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Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers

Another added to my collection

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Today I picked up a recent purchase from ebay.  It is a Webb 14 inch mains electric mower (AB1254).

The condition is extremely good as it has had very little use and been stored away for a long time.  It came complete with the original manual (in four languages).  I was the only bidder so purchased it for very little money, but spent about twice what it cost me on fuel for a 360 mile round trip today.

Here are the photos from the ebay sale.

My interest is really in Qualcast lawn mowers that I was involved in designing, but when I looked at the exploded views on the Old Lawnmower Club website I noticed that when this one was made (1983 or later) the service department address was "Sunnyhill Avenue, Derby" and that was the Qualcast factory that I worked at.  I then discovered that Webb was owned by Qualcast then.

It really needs to be preserved as is, dealing with any spots of rust first to prevent further deterioration, but I don't know what I could use to preserve it or whether I should apply a coat of clear lacquer over the paint.  All suggestions are welcome.

John.Sutherland Mon, 07/09/2020

Halford's offer a good range of products to stop rust in its tracks, Lacquer over the top of rust will not solve the issue.

Rub off any loose rust and apply something like - Loctite SF 7503, this product will cure the rusted areas equally as good as other well known like for like products.

 

 

Qualcast_1965_… Thu, 10/09/2020

Thanks for your comment JSutherland

I didn't mean to say that I would lacquer over the rust but treat the rust first and then, instead of repainting, consider a clear lacquer to protect the mower from further deterioration.  I do not have experience of oil based rust preventatives like Waxoyl clear and do not know whether that would be suitable, require regular treating or not.

John.Sutherland Fri, 11/09/2020

Most products will give information on durability and how long before you may need to retreat the affected area, you can find reviews on the Internet and instructions on how to use them on the packaging. If you lack confidence, gain some experience by practising on something other than the lawnmower and see if the results measure up to what you want from the product.

You will first need to rub down the area with a medium sandpaper followed by a fine grade sandpaper suitable for metal,

Clean the area with anti grease cleaning product after sanding and wipe the area, I use mentholated spirts on a micro cloth,

Once cleaned and dry, mask off the areas with newspaper, held down with masking tape you do not want to treat and follow the instructions on the product and apply if using a spray.

Do not point and spray at the intended area at the start, point the nozzle  to the left of the taped area, press the nozzle and then sweep across and stop, repeat a second time in the same direction left to right.

Brush on products will not require you to mask off the areas you are not treating. "Krust" is a good example and easy to apply, I have been using Krust this morning on a grass bucket, it is probably your better option, remember to wear gloves, this product stains and hard to remove from your skin.