I do believe this is the first time anyone has seen the illustration accompanying the patent application. Thank you, again, bestseller for presenting this exciting information. I have now downloaded the patent, thanks to your work.
What the application confirms is that Mervyn Richardson was the 'Actual Inventor'. What this does not show, of course, is whether Mervyn claimed this as a proprietary right over engineers who were Victa employees ...
Nonetheless, it does show Mervyn had a 'hands-on' approach. What it does establish - for me - is that he wasn't a great engineer, or that his engineering employees were more persuasive than competent ...
The important September 1957 memo is really peripheral - a production or 'quality control' issue. The real failure of the Predicta was, in my view, a overly complicated, overly mechanical, over-engineered, slow mechanism for governing engine speed.
It may be that Mervyn wanted to match the impending fully-governed Villiers 7f design (released late 1957). That superb engine showed the true direction rotary lawnmower engine design should take: an internal mechanical, or external mechanical air-vane, or pneumatic vacuum system. A long-winded mechanism of levers, cables, and a slide carby was just ... ridiculous. [I'll put the kettle on love, shall I?]
The Ford Edsel - the running joke in automobile land - was rejected primarily because of its styling. The Victa Automatic was rejected by the punters (and Victa itself!) because it just didn't work reliably and predictably (pun intended) in the field.
I guess this is why the Victa Automatic is revered by some collectors, and now commands unwarranted and commodified prices. It intrigues because of its complexity and its rarity, and the story it tells. I love this mower!
It would take Victa a decade to even begin to get it right.
The rest is history. ------------------------ Jack
Last edited by CyberJack; 29/12/1508:49 AM. Reason: Added thoughts.
