Wellington Vintage Machinery Club Part 2

There are workshop facilities at the Wellington Vintage Machinery Club but some members have much more comprehensive home workshops and so it is often easier for them to make parts at home for the machines they are working on.  That is certainly volunteer dedication, and shows just how keen and involved the club members are.  

The wealth of New Zealand started on the sheep’s back, we are often told, and the club has a corner dedicated to shearing.  A large wooden wool press stands in the corner, and various examples of hand clippers are hung from the wall.  There is a Cooper Shearing Plant Stover engine in the foreground, which would have been used to run the electric shearing heads.

Click go the shears

The huge blue Cochrane boiler made in 1964 is reasonably modern and would you believe, has never been used.  Dux Engineering purchased this from Cochran and Co, Annan, in Scotland, for 4000 pounds.  In the meantime, the company changed the factory presses and when the boiler arrived it was no longer required.  After some years the club acquired the boiler with an agreed donation to charity.  The fire bricks, gauge and sight glass had all been carefully packed away and arrived safe and sound with the boiler.  Unfortunately, this boiler is too expensive to get up and running.

Cochrane boiler

Upstairs on the mezzanine floor is a huge collection of NCR (National Cash Register) machines, donated by NCR.  Bob showed me a NCR 6000 which was from Wardells Supermarket in Willis Street, Wellington, and was one of the earliest machines used on the checkout in the 1960s.  Bob was heavily involved in converting the cash registers when decimal currency arrived in New Zealand, with the much advertised changeover taking place on 10th July 1967. Previous to 1967 New Zealand's currency had been the pounds, shilling and pence system used in the United Kingdom.

Cash register used in an early Wellington supermarket

The out buildings have many donated tractors from the 1930s and 40s.  Bicycles hang from hooks and there was a collection of cart wheels stacked against a wheel.  Club members are free to work on their own choice of engines, but one of the members told me it would perhaps be more helpful to leave the tractor he was working on till later, and get the club fork lift up and running instead.

Plenty of tractors in the back sheds

There was a large clock face standing up outside.  This came from Wellington Railway Station, presumably when the concourse was refurbished some years ago.

Clock from Wellington Railway Station

The Wellington Vintage Machinery Club are always looking for new members, so contact the club if you live nearby and want to help take part in restoration and preservation of vintage machinery.