OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums The History Forum Company Histories MALVIN ENGINEERING Co. - Who Were They?

Hello ODK History Lovers

The Malvin Engineering Company of 74 Thistlethwaite Street, South Melbourne, made rotary
motor mowers from about 1956. I do not believe these machines made it to the 1960s.

I have no photographs or even illustrations of what they might have looked like.
I do not know of anyone that owns one or has heard of them. I only know of them from a few advertisements
without illustrations), a reference to the company in a late 1950s Mower Maintenance Guide, and a few
Villiers' advertisements from the late 1950s (see links below).

Evidence suggests that Malvin Engineering were manufacturing engineers whose main
claim to fame was as manufacturers of Mobile Swing Saws and Light Agricultural Machinery:-



Malvin Engineering must have been somewhat prosperous because it advertised for various job descriptions
in the Employment Section of the Melbourne Argus throughout the 1950s.

As examples:
they advertised for 'sober, ambitious' Process Workers at 13 pound per week; 'Fitters and other first-class tradesman'
at 25 pound per week; 'Experienced Die Casters' for 'Aluminium Gravity Die Casting Foundry' paying 'good wages';
Office Clerks for 'general office work' at a mysterious 'Flinders lane warehouse'; and 'A dependable lady
Bookkeeper Stenographer at 15 pounds per week.'

So, what was the Melvin lawnmower actually like?

TO BE CONTINUED ...

PART TWO - The Malvin Mower

The Malvin lawnmower was important enough to be listed in a late 1950s Villiers (Australia) advertisement.
They were one of the 22 company accounts that used Villiers engines in 1959:-



So, what do we know about them?

I do know that Malvin Engineering ran a non-ferrous foundry because of employment adverts.
I am guessing, then, that the Malvin mower had an alloy base. I know that in 1956 it was offered in
15 inch and 18 inch cutting widths, and that the 18" price was very close to a Victa 18" machine.

I do know that the Malvin was offered in a 'choice of engines' and that they advertised 'Most Features,'
and that they were the 'Safest to Use' in 1957. I don't know if that is true.

The final point is that all the records I have found point to direct sales from the factory.
It may be that Malvin sales lacked from having no distributors or agents:-

PART THREE - Discovery of a MALVIN

It was with much excitement that a Malvin lawnmower was discovered in late 2015.

Terry, from Scone, NSW, had read the ODK History Record for the Malvin, and came forward
with his machine. For the first time, we had a look at a Malvin, an early Australian rotary mower.
Its mower ID plate said it was number 007! "Good day, Mr Bond ..."



The particular machine was an 18 inch, and fitted with a Trojan TOR air-cooled 2-stroke.
It was in extremely good condition and looked like it had been stored for many decades
without use. Terry said he found this machine in an antique shop, whilst staying at the
family's holiday home, at the tourist town of Warburton, Victoria, about five years' ago.

Given the low serial number, Terry said to me that, "I think it may have been retained
by either an employee of the company or the owners of Malvin or immediate family as it
has definitely been looked after considering it's age and the abuse that most lawn
mowers get over time doing their job."

For me, when I saw the first photos, I realized this was an important machine to
vintage mower history. It was a clever design that totally ignored the Victa 'toe-cutter'
design that influenced many lawnmower manufacturers of the 1950s.



So where did Malvin Engineering get the idea from?

TO BE CONTINUED ...

PART FOUR - The 007 Malvin

The Malvin is an unusual looking machine for a mid-1950s Australian lawnmower.
The oddest feature, I guess, must be the double offset wheels. Clearly American
in inspiration but with a twist. Many American lawnmowers had one offset wheel
at the front to accommodate a front discharge chute. Both Tecnico and Whirlwind
in Australia, Masport in NZ, and British Qualcasts would use this design for
their first rotaries.

The double offset wheels on one side seem to be quite unique though.
I can only speculate that Malvin intended it to fit the end-mounted chute,
but also as an anti-scalping device on uneven ground. It does look odd though.



Also, the machine seems to be a double-ender, in that the handle can fold
over making the machine's front and back reversible. Whether that feature
was a useful one is probably questionable though, given that rotaries will
cut forward or reverse anyway, and it would be quicker, probably, to just
turn the mower around. In any case, that feature did appear on the Sunbeam
double rotor mains electrics from about 1960 (where it was a useful feature).

There is some evidence that this machine, though in spectacular condition,
is missing its air cowling and a separate muffler shield. There is a flywheel
mounted fan, two head studs with unused threads, and screw holes around the
muffler. An interesting feature is the recessed engine, making it sit lower
in the cast base. This is a machine that would have looked spectacular on
the showroom floor.




Height adjustment is, as expected, primitive, with single point adjusters
on each wheel, requiring tools. There is no reason to suggest the blade
holder is not original, though the fluted and stepped swing-back blades
appear to be replacements from a later mower (possibly Supa-swift). There
is a large safety gap between the blade tips and the base at one end.




TO BE CONTINUED ...

PART FIVE - SIGNIFICANCE

The Malvin was an early Australian rotary mower, from the 'Golden Age' of early
rotaries, where small companies could 'have a go' at building and selling mowers.
Within a decade that would all change. Australian lawnmowers became the province
of just a handful of big players, who had the capital to make a range of lawnmowers.

As best as we know, Malvin produced just 2 sizes of the one model, but offered a
choice of engines. The company was a small one, specializing in mobile saws. Their
lawnmowers seem to have been manufactured from the mid-fifties, but probably didn't
see life beyond just a couple of seasons. By the late 1950s, lawnmower designs -
and expectations - were moving too rapidly for the small manufacturers.

The Malvin is clearly rare and highly collectible. The rewarding thing, for me,
is that Terry's Malvin finally gave this lawnmower an identity.

The rest is history.
----------------------------------------------
Jack

Malvin is listed as a manufacturer on page 24 of a late 1950s Maintenance Guide HERE.
Malvin is listed in a couple of Villiers Australia advertisements HERE.
Malvin was inspired by the Rotoscythe County HERE.

Another Malvin Model - the Mi-T-Mow: -
https://www.outdoorking-forum.com.au/forum/u...3/malvin-engineering-mi-t-mow-c1957.html



We have scarce information on the Malvin lawnmower.
If you have information, we invite you to comment in the Old Soap Box.
Simply create a new topic HERE.

The rest is history.
---------------------------------
Jack