OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Collectors Corner Photos of Collections Rockhampton Historical Village

Collection of mowers at the Rockhampton historical village (QLD)
Ian

Hello Ian and ODK members,

"Swearword" - that's a treat to be sure!

Top Photo highlights:
- First model Pope Rotary - super rare.
- Qualcast Rotary - very similar to Frankenturner.
- Machine at right (behind Qualcast rotary). This is, I think a
Cambridge or Hibiscus rotary - rare.
- Machine at back (Red engine, yellow base)this could be
a first model Turner with GEB Kirby 4-stroke; or an elusive
Carter with Kirby 2-stroke (Ironhorse)

Middle Photo highlights:
- Southern Cross (had to say that)
- Mercury electric (blue)(rare)
- gear Ransomes Automaton (broken roller)(super-rare)
- first model Sunbeam electric (red)
- orgy of Ogdens (power and Model B)

Bottom Photo highlights:
- 2 early Grasshoppers (rare)
- a super-rare Pace Rollermower (super-rare)
- a wagon wheel (non-chocolate)

It is typical that these machines are not given TLC.
At least, they've survived.

If only we had a National Mower Museum...
Thanks for sharing these on ODK.

All very salivating.
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JACK

I know this post is an old one, but the Pace Rollermower caught my eye. As I am writing about Pace on my Facebook page, and love Pace mowers, I was wondering what information we have on it.

I have seen some more stuff about it on these forums, but not much.

Rockhampton


Below


Is it actually called the Pace Forward?


An awesome looking mower for sure!

Thanks For Reading!
Kye.

Look at the layer of rubbish on top of them, someone thought " I will give my RARE mowers to the museum, they will look after them when I'm gone"

For sure Paul! As Jack has said before it would be great to see a museum run by mower restorers just for vintage mowers and vintage stationary engines.

I think Victa knew the Pace Forward was a bad idea, I could only find 1 advertisement with it and it didn't mention the name, it just had a picture of it.

Hi Kye

These are obviously super-rare because they never sold.
It was a bold experiment - to see whether Aussies would take to
rotaries with rollers.

The only market where these designs were - and still are - successful
is the UK. I feel the reasons for success in that market are historical.
They loved their lawn stripes, but they wanted the rotary to match
their lifestyle. Masport tried here too, but failed - yet today, they
still offer them in the UK. Mountfield still make a range too.

http://www.mountfieldlawnmowers.co.uk/products/lawnmowers/petrol-roller-lawnmowers
http://www.masport.com/category/outdoor-garden-products/lawnmowers-1/P12

I wish we had better pictures of one.

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Jack

G'day Folks,

Paul, I suggest it was more a conversation the kids had when sorting out the estate after Dad had died, "what will we do with all dad's silly mowers? I know give them to the meusem."

I guess we have to give them marks for not taking them to the tip as so may would.

Alright, my new target mower is the Pace Forward, and the Victa Automatic, I think we all want that.

Hi Kye

Not me. My personal opinion is the Automatic is the most over-rated
of all Australian vintage collectibles.

The Pace Forward was one of the last 'true' Paces made before being
axed by Victa. It may be that the Forward was made with the UK export
market in mind. We will never know ...

A Pace Forward would be an exciting find.

Quick smart. That's Pace.
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Jack

Sorry Kye I'm with Jack. Not really interested in the Victa Automatic. If I scored one I reckon I'd play with it for a day then be more than happy to cash it in. I'd prefer to use the money to extend my garage or rebuild my tractor.

As much as I, along with many of you would be more than happy to visit a mower museum we are in the minority. I reckon the only chance we have is a display building at a museum that people are going to such as a car or truck museum. Something well kept where you can get to arms each from them for a good look.

I reckon we are in with a chance of a great mower museum, word on the street is somewhere up north there's a young bloke already piecing one together.

Ok I'll bite, what is it with these Victa Automatics, what is special about them and why do they seem so sought after?

From my understanding they were supposed the be the best thing since sliced bread. It would raise the revs when cutting long grass. The only problem was it was an over complicated system that never worked very well and had a large price tag so didn't have a long production life. Therefore, an early rare victa makes it sought after and astonishingly over priced.

Yes Norm Slash and Jack! I also agree with you guys! an ugly mower, it looks like someone glued some metal things to the front and back of a Victa Special haha, but when you can get $5000 for a toe cutter why wouldn't you want one! If it wasn't for the price I wouldn't care about them at all.

In my opinion I think the first mowers by the big brands of the 60s, like Victa, Pace, Turner and Pope lawn mowers should be the most, they marked the start of something big. Brace for the Victa collectors to attack!

Talking about the first mowers, how much do you guys think the first Victa 14" would be worth? or how much do you think some Victa lover would be willing to spend.

For now I think I will keep hunting for my 1955 Pace.


Thanks For Reading!
Kye.

It's a unicorn Kye. Enjoy the chase. If anyone around here is going to cross paths with the 55 Pace I reckon the safe money is on you.
Each to his own I reckon. I really don't see how an old mower can be worth so much but if I was able to acquire one, I'd be more than happy to collect the $5000.

Haha thanks Slash, I am going hunting tomorrow for some mowers, hopefully I will come home with something good.

Also as you were saying before about the mower museum, I would love to start something like that up in the future. It would be in the very far future but perhaps by the time I am 40 or 50 i will have enough mowers to start something half decent haha. For now the Facebook page is enough for me.

If an Auto is worth $5000, and most of the mowers I buy are under $50, then I could get about 100 vintage mowers!

Thanks For Reading!
Kye.

Probably 50 vintage mowers and you'd have to build your own shed to put (display) them in.
I scratch my head sometimes Kye at your ability to turn up something special [Censored] near every weekend. You must live in a corner where everyone keeps their old goodies and just puts them in a shed?

G'day all -
For me, it is heartening to hear these things.

That is a clever and provocative question Norm; because it reveals no single answer.

I have argued here that the most collectible mowers are those that have a story to tell.
In fact, the rarest mowers attract little value - because the story is lacking...

The Automatic is collectible because it has a big story to tell - including a story
about how the story itself is surrounded in mystery. The best analogy I have is the
similar story of the Ford Edsel. It just didn't work ... and now highly
collectible because it didn't work!

http://www.businessinsider.com.au/lessons-from-the-failure-of-the-ford-edsel-2015-9


That has never been tested in modern times Kye. Anecdotal evidence suggests that a
few dozen were made between 1951 and 1952. We know one survives. Formerly acquired
by Victa, it was donated to the Powerhouse Museum, rarely to be seen again.

Wealthy collectors would pay thousands for one. I would be happy to just have
a photo record of one. We have a couple of photos - that's it!

For me, the biggest loss is the lack of pre-WWII Lawnmowers that survive.
This includes imported and AUS made.

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Jack

slash we are already planning an area to keep my mowers, probably a shipping container. To find stuff every weekend I just look, we usually have to drive for an hour or more but the results are great. Sometimes we will do 2 swap meets a market and a garage sale in one day.

Jack I think that Edsel looks great! except for the grill, i'm not a fan of that. I really do like the Edsel Corsair 2-door hardtop.

It is sad that the rarest mowers aren't worth much at all, it would be good to see things like the Clyde Minor and Major, the Collect-o-Matic and some of the even rarer ones like the Platypus and the Rawco go for much more.

I really need to learn more about the early Australian reel and cylinder mowers, I see them all the time but I do not know the rare ones.

Thanks For Reading!
Kye.

Dedication pays dividends mate.
I've been curious for a while though, what do your mates at school think? There can't be too many mates at school that want to talk old mowers?