G'day folks, Just looking for a bit of help to identify what I suspect (from what I've read on this forum) is a Victa Mayfair......I thought maybe one of you guys could help narrow down a year for me. I got it from a guy I did some blasting for.......it came with his house when he bought it about 30 years ago, but hadn't been used for about the last 10 years before it came to me. The catcher is just one that I already had.......it fits but it's a tight fit, being a little difficult to get on and off. Should this mower have a plastic catcher? I'm also wondering about the colours........were they green and gold from new? Thanks guys!
Hi Jack, Wow, thankyou for that. It seems it's a bit older than I thought, which appeals to me, lol. It seems fairly original, but can you shed any light on the colour scheme? Is it correct? I'd like to give it a paint job......paint the catcher to match, etc, and put new decals on it. But I'd like to paint it the "correct" colours if I can..........
Also, I picked up ANOTHER Victa last night.........that's what happens, I guess, when you get home early and get on Gumtree, lol! Can you also identify this one for me please? I'm guessing that the air cleaner housing is not original.....would I be right? Also, is the handle correct, and what do you think about the damage at the front of the base.....? Cheers!! Steve
but can you shed any light on the colour scheme? Is it correct?
Hello Carnut Alas, I'm not a collector, and am unsure of the colours here. They do seem original, and the colours are recognised Victa colours. Is there any trace of paint on the catcher?
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Also, I picked up ANOTHER Victa last night.........that's what happens, I guess, when you get home early and get on Gumtree, lol! Can you also identify this one for me please?
This is an interesting one ... dating to 1963. Note the bi-fold handles - a first, world-wide. [A lost feature in today's market].
Hello Carnut The carby has been replaced at some point with a G3.
The original carby would have been a G2 with a cut-out wire running up the handle. It was common practice to change the G2s with the G3s in service.
G'day folks, I'm in agreement with CyberJack on this mower ID. As his pic shows, metal catchers were original equipment for this model.
It's quite clear that the G3 is a replacement, as the original cut-out wire is still in use, and the G3 cutout switch [the brass 1/4" tab] isn't connected. As CJ says, a very common swap, back in the day - G2 carbies were rather wear-prone, compared to the G3.
Cheers, Gadge
"ODK Mods can explain it to you, but they can't understand it for you..."
"Crazy can be medicated, ignorance can be educated - but there is no cure for stupid..."
Thanks so much, fellas. I really appreciate the sharing of your knowledge. It's always nice to be able to tell people all about these machine when they ask. I'm off to pick up ANOTHER Victa this afternoon........looks like an early 70's Mayfair, with two plastic catchers (one's a spare) and a spare zip starter also. I also have a lead on another early 60's looking one........looks very complete and promising!!!
Also, I picked up ANOTHER Victa last night.........that's what happens, I guess, when you get home early and get on Gumtree, lol! Can you also identify this one for me please? I'm guessing that the air cleaner housing is not original.....would I be right? Also, is the handle correct, and what do you think about the damage at the front of the base.....?
CyberJack has nailed it once again; a Consul 2 with original engine. Yep, the bi-fold handles are original - part of the design intention was so that when folded up, the mower would fit easily into the boot of a normal sedan car.
This sort of front damage is very common on this chassis design - the casting is quite thin, compared to later side throw models such as the 160 Special.
You're correct in surmising that the air cleaner setup isn't original. The factory setup on these was a flat paper element, in a steel housing mounted across the front of the engine - as shown in the owner manual in CJ's linked thread.
As I recall it, by the 1970s these flat elements had become quite expensive, and didn't last very long, being down in the 'dust zone'. So it was common to remove the whole setup, and replace it with a snorkel and 'short' cartridge air filter assembly, as used on later models.
Cheers, Gadge
"ODK Mods can explain it to you, but they can't understand it for you..."
"Crazy can be medicated, ignorance can be educated - but there is no cure for stupid..."
Ah ha!! Thankyou once again, CJ and Gadge. I thought the bi-fold handles were something that had been added to it somewhere along the line, so I'm very happy to learn that they're actually original! And yes, the handle did fold down beautifully to fit into the back of my car. I can't believe that every mower doesn't have that arrangement......it's simply BRILLIANT! I picked up another Mayfair this afternoon. The engine number starts with 371......so I'm guessing that it's a '71 model? As you can see from the photos, it has a different handle to my '68 Mayfair.......it doesn't kick up at the top like the '68's handle does. The seller was selling it for his Dad, who's moving into a home, and has had it since new, although it has apparently not been started for 10 yrs. I would say that is probably true, given the state of the fuel in the carb bowl and bottom of the tank. I cleaned the carb and tank out, checked the spark (has a nice fat spark!), added some fresh fuel and, after a couple of pulls on the starter, she roared to life and ran like a little beauty! I'm not sure what to do about the damage to the Consul 2. I was thinking of trying some aluminium putty.....the stuff that can be drilled and sanded etc. While I will use the mower occasionally, just as something more interesting to use than my new Masport, I will be very careful not to knock it about. If I was fortunate enough to come across a better base, I'd use that. But I wouldn't want to be holding my breath waiting for an undamaged one to appear
Carnut, have a Mayfair here, not sure if it is exactly the same as the one you have but I think this base is in excellent condition, I haven't looked that closely, I pulled it out of the shed a couple of weeks ago put a carby on it and it fired up second pull. I just wanted the motor for a utility I'm building and the base was going out, I don't bother with them because I don't have catchers and nobody wants a mower without a catcher. You are welcome to it if you wanted it. I'm not sure how pics go these days since the forum changes but if you want one I will see what I can do..
I picked up another Mayfair this afternoon. The engine number starts with 371......so I'm guessing that it's a '71 model?
Yep, a 1971-2, model code V99, and the first Zip Start Mayfair, I'd say.
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As you can see from the photos, it has a different handle to my '68 Mayfair.......it doesn't kick up at the top like the '68's handle does.
Yes, as that was a 'Mayfair deluxe' feature in that era [as mentioned by CyberJack above], which was dropped around 1969-70 for that series IIRC.
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I'm not sure what to do about the damage to the Consul 2. I was thinking of trying some aluminium putty.....the stuff that can be drilled and sanded etc. While I will use the mower occasionally, just as something more interesting to use than my new Masport, I will be very careful not to knock it about. If I was fortunate enough to come across a better base, I'd use that. But I wouldn't want to be holding my breath waiting for an undamaged one to appear
I doubt that even a really good metal-filled epoxy would be satisfactory, as they have little impact resistance or tensile strength, compared to solid alloy. Consul bases in good condition do still pop up on FleaBay occasionally, so they are out there.
Cheers, Gadge
"ODK Mods can explain it to you, but they can't understand it for you..."
"Crazy can be medicated, ignorance can be educated - but there is no cure for stupid..."
My method of repair for that base would be to weld a piece of aluminium flat bar, preferably 5mm thick x 30/40mm wide depending on what is needed to bring it to the correct skirt length,welded each end and a couple of reasonable tacks across the front where you can get a weld, This is welded on the inside and then you can use body filler on the outside to get the correct shape you need. The aluminium gives it strength from stones and gives the body filler something to hang on to and should be fine for use. The worst thing that could happen is the body filler might crack if you used it too much, so what,big deal fill it again.
Good pick ups, interesting these 70�s mowers. I have one of these Mayfair�s but mine is a green base but missing the decal. I have only seen gold bases on Mayfair and wondering if green base might be Contessa ?
Hi Paul Yes, Mayfairs - as branded - had deeper green bases in the 1960s but standardised gold bases after that - as best as I can gather.
Store branded Mayfairs varied the colour considerably. I think 'Contessa' was a Walton's and then RetraVision branded Mayfair. They certainly used this lighter shade green.
My best guess - yours was not a stencil Mayfair, but a store branded machine. Best guess - Walton's Contessa.
I'm glad these mowers are being remembered - as they were - arguably - Victa's most successful model of the day - spanning a couple of decades.
I have one here looks like the one Paul has shown but it is a gold colour. This machine, even though the wheels are bald as in the photo, it moves beautifully, good solid feel and even though it is about 50 years old feels just so much stronger and better than any mower produced today and this thing has already done a lifetime of work.I put an LM carby on it a few weeks ago and it fired straight up and probably hadn't been started for 30 years or more, second pull and it ran perfectly
