Farmall Cub

My son came over and made a little vid of my New England Butt braiding machines this weekend. Its a little dark but you can kind of see the action and hear the roar. I know there not tractors but sometimes you need other things to play with.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQ8yTx1uzdw



Jeff

jwl wrote:My son came over and made a little vid of my New England Butt braiding machines this weekend. Its a little dark but you can kind of see the action and hear the roar. I know there not tractors but sometimes you need other things to play with.






Jeff

stick everything after v= in the url in the youtube tabs

Jeff - that was neat!

Very cool.... I had to look it up, turns out the company is from RI.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_England_Butt_Company

Rhode Island is pretty interesting, really the home of the industrial revolution. Good water power and access to transport were key. Fabric, machine tools and machinery were very big here until about 50 years ago.

I am still curious about what kind of braiding... is it for wiring covers?

Thanks for sharing it!

Well one machine is a 17 carrier and makes a flat braid thats kind of like lace. havent really figured out what the use was but it would make a nice flat shoelace, like the ones yrs back on dress shoes. The other one is a 16 carrier round machine. You can do a lot with it. Other than make a round shoelace, it makes a hollow braid, that i can put a sparkplug wire into and braid around the wire. Im sure you all have seen these old cloth covered wires on engines and auto harnasses. One can also take cloth piping(its a sewing thing) and cover it. This finished part is often found on pillows and cushion on the couch. More modern setups of the machine take fine wire and wrap around hoses. They can also be used to make rope. Braiding and twisting are the only two ways to make a rope. I also have a 1911 New Era rope maker and go to farm shows and fairs with both the setups to show folks how stuff was done a hundred yrs back. The braiding machine has been around since about 1894, rope makers before that. It all give me something to do in the winter at home and at the shows, when im not playing with my small tractors and attachments.

Now I get it! Pretty cool that something invented more than a century ago is still in use... and producing.

I was excited to find made in RI shoelaces (in Maine) when I was looking for made in USA socks for Boss Hog. He had said you can't find any made in USA socks, so I sent him some. BTW, flat shoelaces stay tied and are almost impossible to find anymore!

A while back I visited a pretty interesting place that makes reproduction wiring harnesses and they also make braided wires. I didn't notice the machine that does it, but bet is is similar or the same as yours. It was sad to hear that they were loosing sources of the 'string' they were using.

http://www.riwire.com/Catalogs/sup/pages/wire.htm

I would like to purchase one of these braiding machines.....would you know who might have one for sale?.
Thanks
Rob

jwl wrote:My son came over and made a little vid of my New England Butt braiding machines this weekend. Its a little dark but you can kind of see the action and hear the roar. I know there not tractors but sometimes you need other things to play with.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQ8yTx1uzdw



Jeff

Those bobbins looked to me like a bunch of square dancers on speed. Very interesting video, thanks for posting it.

Bob

I have a flat and round braider from the late 1890's. I make braid in school and tractor colors. I use shrink tube on the ends for those that want shoe laces. Used to go to tractor/engine shows every weekend. Other uses include fishing line, braid for military uniforms, lamp cord, welt, decorative lace to sew on clothing items, space craft cables, and many other things. Braiding machines were imported from England prior to 1850 when they started making them in the US. I also have one with 1883 cast into the upright iron. The new maypole braiders from Wardwell who bought out NEB are almost identical except for the OSHA guards. These braiders have not changed much since 1950. They go for years and parts are still available. Had to add my .02 cents.

I have a New England Braiding machine, but can't seem to find any information as to the input speed. Any suggestions out there?

According to Catalog 56, the normal speed of the pulley is 144rpm for a No. 1 braider and 180 rpm for a No. 2 braider. With the newer carriers this can be increased by 10 to 25 percent.