OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum Personal Histories ARTHUR E BISHOP - Driven By Ideas

Hello ODK members,

Arthur E Bishop (1917-2006) has been described as Australia's Leonardo da Vinci, an inventor
so prolific that he held more than 300 patents in 17 countries at the time of his death.
Do you know of him? I hadn't until a few old advertisements led me on a trail of intrigue and fascination.

In this series of posts I would like to gives readers a glimpse of the man, and then explore a
unique mower he invented in the 1950s. To my surprise, there was even a Victa connection!

Most Famous Invention:-
Drive.com.au placed one of Bishop's inventions within the Top Five of all Australian motoring inventions.
It sits alongside the Ute, the Race Cam, the Baby Safe Capsule and the Panel Van. What is it?

Why it's variable ratio steering, said to be fitted to a fifth of all the world's production cars.
See D*Hub and Powerhouse. For a copy of the US patent see US 3753378 A



AVIATION
A discussion of Arthur Bishop would never be complete without reference to his contribution to aviation.
He worked for the Department of Aircraft Production during World War II and developed landing gear steering
and 'shimmy' control of military aircraft.

Working on the manufacture of Beaufort bombers and Beaufighters he solved a serious problem:
too much vibration in steering on take-off (or on landing) was destroying aeroplane undercarriages.



POST WAR
After the War, Bishop and two associates formed a small company - LBL Products. 'LBL' stood for
the three owners - Harry Lever, Arthur Bishop and John Longhurst. Here they specialized in special purpose
machines for Australian industry. It was here that the LBL Master-Cut Mower was born.




p.s. Arthur Bishop went on to become principal of A. E. Bishop and Associates, Sydney, now the Bishop Technology Group.
But that's another story.

Resources:
Australian Broadcasting Corporation, TV PROGRAM TRANSCRIPT, LOCATION: http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2002/s469910.htm, Broadcast: 30/01/2002

Driven by Ideas: The Story of Arthur Bishop. Claire Brown. University of NSW Press, 2003.

Inventor Driven to Keep Finding a Better Way. July 12, 2006. http://www.smh.com.au/news/obituari...better-way/2006/07/11/1152383739541.html

PART TWO - THE LBL MOWER

Arthur Bishop's unique mower would have been a sideline to his main interests. He just couldn't stop
inventing. I only have two photographs of it, and they comes from the one page devoted to the mower
in his biography Arthur Bishop: Driven by Ideas (out of print) by Clare Brown. Here's the pictures:-



THE ADVERTISEMENTS:-
I have found only a few advertisements for the LBL mower. All come from the famous Sydney
Department Store of Knock & Kirby, and they date between 1948-1949.The biography indicates
that only 500 of the machines were made.




MOWER - DETAILS:-
The LBL Master-Cut was certainly different. The ad. says the mower was "engineered in a
modern aircraft manner, as a complete mower unit." The petrol engine was built by LBL - 100cc 2-stroke,
fan cooled, with a carburettor built in to the fuel tank!

When I had the ads. (but no photos) I could not work out how the rollers were attached. There was no side frame.
How it worked was made somewhat clearer when I discovered the photos (above). There were two rollers at the back
that were affixed to a central gearbox that coupled directly to the motor assembly. This had all-gear drive
to the rear axle! The magneto was external. This was an amazingly advanced mower.

Note how the reel is of a large diameter, thus enabling it to cut taller grass. Also, there appears to be
a quick release arrangement for reel removal for maintenance. The electric machine was a simpler design,
where the reel alone was powered. Only one size was offered for petrol & electric - 14 inches.

THE VICTA CONNECTION:-
I reproduce the one page from Bishop's biography that discusses this machine. It confirms that LBL
were responsible for the complete design. What I find extraordinary is the reference to Mervyn Richardson,
who used to call in at the factory at 451 Pacific Highway, Artarmon, to sell ball races. Note Richardson's advice!
What is startling is that Richardson had clear knowledge of the rotary scythe action.

An LBL Mower has been found.
Many thanks to Kye Turnbull's BS&S Facebook page for this.




[b][/b]

PART THREE - LBL Mower Patent
In 2018 I located the patent for Bishop's LBL lawnmower.

Two inventors are listed:
Arthur Earnest Joseph Bishop and Harold Derwent Lever.
The patent was lodged in March, 1947.
This is the 'B' and one of the 'L's' in LBL!