Another hobby development

[pargyle]

AEI was acquired by GEC in 1967 so that probably dates the lathe as earlier than that ... nothing wrong with these old machines - My first woodturning lathe is a Myford ML8 from 1964... still going strong although not used much these days as my goto lathe is a more recent Hegner ...many a good tune played on an old fiddle. Unlike modern machinery they were over-engineered, built to last and with only modest lubrication would outlive the owner. I also have a Harrison Union Graduate bowl turning lathe of 1960's vintage and a Startrite Inca planer thicknesser (Swiss made) of similar age. The lack of safety features on the latter is very scary but I still have all my fingers and I treat it with the respect it deserves !

 

[Gilberdyke John]

AEI was acquired by GEC in 1967 so that probably dates the lathe as earlier than that ... nothing wrong with these old machines - My first woodturning lathe is a Myford ML8 from 1964... still going strong although not used much these days as my goto lathe is a more recent Hegner ...many a good tune played on an old fiddle. Unlike modern machinery they were over-engineered, built to last and with only modest lubrication would outlive the owner. I also have a Harrison Union Graduate bowl turning lathe of 1960's vintage and a Startrite Inca planer thicknesser (Swiss made) of similar age. The lack of safety features on the latter is very scary but I still have all my fingers and I treat it with the respect it deserves !

Respect of machinery was drilled into me during my very first lesson in the metalwork shop. My teacher was Stan Foster who had an excellent way of convincing us failure to keep our body parts out of the dangerous/moving bits of machinery was inadvisable. A carrot in a machine hacksaw slide was a useful prop. No one wanted a finger in two pieces. There were remote stop buttons strategically placed around the workshop and pressing any one of them cut the power to all the machines in the workshop. His words were "if you hear screaming don't ask who just hit the nearest button". In my entire school attendance I can't recall a single metalwork shop injury. Games was a different matter with pupils going to casualty in the nearby hospital with broken bones, sprains and torn ears at odd times. No doubt there'd be litigation nowadays.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

AEI was acquired by GEC in 1967 so that probably dates the lathe as earlier than that ... nothing wrong with these old machines - My first woodturning lathe is a Myford ML8 from 1964... still going strong although not used much these days as my goto lathe is a more recent Hegner ...many a good tune played on an old fiddle. Unlike modern machinery they were over-engineered, built to last and with only modest lubrication would outlive the owner. I also have a Harrison Union Graduate bowl turning lathe of 1960's vintage and a Startrite Inca planer thicknesser (Swiss made) of similar age. The lack of safety features on the latter is very scary but I still have all my fingers and I treat it with the respect it deserves !

If memory serves correctly AEI took over BTH (British Thompson Houston) prior to that. There was a factory in Thorne but I don't know much about that place. My first job was at GEC Telecommunications and I do recall Albert Weinstock organizing the takeover of AEI although down in the lower levels it didn't create much difference to the job.