One round of sandwiches can be very satisfying, but when you have a second round its more than satisfying. In fact, it is very fulfilling.
Way back in 2005, I attended an auction of old machinery, and purchased two unrestored engines; one for sentimental reasons (my Dad had a PAA Southern Cross in the dairy, before 240V power) and the other to add to my collection of Ronaldson Tippetts.
Not long after the auction, a friend rang and said he had seen some engines in a shed where he was repairing a water pump. When he told me the address, I realised it was the address where the auction was held, and I could not believe that any of the engines would be left behind. I made a telephone call to arrange an appointment to view the leftovers, which included two open cranks; one large and one small. The large one was easy to identify, with the name cast on the hopper, but the price was too much for me.
The small engine had no ID plates, and I had never seen any engine with that shaped body, although the crank and piston were still free, a cam driven push rod for the exhaust, wheel weight governors and atmospheric inlet valve, and a large hole in the side of the cylinder, hinted of a missing low tension magneto with igniter. The price was agreed upon, only to be told there was going to be a garage sale, and if someone offered more money for the engine I would lose it, so a couple of nervous days had to be endured. This gave me time to try to identify the find.
To assist, I rang a friend, who handed over a full case of English Stationary Engine Magazines. I started on the first, and EUREKA! I came across a look-alike; a SANDWICH. This saved me from going through all the American and Australian magazines.
The photo only gave the name of the engine and the owner. A phone call came two days later to come and collect my engine. The next step was to enlist the help of Lloyd, my son. With computer and internet, he typed in ‘Sandwich’. Response? What type of Sandwich would you like from anywhere in the world! So he rephrased the question to ‘SANDWICH Engine’, and a response came from The Sandwich Engine Club of Illinois, USA!
The club have been very helpful with the history and information which they had compiled over many years; the factory and records had been destroyed.
Sandwich Engine Manufacturing Company
The company commenced in 1856 when Augustus Adams moved from Elgin to Sandwich, Illinois, USA, where he had been active in the foundry business. Interestingly, Elgin, Western Australia is where my family’s farm has been since the 1930’s. Adams and his two eldest sons developed their own brand of agricultural machinery which had become well known for high quality. They started producing their engines in 1913 with sizes 1½, 2½, 4, 6, 8 and 10hp.
The Sandwich Manufacturing Co. was sold in 1930 and engine production ceased. The new owners, New Idea Spreader Co., Ohio, supplied Sandwich spares as well as spares for their own engines and agricultural machinery products. This service to existing customers continued until 1940 when, sadly, over 100 tons of all the spare parts and factory records were destroyed.
The Restoration
My restoration began with a complete strip down of all the parts, and these were put into a bath of molasses and water for three weeks, then each piece was washed and wired brushed. Any pieces not clean yet was returned for another bath, then each piece was given a light undercoat of paint, sanded back and then spray painted with a high build paint, sanded again, then top-coated. Then the re-assembly began.
While the hard work was in progress, Lloyd was on the internet to Illinois to the Sandwich Club. I cannot say enough about the club; they had the answers to all our questions. Technology today; the internet and digital cameras, made this project so much easier. A Sandwich club member offered to supply a low tension Webster magneto, igniter points and trip bracket, ready to bolt on. The finance department was consulted and with Christmas and birthday presents forfeited for the next two years, the order was despatched to the USA.
‘Snail mail’ takes a long eight weeks to reach Western Australia, but finally the parcel arrived and the last piece was bolted on. With fuel and water filled, and a few minor adjustments, the Sandwich was up and running on the 10th February, 2007.
Specifications
11/2hp @ 550rpm; Bore 3p”
Stroke 5”; Serial No. 3246
The Sandwich Engine Club Register lists a total of about 400 Sandwich engines worldwide. The Serial number of mine (the lowest) indicates that it is the oldest 12hp of only five registered in Australia. Many thanks to all my family and friends who helped in this very rewarding project. At the time of writing, investigations have still not revealed how, and when, this engine came to Western Australia. *Phil Scott, Busselton, WA.