheering Stand, a three horsepower, 900 rpm engine, is one of these 20th-century creations, and it stands out even until today due to its power (a 900 rpm engine can be considered excellent at that point, especially when you compare it to the less technically powerful ones in the market).

In any case, the Cooper Type XC Sheering Stand is perhaps also a good sign to look at when considering the range of products C & G Cooper Company has delved into. They went into the hand tool business and even aircraft maintenance. Today, the parent company has several divisions: Cooper Tools, Cooper Lighting, and Cooper Wiring Devices, among many others. And while the company isn’t directly involved in engineering and producing state-of-the-art engines, this business superiority has proven Cooper Industries a worthy part of engineering history.   

Paul Wilson ‘ Ballincrea’   Stationary Engines

Type CF Vertical Diesel Engines 4 hp 600rpm

The Ronaldson Tippett Type CF Vertical is a four-horsepower, 600 rpm engine that looks pretty much how its name describes it–vertical and imposing. This makes it a famous collector’s item for steam engine enthusiasts. But what makes this engine unique is the story behind its manufacturer–the Ronaldson Brothers and Tippett.

Ronaldson Brothers and Tippett was an Australian company that created everything concerned with engineering and construction–from cast iron to engines. This made them one of the known pioneers in the field. The Ronaldson-Tippett Type CF Vertical is easily one of their most renowned engines since it was available in various variations (different horsepower, different models–kerosene and petrol–and different accessories. Today, these do not seem like notable accomplishments. However, back then, these were considered engineering innovations.

The Ronaldson Brothers and Tippett company created more engines as the years passed, such as their famous Type N and the initial Austral engines. Of course, each of these engines has its unique characteristics and capacity. For enthusiasts, the Ronaldson Tippett Type CF Vertical is special because of its unusual yet appealing superior aesthetics, as if it was an engine explicitly made for the visual medium more than anything else.  

Paul Wilson ‘ Ballincrea’   Stationary Engines

  Shuttleworth Stationary Steam Engine F-898

Eight hp Single Cylinder

The Clayton and Shuttleworth 1893 Steam Engine is easily one of the more iconic engines created by Lincolnshire, England’s esteemed and almost historical engineering company. Even since they produced their first steam engine back in 1845, they became a significant manufacturer of similar machines in the country (the threshing machine, which they first built during the later 1840s, was another one of their iconic products). From then until the late 1930s, Clayton and Shuttleworth was a world-renowned company that even exported their products to countries such as Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. The Clayton and Shuttleworth 1893 Steam Engine was probably the last steam engine the company produced–making it a fantastic collector’s item and a valuable treasure in the world of engineering. The 1893 model is an eight-horsepower, single-cylinder steam engine, easily one of the strongest during that time.

The Clayton and Shuttleworth company also manufactured tractors from the early 1900s until its end during the 1930s. They also made oil engines, a crawler tractor powered by the gas-kerosene engine, and parts for various aircraft. Sadly, the company died during the Great Depression. Of course, the company’s legacy remains until today–and the engineering wonder that is the Clayton and Shuttleworth 1893 Steam Engine is one of their legacies.

McDonald Type CD 4 1/2 hp – 6″stroke no. 3655 The A.H. McDonald Imperial Super Diesel is one of the portable steam engines created by a certain Alfred Henry McDonald–hence the name. His father was a baker and wanted Alfred to become his baking apprentice. However, his real calling was in science and engineering, so he worked with a scientific instrument maker in Melbourne named Henri Galopin. After his four-year work with the esteemed Henri, he worked for an electrical engineering company. All these became the foundation of A.H. McDonald & Company, and his job experiences helped him create generator sets and petrol engines. But it was in 1918 when Alfred first created the so-called “Super Diesel,” a horizontal engine popularly used for road rollers and other stationary machines. Later on, his company imported tractors from the United States and Sweden to create the A.H. McDonald Imperial tractors powered by the iconic Imperial Super Diesel engines. Unlike other companies, Alfred Henry McDonald’s engineering group started late in the game, during an age when technology was shifting towards electrical innovations. But A.H. McDonald & Co. managed to penetrate a market with its tractors and engines through various innovations and engineering wonders. This made the Imperial Super Diesel an amazing engineering creation and Alfred Henry McDonald a pioneer in his field.