MOWER OF THE MONTH
Number Seventy-Seven
FOLLOWS & BATE SPEEDWELL
The Speedwell was a side mower produced by Follows &
Bate of Gorton, Manchester at the end of the 19th and beginning of the
20th centuries.
The company had introduced the first practical sidewheel
mower with its Climax model in 1869. The Speedwell was more conventional
than the Climax and adhered to the layout that had been established in the
intervening years. In may ways its appearance is very similar to
contemporary machines produced by Shanks (The Britisher), Ransomes (The
Lion) and many other companies.
The mower was introduced in 1896 and remained in
production for many years. Like many contemporary sidewheel machines the
Speedwell was offered for sale through mail order. Follows & Bate was
very successful at selling its machines this way and also offered
substantial discounts for retailers such as ironmongers if they bought in
bulk. It was listed in catalogues for retailers such as "The Army
& Navy" well into the 1930s although it had by then been
superseded by more up-to-date designs.
The Speedwell was initially available in sizes ranging
from 7in to 17in cutting width in two inch increments. Around 1900 the 7
inch model was priced 28 shillings and the 17 inch at 40 shillings with
"trade discount" available for ironmongers and other retailers.
Unusually for British machines of this period the
Speedwell was supplied with a canvas grass catcher. This style of grass
collection device was much more common on American mowers and never really
caught on with British manufacturers or customers although a few mowers -
including the Ransomes Conquest - had them as late as the 1950s. A
conventional grass box was available in later years.
The original Speedwell had a cutting cylinder with four
blades. The improved version was introduced in 1930 and had five blades.
By this time the price had risen to 37 shillings and sixpence for the 9
inch model and 52 shillings and sixpence for the 17 inch model. It would
appear that the smaller 7 inch model was no longer available. The grass
box - as always with this sort of mower during this period - was available
at extra cost of between 10 shillings and 12 shillings and sixpence
depending on the cutting width of the mower.
The Speedwell is surprisingly hard to find today
considering how successful and popular it was in its time. They are
therefore sought-after by collectors.
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