[SEL] Looking for maypole/whip braiding machine

[Al Kamminga]

>Subject: [SEL] Looking for maypole/whip braiding machine
>
 >I have been trying to find a small bench top size
 >maypole-type braiding machine run by a hand crank or
 >fractional horsepower electric motor.
 >The so-called maypole braid is what is used for making shoe
 > laces, braided polypropylene utility rope, braided leather
 > bolo neck ties, police whistle neck lanyards, key ring
 > lanyards, whips, and other such items. The braid is round and
 > hollow (shoelaces are flattened by ironing them), and always
 > composed of even numbers of flat or round lacing braided
 > under and over each other, not twisted as for rope.
 > Other examples are the braided steel wire reinforcing for
 > high pressure hydraulic hoses, the shielding braid on coaxial
 > TV-VCR cable, garden hose reinforcing, etc. I hope those are
 > enough examples to get across the idea of what kind of
 > machine I am looking for. The commercial machines are
 > manufactured by Wardwell and sell for about as much as a new
 > car and are capable of making miles of braid per day, but I
 > neither need nor can afford one of those. I know the hand
 > operated ones exist because one of my childhood neighbors had
 > one for braiding leather bullwhips. I have done exhaustive
 > Internet searches and have been looking on eBay and other
 > places for both new and antique machines for several years
 > and the results I get are rumors that the only places where
 > they regularly show up is at antique engine/equipment shows.
 > If anyone runs across the whereabouts of one of these elusive
 > maypole/whip braiding machines, please email me at:
 >
 > linstrum55 at yahoo.com
 >
 > Richard Allen

Hi.  Benn a long time since I replied to anyone or anything here.  I have 3 
New England Butt (now made by Wardwell) braiders.  Two are round braiders 
with 16 carriers, the other is a flat braider with 17 cdarriers.  One of 
them has a Pat. Date of 1883, the other two are about 1896 or 1898.  I use a 
small electric motor to run them as turning them using the hand crank 
severly takes away time from talking to people.  There is someone at every 
show wants to buy the machines and I have been told to name my price.  No, I 
am not ready to sell them, it is too much fun to show them.

Yes, they make shoe laces and all those other things.  I make laces in 
school colors and usually sell some at shows and word of mouth.  Round braid 
is round but flat braid is flat and never was round.  It is not a flattened 
round braid.  I will be happy to send you a sample of each.  Flat braiders 
always have an odd number of threads while round braiders have an even 
number.  The braid pattern of 2 over, 2 under is the same on both machines.  
I run them very slow so as not to make miles a day and give people the 
opportunity to see how they work.  I get a yard of braid every 2 minutes or 
so.  There is always a crowd around my display.  Most days I never get lunch 
or a break.

Let me know if I can answer any questions.

Al Kamminga
alkamminga at hotmail.com
DeMotte Indiana
formally of Bettendorf Iowa

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