Here is a quick post of a 400/Monarch supplied by Corts Ltd of Leicester that we worked on a few weeks ago.
http://www.francisfrith.com/uk/leicester/corts-ltd-of-cheapside_memory-403581
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These six handsome pneumatic 'Invicibles' manufactured/sold by N.F. Ramsay & Brother are from the Winson Green SDA Church, Handsworth, Birmingham. The Church was built in 1904 and is well attended and enjoyed by the local community. N.F. Ramsay & Brother parted company on the 31st of December 1906 (Two years after these floor springs were put in the ground) but continued on as N.F. Ramsay & Co Ltd thereafter. https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/28001/page/1608/data.pdf The 'Invincibles' were in need of some major work, 4 were so badly seized the mechanism that aligns the doors, set in the shoes had bent, fortunately however not beyond repair.      The guide pin for the piston, set in the cover had been worn/rusted away to almost nothing.    The piston seals were beyond repair so we manufactured new ones....after a little experimentation.            The six doors are now opening smoothly, centering, gently closing and checking with a reassuring phhesssstt! MFS would like to thank Eddie for is hospitality and taking us to an outlet that makes and sells the best curry in Birmingham.
Please feel free to leave any comments readers, they are much appreciated. As mentioned in the previous blog post Smith and Turner were not the first to manufacture a door spring with the word ACME associated with it. In The Journal of Domestic Appliances and Sewing Machine Gazette of 1887 you will find an advert from John Tester of London, advertising as the agent for the new patent Pickering, Son & Norton's ACME Door Check and Spring. https://archive.org/stream/journaldomes151887lond#page/n15/mode/2up/search/pickering+and+norton+acme In the National Archives you can also find reference to a letter from Samuel Pickering to James and Francis Hindle re. a request for a patent of goods (Acme Door Check and Spring) dated 1887. http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/rd/08e63fb9-441c-47b5-a987-6e51f5fc6d93 Unfortunately I have only the main brass cover plate to show you (I presume the ACME had a second cover for the pin area), bought from Ebay a while ago. This is so far the only floor spring I have come across that has this split brass cover arrangement.   If anyone has any further information they would like to share about Pickering and Norton's ACME I would be very interested to hear from them.
Comyn Ching in their No 65 catalogue advertised these next floor springs as model no C8509 (Single action) and C8510 (Double action), they were however manufactured by Smith & Turner as in previous blog entries. In 1961 Smith & Turner were still in business and advertising their single (No 100) and double action (No 200) floor springs for sale through Merchants and Ironmongers only, these floor springs were also known more commonly as The Acme. However Smith & Turner were not the first to use the word ACME as a name for a floor spring as you will see in the next blog post.   Above is a refurbished double action ACME.  Refurbished single action ACME.  NOS double action ACME.  And the ACME with the Newman spindle.
MFS is pleased to announce we now have bespoke spring sets available for the following and/or similar: SMITHS PATENT CARTLAND'S ADJUSTABLE COMYN CHING Model C2142 ROBERT ADAMS Pattern No.177 PARKER WINDER & ACHURCH 'LEO' ARCHIBALD SMITH & STEVENS 'JANUS' DOUGLAS MOLE'S ADJUSTABLE SPRING HINGE ADAMS CONVERGENT AND ADJUSTABLE SPRING HINGE Springs for the smallest SMITHS are to follow in a few more weeks.   |
AuthorAs there is so little information out there with regard to door closers, especially vintage and antique model floor springs, I thought I would start this blog. Archives
August 2021
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