Thread: Champion Drill Leaflet

Champion Blower and Forge also made a lathe for which there is no documentation. Dennis Turk in Washington, USA is restoring one of the two known examples...I sold him a Hercus upright drive casting for it a few years ago.

In the boiler room of the our family business was an ancient Champion blower. That thing's unguarded line shaft belt drive used to mesmerise me as a kid, pulling me ever closer (Well, that and my brother pushing me from behind )

The Amish are mostly in Lancaster Co, PA, where these were made. I know they favoured line shaft power until hydraulic motors became widely available. I wonder if those companies that supplied them stayed with line shaft longer than was healthy from a broader perspective?

Greg

Originally Posted by Anorak Bob

Featuring their 20 and 21 inch drills. This was tucked inside my Dumore handbook when I purchased it a few years back. There was some correspondence dated 1944 attached to the leaflet.

BT

Bob
There is something that is fascinating about these old flat belt drive machines.
It must have something to do with my age, but I like them.
They had a bunch of these at Sydney Technical College machine shop (now named The University of Technology) where I attended back in 1957.
With large twist drills on auto feed drilling into cast iron vises, which we made,they were beasts to behold.
A number of Auto Garages now called Service Stations also had them.
Thanks for rekindling good memories!
regards
Bruce
ABRATOOL
,

Hi,
They make my drill look modern
Buts its basically the same.
"21 inch"? means 10 1/2 inches from the center to the column?

Stuart

Come on Stu, you're the one with the 22 inch Hercus. How's that measured? Swing or nose to table?

Hi Bob,
I had no idea. lol That why I was asking.
Its not listed in the 20" one but is in the specs of the 21" I missed it. "distance from column to center of spindle 10 3/4inches"

Have I measured mine before? I must have forgotten, just checked it 11 1/8 inches.

Stuart

My dad told me about the old 'live workshops' where you would lay two wires on a live rod at the back of the machine you wanted to use. The rod usually ran the length of the factory. Apparently they would haze newbies on their first day by getting them to grab the rod.