OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum Model Histories VICTA Models THE FIRST VICTA - 14 Inch Reel Mower

This post first appeared in 2013.
Here is an expanded article [now in the History Forum], that explores in-depth
this amazing - and enigmatic - little Victaw 14" reel lawnmower.

Administrator Deejay introduced the 2013 post this way:-

Hi to All,
I have been doing some research on early Victa history and have come across some information
that is very interesting; especially as my interests lay mainly with cylinder mowers.

It is common knowledge that Mervyn Victor Richardson tinkered with the rotary design of
lawnmower in the very early 50's and produced the "Peach Tin" as the prototype.
However...

An advertisement appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald dated the 1st March 1952 which reads:
"Victa 14" Mowers 1HP Villiers, Easy to use. 75 pounds 7 shilling and six pence.
Terms. VICTA MOWERS UF3093 Open all Saturday."

The exciting part is that it is not the "Billy Cart" Rotomo which was not advertised for sale
until September 1952, was an 18" rotary mower and sold for 39 pounds pus tax of 4 pounds
15 shillings and 6 pence. In fact, the official release date of the Rotomo was the 20th September 1952.

The first Victa advertised for sale in the SMH on the 1st March 1952 was in fact a cylinder mower!
It had a 1 HP Villiers motor. Notice the cast Victa badge with the 14 in the middle of the 'C'

Here's a pic...

This has interested me for years.
I, too, am no closer to identifying the mysterious origins of the Victa 14" Reel Mower.

I have collected what I believe to be all the Victa 14" advertisements from
the Sydney Morning Herald. Mervyn advertised these little machines not infrequently.

Surprisingly, the earliest ad. dates to 17 March, 1951!
Richardson advertised about a dozen times that year for this machine.

In 1952 the advertising became more frequent and the price varied greatly,
from 57 pound up to 75 pound. I have only ever found one illustrated advertisement,
and it comes from March of 1952:-



Richardson continued to advertise these machines up to March of 1953,
with ads.for the 14" and his Rotomo appearing on the same page (but not together).

In the next post I will detail the advertising chronology.

ADVERTISING CHRONOLOGY

The devil is in the detail.

Here are typical advertisements for the 14" reel. Mervyn Richardson advertised in the classified
during the summer months. Note that the last sample ad. is from October 1952, after the
release of the Rotomo, and both machines are advertised together (almost).



Here is my advertising chronology table. A total of 48 advertisements are recorded.
The volume does suggest that Mervyn Richardson was committed to this machine.

THE ORIGINS of the 14" VICTA REEL MOWER

It is totally enigmatic - and so important to vintage mower history.
The Powerhouse Museum holds the Richardson archive (donated by family) and it
references that about sixty of these machines were made. The Museum's
summary records that these were made between 1948 and 1952.

I don't think that is right. There is evidence that Richardson did 'tinker',
and I do have some good evidence that he converted a push mower to petrol power at
some point.

I speculate that Richardson did not develop the 14 inch till late 1950, with advertisements
appearing in early 1951, some two years before the first Victa rotary.

The most curious thing I have discovered is that, just before the first 14" advertisement,
Richardson advertised for sale a most interesting machine:-



On 24 February, 1951, Richardson was selling a Second-hand Qualcast 16" in 'good order'.
On the 14 April, 1951, Richardson is seeking a more sophisticated lathe:-



The Qualcast 16" machine was a pre-WWII design that was very popular. Both Australian-made
and fully imported machines were sold here from the 1930s to the 1950s.
What was Mervyn doing with one of these?:-



TO BE CONTINUED...

A THESIS - VICTA 14" REEL

This is open to speculation - why he had this larger machine.
Was it a trade-in? I don't know, but I do know that the first ad.
I have for the 14" Victa (17 March, 1951) boasts "new features",
others, "many improvements". This is typical for the 1951-52 advertisements.

The second ad. - for the Hercus lathe - indicates that Mervyn remained
serious about lawnmower throughout 1951.

THESIS:
The common story is that Richardson built his 14" - the First Victa - from
imported components. I have never found a UK machine that looked similar to
the Victa though.

I now believe that there isn't one. Richardson was an Engineering Supplies
salesman and he would have visited - no doubt - all the manufacturers
in the Parramatta district. He had contacts and, no doubt, friends.

However, there are some design details similar to the Qualcast.
Here is a closer shot of the Victa.



Of note is that this machine has alloy side-frames, and the distinctive Victa badge appears
both on the splash plate at the front, and the alloy chain case.

Of particular note are the bearing housings for the reel. This is a design where
the reel is mounted on bearings in housings that form part of the side frame. Adjustments
to the set would have been achieved by moving the bottom block closer to the reel.
This less-common system was, I think, used on the Qualcast 16".

IMPORTING COMPONENTS
I believe the story of importing components is also true, but I think
this may have only been the cutting cylinder, bottom blade and maybe, the roller.
Maybe they came from Qualcast . . . Who knows? The engine - clearly British - is the 98cc
Midget that would be famously tipped to become Victa's first rotary engine, with a
few little modifications to the manifold, etc.

The 'look' of the 14" Victa could be all Richardson's work.
The distinctive side frames and chain guard (alloy) could have been cast locally,
as well as local procurement of sprockets, chains, bearings, shafting, etc.

The machining and fabrication of handle, brackets, tank, etc. could all have
been carried out by Mervyn in his garage.

RICHARDSON'S SKILLS
I might also note that the Archive indicates that Richardson had been apprenticed as a:

"jeweller and signwriter. Between 1914 and 1916 Mervyn, with the assistance of
brother Archibald, designed and build a monoplane, for which they designed a
radial engine with contra-rotating propellers."

This was a man with considerable engineering knowledge and experience.
I speculate that in late '51, or early '52, Richardson realized that he
was never going to make a fortune out of reel mowers - the competition was enormous!

...And electric rotary lawnmowers were becoming very popular.
Richardson would have been very familiar with rotary mowers of course: tens of
thousands had been sold from 1948 - they were in every hardware, appliance
hardware and department store! They were Australian made, or imported.

The downside was: they were . . . electric. It may be that then the penny dropped.
He did see that heavy Laurence Hall mower in 1948. And he had a few spare
engines he could turn on their side and . . .

The rest is history.
-------------------------------------
JACK

SIGNIFICANCE - VICTA 14" REEL:

The 14" has largely been forgotten to history.
The frequency of advertising suggests that Mervyn Richardson was well-and-truly
selling lawnmowers for a couple of years prior to his first Rotomo.

This fact also impacts on the significance of Lawrence Hall's 1948 Mohall in
influencing Richardson (so the story goes). But that's another story.

Here is the only other photograph I have of the little Victa 14".
It's a factory shot from the 1970s. The machine is clearly the same one as depicted above.

THE VICTA IMPERIAL



This story is far from complete, and has a speculative component.
If you have important information that could improve this historical record
then we invited you to comment by creating a new topic HERE.
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ODK HISTORY FORUM