Photo Index - J. A. Fay & Co. - Belt Driven Single End Tenoner

Machinery Photo Index

Manufactured/Badged by:
J. A. Fay & Co.
Keene, NH; South Keene, NH; Worcester, MA; Norwich, CT; Cincinnati, OH

Machine Specifications
Machine Class:	Wood Working Machinery
Machine Type:	Tenoning Machine
Machine Size:
Submitted By:	Shane Whitlock

Machine Specifications
Description/Model:	Belt Driven Single End Tenoner
Date of Manufacturer:	1865 apx.
Serial Number:	n/a
Last Updated	3/12/2013 6:05:37 PM

Comments:

1865 J. A. Fay & Co. Single End Tenoner
(1865 is a best guess since no dirty paper exists for this time period for J. A. Fay. If you have any please let me know. I would love a scan of it)

This beautiful machine came from Merrell's Planing Mill which was located in Brigham City and built in the 1860/70s. The mill caught on fire in 2008 destroying much of this historical building and burning most of the roof off. Most of the vintage machines that were located in the mill were badly damaged from the fire, some beyond repair, and then made worse by being exposed to the elements for years until my friend and I moved the machinery into storage.

I brought this tenoning machine home and began restoring it back to it's original condition in Sept of 2012. This machine sat on the first floor of the mill and since the fire was mostly on the second floor and the ceiling of the first floor this machine survived without to much damage. The leather and rubber belts and electricals were all melted and most of the paint was burnt off the machine. However, I was able to find areas of the paint that was protected by sawdust and pitch that had built up on the machine over the 150 years of use.

The colors and pin-striping are as close to original as I could get with the exception of the rope detail, which I painted gold instead of the original bluish/green color. To be honest with ya, the original colors wouldn't have been my first choice for this machine but I wanted them to be as historically accurate as I could get them. The pictures really don't do this machine justice, standing in front of it it really is beautiful and the colors have grown on me. The blue color that you see in the photos below actually has a lot more green in it when you are looking at it in person. For some reason my camera is having a hard time accurately capturing the color.

Here is a link to another J. A. Fay machine from the same time period. The colors are very close to the same as my machine.
http://blacksmithandmachineshop.com/images/aw89k.jpg

I also brought home some of the line shafts from the mill and I plan on eventually getting them installed in the shop to run this tenoner. For now I will use a 5 hp 3 phase motor that also came from the mill.

You will notice the three 7 inch diameter heads are not on the machine yet. They have been sent off to Bobby at Woodworkers Tool Works to get rebuilt. The coping head is also not installed, I still need to finish cleaning and painting it. I will update the first pic with a new one after I get the heads back and installed.

The details on this machine are absolutely stunning. All 4 sides of the main base is one single casting. How they were able to cast something like this 150 years ago and still keep the details in the acanthus leafs, rope detail, and scroll work is simply amazing ... Truly a lost art. The machine is 66 inches long, 60 inches tall and 45 inches wide. All bolts are hand made and hex head. Each bolt is just a little different size than the next, which made it very frustrating during restoration.

More before, during and after pics can be seen on my website here:
http://shanewhitlock.com/photo/v/misc/jafay/

I also have a video on YouTube of the machine running without the heads on. I will shoot a new video of the machine in action when I get the heads back from Bobby and update here with the link. The first video can be seen here:
http://youtu.be/3a_kBu4kXXw

Thanks for looking,
Shane Whitlock

Photo 1:

Comments: After restoration, (without the 7 inch diameter heads)
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Photo 2:

Comments: 2008 - The terrible fire that destroyed this historical mill. All because a couple stupid kids broke inside of the mill and started it on fire when they were smoking pot. The fact that this machine survived at all is a miracle.
Source: Box Elder News Journal

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Photo 3:

Comments: 4 years after the fire - What it looked like the day I brought it home.
Source: Merrells Planing Mill

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Photo 4:

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Photo 5:

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Photo 6:

Comments: Casting details of Acanthus leafs, scroll work, and rope detail.
Source:

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