Low Moor Co.

Part of this post repeats what I added to the recent ‘Carronette’ post. However, I’ve just found more information, and decided to start a new post.

I occasionally come across the words ‘Low Moor Iron’ in old books, and get the impression that in its day it was one of the leading companies for high class forgings or castings.

I recently noticed some smoothly-finished cast gun barrels beneath Sydney Harbour Bridge, bearing the name ‘Low Moor’ on the trunnions:-

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y54/Asquith1/Lowmoor01.jpg

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y54/Asquith1/Low02.jpg

They seem to have resisted corrosion very well.

This link has some information and photos of the works:-

http://www.ngfl.ac.uk/wards/lowmoorschool/history/lowmoor/Ironworks1.html

I’ve now learned that they made steam engines, including large winding and hauling engines. Seems a surprising venture for an ironworks, but presumably they thought it worth a go, given that they were already making many forgings and castings for other engine makers.

More surprising is the fact that they also ventured into the world of precision, making this in 1906:-



Not just another 100 inch vertical boring mill: the right hand head incorporated a drilling/milling/boring spindle. The machine was intended for engine disc cranks and locomotive wheels, allowing the face and rim to be turned, and the crankpin hole bored on one machine.

Appears to have been a fairly large firm that was closed down somewhere in the 1980's. Too bad the photos are in such a small format.

Asquith,
Thanks for posting - Low Moor also became a byword for the best possible quality boilerplate, known and specified worldwide.Their blast furnaces were powered in the 18C by an atmospheric steam engine and upon the outbreak of war with France in 1793 the company was awarded (along with the nearby well regarded Bowling Ironworks) lucrative government contracts for cannon and shot.The Ironworks was for many years the largest in the area and had extensive tram and waggonways feeding coal, ironstone and other materials to the works. Some of these 200 year old routes can still be made out today ( I drove past some only this afternoon) and scores of the worker's cottages and managers' houses survive survive. The chemical industry has now replaced engineering in Low Moor (part of Bradford)

Dave,
Agreed, it’s a pity the photos are so small.
I liked the one showing the stone stairs up to the office, worn concave. Stairs to the safety officer, perhaps?

Millwright,
Bowling is another of those names that crops up in engineering old texts. In doing a search, I was surprised to find that there was another Low Moor Iron Co., some distance from Yorkshire! A young upstart in Virginia, set up about 1820.

I found very little about the Yorkshire Low Moor, though, so thought I’d branch off with a French search, and came up with an 1862 tome whose title translates as the ‘Present State of the Metallurgy of Iron in England’. It refers to Low Moor and Bowling, and I noticed another name, which I first came across only yesterday: Tudhoe (of Spennymoor, Co, Durham). Another of those once important firms, now long-forgotten, but with Don’s indulgence we can at least lodge their names and hope that perhaps they won’t disappear into oblivion just yet. Here’s a ‘hot bloom shear’ at Tudhoe Works in the 1890s:-

Stout shears

If anyone happens to look at this, there’s a danger it will provoke the old debate about where locknuts should go!

For completeness I’ll include the link to the French report, but note that it will only appeal to French-speaking ironologists!
http://visualiseur.bnf.fr/CadresFenetre?O=NUMM-91844&I=1&M=tdm

I was pleased to see that the French for puddling was puddlage.
Also, I noticed weights called ‘quintaux’, being 50 kg, which is very close to a UK hundredweight.

Asquith:

Saw the jam nuts before I read the "bait" you cast out. I'll bite !

On giving it thought, that is the right way for strength as the greater length of engagement of the full nuts are carrying the load but a real challenge to know when the jam is locking the full nut considering the extreme friction on both sides of the jam.

With the jam on top, the jam would work to unload the threads from the full nut until the jam failed due to its short thread engagement.

How about using Locktite !

Now to sit back and see how long this discussion will carry on !

Jim C.

Why do you suppose the lower steps are worn more than the upper steps? Very curious. Could it be weathering (rain running down the steps, so more water runs over the bottom step) rather than foot traffic?

Bill

Hi Asquith,
Messrs Murray & Paterson Ltd, Co9atbank Engine Works coatbridge, had in their works an old planing machine built by the Low Moore Co, right until the unfortunate demise of this company in 1980, She was a fair size of machine, from memory i would guess 18 ft.stroke x 6ft.x 8ft double column, of particular note on this item of plant was the planer table instead of tee slots, it had the old fashioned cast holes approx 11/2" x 4"( again from memory), nicely spaced all over the work area, into which tee headed bolts were inserted, and given a right angled turn before clamping up

The entablature and side frames were of a most pleasing design, the drive being by overhead counter motion from a heavy line shaft running the length of the bay,
In their day M & P built winding &haulage gear, and bell crank pumping engine sets for many of the local collieries, as well as rolling mill engines and plant.

Low Moor
Asquith ,
After you mentioned
"French-speaking ironologists"
It reminded me of when I visited Les Forgres du St . Maurice
Here is a description from , and link to their Web site
"Located 20 minutes away from downtown Trois-Rivières, Québec, the Forges du Saint-Maurice National Historic Site commemorates the founding of the first industrial community in Canada. In addition to covering a considerable area, the National Historic Site features an abundance of archaeological vestiges which stand as a reminder of the birth and development of the first iron industry in Canada.
At the Forges, visitors may enjoy an incredibly broad range of activities: visiting the exhibits or attending a sound-and-light show at the Grande Maison; discovering the techniques used to produce pig iron in the blast furnace; taking part in a captivating guided tour of the site, where interpretation panels abound; taking advantage of an enlightening schools program in accordance with the educational reform program; discovering the devil's fountain; taking a walk along the St. Maurice River; or enjoying a picnic in the wide open green area.


http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/qc/saintmaurice/index_e.asp

When I was there I met up with an engineer from France who was attending a forestry conference in nearby Quebec City .
His hobby or intrest was " Sidurgie" or the study of Steel making .
He was questioning one of the mseum staff some of the more technical details of the process but since the museum caters more to a general public intrest they weren't able to answer his questions .
I did however enjoy my visit there .
I don't imagine there are very many people in all of Canada who are into the detailed history of Iron and steel making .
I thought the site might be of some interst to viewers of this site .
Always enjoy your posts .
Jim

Today I was looking over an old steam ferry which is on the hard not far from where I live. The double-ended "Toroa" was launched in 1925 and plyed the Waitemata harbour for many years, now is in pretty bad shape, but undergoing restoration. The hull is 3" Kauri timber over steel framing. The steel framing needs to be replaced (as does the Kauri), the new steel for the framing has just arrived. This is known as "bulb angle", it is like an unequal angle with a "bulb" profile on the end of one of the legs. The guy showing us around said this bulb angle was specially made for them by Low Moor in the UK. He said it was extruded, not rolled. There is only around 13 tons of steel involved (about 1000 metres), maybe extrusion is more economical (though it cost about NZ$100,000). Nicely made, anyone heard of this process? I wonder if this is the same Low Moor from early days?

Peter,

I live and learn. I didn’t even realise that steel sections were produced by extrusion, and I’m surprised and pleased that high tech steel products are once more emanating from the town of Low Moor. A search has shown that the source is Osborn Steel Extrusions Limited of Low Moor:-

http://www.osbornbujon.com/Extrusions.htm

Osborn of Sheffield is a name I associate with lathe tools – I don’t know whether they are one and the same.

Many thanks for the information.