What year is this windmill?
Hello again,
The company I work for has just acquired another windmill.
I looked at the serial number and it’s old.
I went to a search for serial number ranges and it doesn’t come up on the searches because the numbers start in 1950.
The serial number of the machine is 31546E which appears to put it pre-1950.
In comparison, our other one is 107010 which checks out at 1956.
So,does anyone know where it was made?
Thanks.
P.S. It’s intended for productionproduction, not parts, because its complete. It has been stored for around 20 years and still has the last job it ever ran in the chase. That was the only job it ran for many many years. It was a single purpose machine.
I’m glad someone saved that windmill! I’ve been thinking about getting it for a few weeks but have two newer ones and couldn’t justify having another right now.
I don’t know it’s age but it is one of the oldest in the U.S., check out this article - http://whattheythink.com/articles/53625-heidelberg-windmill/
Have fun with it!
The Heidelberg Platen was introduced into the United States in 1927. Pre-war, Heidelberg ran demonstration trucks around the country selling these, a practice they resumed after the war once they had resumed production. The other company that also did this was Vandercook, who had a van they used extensively in the 1950s and into the 1960s. Their Italian branch also did the same during the same time period.
Hi Tiegel fan. Your press # 31546E is age 1948. Its called “ULTRA”. Actually pretty much the same as the last machine made. We have a 1928 machine #9620 in our collection. You can see it at howardironworks.org. The “E” suffix indicates .918” type height. That tells us your machine most likely was imported new to USA, UK , Australia/New Zealand, or Canada.
Thanks.
I thought the E might have meant “English” for the labels. Good to know about the type height.
Everything looks pretty much the same as the other one we have but there are a few small differences. I’ll note them as we get it closer to operating.
There is a small article about the Heidelberg platen, on the website, It discusses the changes that were made over the years. I’m not sure why Heidelberg used the “E” but the so-called standard European machines are stamped “N”. There are actually a bunch of odd type heights in Europe, which just makes life that much more fun.
Is the discussion on THIS website?
I have noted a lot of differences so far. The first one being the feeder bar. The 1956 one has fixed suckers and the 1948 one has clamp type.
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I think it’s safe to say that my shop now has the oldest known Operational Heidelberg Windmill in the United states.
It’s so quiet too.
I spent the better part of the day getting it all wired up and the hoses changed. I made sure to not make any permanent alterations so, if it ever becomes a museum piece, it can be returned to 100% original
Wow! That’s older than I am. These machines are just incredible. Keep them oiled up and clean, they are going to be around for a very long time to come.
Today I noticed the clutch felt a little sticky so I thought I’d investigate. I’m glad I did because the bearings weren’t getting proper lube. The brake was chirpy after I flushed it so I knew something was wrong.
Just a few pictures of the clutch refurb. The one picture shows just how much gunk was in the whole mix.
The oiler was completely clogged with petrified lubricant and the holes were all clogged.
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I forgot that this forum loads images in reverse.
Anyhow, here are some more
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And here’s what I did for the oiler.
I had a floor scrubber pad core that is basically a 3M plastic disk that’s 4 inches in diameter. I cut a section to act as a filter and wicker to hold some of the oil in the cup.
The pictures should illustrate it pretty good.
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