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The New Record DragsawThe New Record Dragsaw first appeared in 1916 invented by Axel Holmberg, Axel successfully built a working machine for use on the family farm near Terang in Victoria. The machine was of such utility to him and his family that he decided that there would be a market and he duly patented the invention in 1917. Patent No. 5335 was granted. There is one feature of the New Record which sets it out from just about all other saws, it has what is probably the most simple drive of all, a flat belt runs from a driven pulley to a large flywheel which has an eccentric pin to which the saw connecting rod is attached. Rotating the flywheel generates the back-and-forth motion required for sawing in a (mostly) horizontal plane. The clutch is an idler pulley which when forced down by the operator puts tension on the belt and starts the saw to cut.Initially the machine was sold as the Quick Cut Auto Logger which had a steel frame with an air cooled vertical engine. The exact engine make is not known. This first machine could cut logs and fell trees (by rotating the blade). In around 1923 this design feature was taken out, and from then on the saw could only be used for cutting logs. In 1939 the feature was reintroduced, from then there were two types of saw, one which could be used for tree felling and log sawing, the Model A and the Model C which could only be used for log sawing. The company has traded under various names and addresses centred around Melbourne such as The Quick Cut Auto Logger P/L; Tree Felling Machinery Co; and finally The New Record Machinery Co. which had a fairly diverse product range mostly based around farm equipment. In 1922 the saw design changed from steel frame to timber frame made from Orgeon. I'm not sure exactly when, but the company went back to steel frames, I think sometime in the 1930's. There have been various different kinds of wheels, but most of the saws have been produced with welded steel wheels with a rim and spokes. The wheels sit on a tapered axle and nuts on the shaft are loosened to move the saw, or tightened to keep it in place during sawing. Some models had wheels which could be turned through 90 degrees to put them behind the saw when cutting improving stability. Later saws had rubber tired wheels. The company used both its own designs of engines (but very few were ever made) and sourced from both Australian, British and American manufacturers. The brands used include: Rosebery (both horizontal type A and vertical type C); Ronaldson-Tippet N; JAP; Hercules, BSA, and Sundial. The company ceased trading during 1960 after a particularly poor business decision to not get into chainsaws. While the initial chainsaws were unweildy and dangerous, compared to a dragsaw they were light and behaved like an angel, naturally they totally destroyed the dragsaw market. Thanks to Kev Kingwill for writing an excellent article on the history of New Record from which some of the facts for this article were taken. I'm especially grateful to Kev for explaining much of the history and operations of the various saws at the 2003 National Rally. Kev had a magnificent display with most of the New Record models available for people to see. The pictures below give you some idea of the range of saws produced by New Record over the years... I think they are in order of year of production, but don't bet the house on it! 
New Record wood frame drag saw wth Horizontal Rosebery Type A engine at Echuca Wharf sawmill. 
This is a wood framed saw with a Rosebery 2C vertical engine. 
This one is mine! It has a Rosebery 2C vertical engine. The engine has original Rosebery decals but is badged New Record. 
This one has the engine that New Record made themselves. 
This one is just like mine, except that it has a Ronaldson Tippet 'N' as a power source. 
This one has a Sundial engine and was seen at the 2003 National Rally and belongs to Kev (Mr New Reocord Dragsaw) Kingwell. 
This one only has one wheel to move it around, and it is removed to saw logs. 
[02Oct04 Editorial Update] Wally Glennberg contacted me and has suggested that this saw is actually a Mobilco saw with a swing saw attachment. I don't have any strong reason to say otherwise so will certainly go with Wally on this one - thanks mate. Also, I've removed the photo and caption of the saw which was at the top of this list as I've had several people confirm that it is not a New Record but was indeed a Hercules. The saw was badged New Record but I have no reason to believe the owner did not put that on, also I've not ever found any evidence that New Record ever rebadged Hercules saws. . |
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Last modified Saturday, 02-Oct-2004 03:51:46 BST |
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