OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum Model Histories AUSTRALIAN Power Reel Models BERRIGAN GANG MOWERS - c1933

Hello ODK members and history lovers

These gang mowers were manufactured by the Berrigan Fairway Mowers Company from about 1933 and may
have sold into the 1940s. Their advertised address was Box 134, Berrigan.

Berrigan is a small town in the Riverina region of NSW. The Wikipedia entry says,
"Once a thriving town with four pubs and the golf club, it has since been reduced to two pubs and the club."
Its population in the 2011 Census was 922. I don't know what its size was in the 1930s, but it would have
been no metropolis.

Here is a typical advertisement:-



THE QUALCAST CONNECTION

It is remarkable that a small-town manufacturer in regional NSW got involved with Qualcast (Australia) to
produce gang mowers. One wonders what that level of involvement was ...

The first observation I make is that these gang units must have been incredibly small.
I estimate that a single unit could not have had more than about a 16 inches cut.
That is significant because Qualcast's largest production reel would have been that width.
They were powered by a single horse.

It may be that Qualcast supplied reels, bottom blocks and associated transmission parts from their
stocks and the Berrigan company made associated frame-ware and components to assemble gang mower units.
It appears that they were made in three, five, and seven unit configurations.

Their biggest selling advantage ... price.
The rest is history.
-------------------------------------------
JACK.

UPDATE

Below is a reply I received from the Berrigan and District Heritage Museum.
It confirms Edwin Burwood as the maker of the Berrigan Fairway mowers.

"Edwin Burwood was an energetic member of the Berrigan community and owned a carriage works, a photo
of which is in I.Fuzzard's book; "Berrigan Today and Yesterday" which dates his business at least from
1914. This business eventually became a garage and was carried on by his son, John until it closed
about 3 years ago and was demolished.

Edwin was a shire councillor of the Berrigan Shire 1917-1925 and 1931-1937, being President in 1921 and 1933.

The mower was made up from three Qualcast mowers which were available commercially.
He bought them then designed and made up a frame to run them together in a "gang" which was pulled by a horse.
This was in 1933. Later it was pulled by a small tractor. It was in use for many years.
We do not have any photos of it, and do not know whether he made any more than the one used on the golf course.
There are several members of our museum committee who remember it."

Marnie Steer
Secretary, Berrigan and District Heritage Museum.