Hello ODK history lovers The Impulse or ‘wind-up’ starter was, by-far, the dominant starting means for domestic rotary lawnmower engines in the 1960s. And there was good reason …
BACKSTORY … Post WWII, increased prosperity and an explosion of new inventions [inspired by terrible war] ushered in the home appliance revolution. Working folk, for the first time, could afford many household goods previously unavailable to them – electric shavers, drills, vacuum cleaners, hair dryers, and whatever …
But another thing happened – the desire to make domestic labour automatic … less complicated … easier … lazier!
A key word in advertising was ‘automatic’: automatic defrosting, automatic wipers, automatic kettles, automatic toasters, … You get the idea. Things could be done for you!
ENTER THE IMPULSE STARTER A lawnmower that starts itself? Why, that’s incredible!
Impulse starters were first used at the turn of last century – on aircraft and automobile engines. They were a North American invention.
Their adaptation to smaller engines occurred – best guess – in the 1950s. Clearly, impulse starters were not a new invention by that time.
James Kirby introduced the impulse starter to lawnmower engines in c1960. These appear to have been Tecumseh designs.
It was a treat to find that there appears to have been an Australian designed impulse starter – made by Pope products, and invented by, no other, than the founder of Pope, Sidney Barton Pope!
