OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum Model Histories UK & EUROPEAN Power Reel Models RANSOMES - Overgreen - c1937

Hello ODK history lovers
The British Ransomes Overgreen was a professional triple-unit greens
mower introduced in about 1937. The idea of a large golf greens mower,
was then quite novel.

At this time – the 1930s – the vast majority of golf greens were cut by
human-powered ‘hand-mowers’. It would have been a progressive
decision for clubs to convert to powered mowers, whether they be
single or gang styles.

Note that the Overgreen was a pedestrian self-propelled two-wheel
tractor, but the mower units were traditional, but superlative friction-
drive Ransomes Certes golf green hand mowers.

I can’t say the Overgreen was an instant success. But for the clubs
that could afford it – the big ones – the Overgreen had a clear advantage …

One person could mow “18 average greens in less than a day.”
These were the early days of the ‘professionalism of the golf course’.


SOURCE: Ransomes 1789-1989 200 Years of Excellence

Gang mowers were harnessed to mow large areas of ground and their
role in mowing grass airfields should not be underestimated. The story
of the Overgreen is an important one, in that it represents the changing
face of labour and how labour should be distributed.


SOURCE: Old Lawnmowers by David Halford, 1982.

Credit needs to be acknowledged where credit is due.
The next part discusses the inspiration for the Ransomes Overgreen.
That inspiration came from … North America!

TO BE CONTINUED…

PART TWO – Worthington Mower Company, USA
For the record, the Ransomes Overgreen was a copy of an idea, not a machine.

The idea of a triplex greens mower was not new to Ransomes at this time.
Ransomes was clearly influenced by the North Americans in their mower
designs from the late 19th Century and the 20th Century. In the 21st
Century there has been a convergence and amalgamation.

The first Ransomes Side-wheel Push Mowers and Gang Mowers were
clearly inspired by these North American inventions at this time.

The most noteworthy being the Worthington Mower Company of
Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. To my knowledge, Worthington invented
the idea of the ‘gang mower’.

It was no secret that Ransomes used Worthington patents for their
first gang mowers. The Overgreen was a sub-species …

Worthington made the application of the gang concept to golf greens
mowers in about 1929. Below are the Worthington Overgreen tractor
trailing side-wheel and roller-reel mowers …


1928 Worthington Overgreen with Indian Motorcycle engine.


1932 Worthington Overgreen with Harley Davidson engine.

There is a great Wiki record here: -


Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worthington_Mower_Company

A concise summary of the Worthington Mower Company was made
available in the Monroe County Historical Society Newsletter of Sept/Oct
1999. This was reproduced in Gas Engine Magazine: - [see attached]




There is a sort of irony in the Overgreen story.
The then UK’s Ransomes’ development of the gang mower
was clearly influenced by developments of the lawnmower
in North America.

It is quaint that Ransomes was influenced by Worthington;
given that Worthington would be then acquired by North
America’s Jacobsen in 1945. You get the idea …

it is a greater irony that the UK’s Ransomes would join with the
USA’s Jacobsen in the modern age to form Ransomes-Jacobsen.
The history cycle was complete.

TO BE CONTINUED …

PART THREE – The Ransomes Overgreen Remembered
I have found four important records for the Ransomes Overgreen.
There does seem to be disagreement with respect to the release of this Ransomes.
I have dated it from Ransomes’ Bicentennial book to 1937.

[1] The starting point comes from the great Old Lawnmower Club record
for the Ransomes Overgreen, MP022.


SOURCE: https://www.oldlawnmowerclub.co.uk/mowers/moms/mp022-ransomes-overgreen

[2] The best summary of the history of the triple greens mower
I have found comes from Roger Evans, writing for Turfgrass Bulletin,
Issue 196 [view as attachment below].



[3] An interesting story of the Overgreen is found in
Greenkeeper International of January, 2000.
It’s a great memoir of a very special Overgreen [see attached].



[4] A strange part-swap occurred between an Overgreen
and a modern Jacobsen greens mower, as told in
Pitchcare Magazine in 2011 [see attached].

PART FOUR – Manuals
I have a parts list for Overgreen Marks 3, 4, and 5.
I regret that I do not have other manuals.

I do have a copy of a 1938 Ransomes Catalogue page for the Overgreen.
It certainly proves that the Overgreen was an inter-war design,
and my best guess is that this was a Mark 1 or Mark 2 design...



I date my Parts list to the immediate post-war years …
the late 1940s and then 1950s. These years covered Marks 3,
4, and 5. Note the change to using the Sturmey-Archer engine.

This parts list is in average condition and from my collection.
I make it available for member viewing or as a high-resolution download.

.