When was meccano first made

Hornby began to manufacture his own parts in a small one-room factory at Duke Street. Patent On advice, he patented his invention in January as "Improvements in Toy or Educational Devices for Children and Young People", but not without first having to borrow five pounds from his employer, David Elliot , to cover the costs.

The overall length of the bridge is The height of bridge is 6. Design capacity is just kg. When was meccano first made? Asked by: Miss Megane Fay. What age is Meccano suitable for? What is the difference between Meccano and Erector? What is the Meccano today made from and why?

What can Meccano Max do? What is the meaning of Meccano? What thread are Meccano screws? When did they stop making Erector sets? Which came first Erector Set or Meccano? Who invented Erector sets? In General Mills sold out to a French accountant, Marc Rebibo, and, once again, all existing Meccano sets were scrapped. The "Meccano Junior" sets were replaced with three "Premier Meccano" sets and two "Motor" sets including a six-speed motor were introduced.

Due to demand, the old Meccano No. Allen head zinc plated steel bolts replaced the original slot-headed brass-plated bolts and the "Plastic Meccano Junior" sets were brought back. With younger model builders in mind, many theme sets were also introduced, including a "Construction and Agricultural" series, "Space" models and "Dynamic" sets. The old-style No. In additional theme sets were introduced and a pull-back friction motor was added to the Plastic Meccano System.

In "Action Control" sets with infrared controls were added and saw the introduction of a "Motion System" range of sets that changed the look of Meccano completely. There were six one-model sets, two five-model sets, and five new sets numbered 10 to 50, the 20 to 50 sets being motorized. A complete change from the norm was that every set had its own colour scheme.

In Meccano was bought out by Nikko, a Japanese toy manufacturer, and once again new sets were launched, including "Crazy Inventors" and the "Future Master" range. Nikko currently manufactures Meccano in France and China. Meccano today is very different from its heyday in the s to s and purists look down on the modern French- and Chinese-made Meccano, for several reasons: the plates are thinner, or plastic; the bolts are hex-headed galvanised steel; and new specialized pieces have been introduced plastic gears, electric motors, battery boxes which many consider as not "true" Meccano.

Large or specialist parts for the Meccano Super Models, such as very long up to 2 foot angle girders, loom shuttles, printing rollers, etc are becoming ever more difficult to obtain - some very rare original parts are particularly valuable to collectors.

Most of the currently available electric Meccano motors are also small DC models designed to run on domestic batteries, and can only deliver a fraction of the torque of earlier electric motors such as the particularly well known E15R and E20R universal motors, which could be run from a mains transformer or, in the case of the E15R, a 12V car battery.

With a Meccano set there was a wide range of models that could be built. Here are the models for which instructions were given in the largest set of the late s , the "Outfit 10":. Since this time, enthusiasts such as G. Maurice Morris and MW Models have taken to publishing their own model plans, ranging from small models up to large and complex machines well beyond the scope of any individual Meccano set ever produced.

Meccano is a very versatile constructional medium. Just about any mechanical device can be built with it, from working cranes to automatic gearboxes. It can even be used to prototype new ideas and inventions. The capability of Meccano to produce models is limited only by the imagination and ingenuity of the modeller. Augustine, Florida museum. The model is 6. By the late s Meccano had become an international household name. Meccano clubs started forming around the world and in Frank Hornby launched the Meccano Guild to amalgamate these clubs.

In , The International Society of Meccanomen was founded in England and boasts some members in over 30 countries. Publications devoted fully or in part to Meccano included Meccano Magazine from to , Constructor Quarterly and numerous Special Model Leaflets , aimed at serious enthusiasts, on how to construct very large, complex models and machines, some using many more parts than an entire Set One small part of the Binns Road factory remained in as the photo below taken in shows.

However all that remains there now is a car park. If you want a larger image click on the thumbnail images below: The original French subsidiary, now an independently owned company under Marc Rebibo, still produced Meccano in France.

Around , Meccano France purchased the rights to the "Erector" trademark in the U. The model's future is unknown, however, because the museum suspended operations in August due to financial difficulties. The author was employed in to reengineer it and get it working again. Exacto S. Four outfits and about different parts were manufactured. In an agreement was signed with Meccano Ltd. It was therefore not a bootleg operation, but an officially recognised Meccano factory.

They eventually marketed all sets up to no. All parts were stamped "Meccano Argentina". This continued into the s as the licence was never revoked.

Meccano France did not succeed and sold its US marketing to Brio. This was the writing on the wall for this company and it was soon bought out in May by a Japanese company called Nikko.

This is the present situation. The various new owners had retained the old parts numbering system and produced some good new parts as can be seen below: However Nikko has just introduced a new numbering system.

Part If you want a larger image click on the thumbnail images below:. Part 46a. Part 51a. Part 38a. Part 9l. Part 37h.