Wickman Machine Tools

Hi Neil, yes remember your dad very well. Great engineer and a top bloke who taught me a lot. Pete left Wickman and went to work for a guy called Norman Pollard at Pollard Machine Tools. Norman was first in the UK to get the Mori Seki franchise. This was later taken over by his son Richard Pollard and was based near the Bham Airport and later moved over Leicester way. Quite a few ex Wickman Apprentices went to work at Pollards. I thought that Tom Hughes (another ex Wickie guy) took over Whitehouse M/c Tools, but I may be wrong? Never knew he had a brother, but I knew his sister Jenny.

Mick - its amazing what a quick web search turns up! Looks like Tom Hughes was Sales Director. I wouldn't have recognised Tim in a million years! Last time I saw him he had just left school and was working at Next in Leamington - then again when I think about it that was probably about 30-odd years ago - time flies! WMT News

Thanks Neil. I guess Tom must be getting close to retirement age?

Neil. Pete married Janet Rhodes in 1967 - she was a comptometer operator in the accounts department at Banner Lane. Lovely girl. Gosh, Neil, you weren't even born then.

Hi MR, would he have been 21/22 then?

22

When I started in 66, Joe Williams was in charge, but sat in his ivory tower. Colin Tipson was his assistant and Kathy was their secretary. Training instructors were Jack Trigg (fitting) Ralph Tipton (turning) Bill Shaw (grinding), cannot remember the milling instructors name? But it was before Frank Wardell who was in the toolroom at that time on the Jig Boring. There was a guy called Bert who ran the small stores and gave you one clean wiper per week!! There were 44 of us in the training school that year, made up from Wickman, Webster & Bennett, Samuel Gill and Wickman Scrivener, Witton. Over the year, we made numerous test pieces (I still have them all 54 years later) these included a vice, pair of vee blocks, cylinder square and 30 / 60, 45 / 90 set squares. I have my group picture somewhere, must dig it out. I can remember many of the names from that picture.

Wickman Scrivener! A name from the past. They were Arthur Scrivener on Tyburn Road, Birmingham, as I recall, when Wickman took them over. Did some accounts work one month-end, and also at Taylor & Challen. Long time ago

Cliff, Wasn't Cincinnati around that way?

Sadly, my last job for Wickman before being made redundant in 84, was to sub-contract all of the work in progress from Scrivener prior to the auction of all the plant that wasn't needed at Banner Lane

Cincinatti was on Kingsbury Road, I think there was a pop factory close by?

Hi, My dad who recently passed away, 93 years old, worked at Wickman from the 50's till retirement, on Inspection. His name was Ray Copson. He and Jack Hands mentioned in a earlier post used to car share to and from Banner Lane in the 60/70s.

Hi Mike18 I knew your dad really well. He was chief inspector for the Heavy Machine Shop from when I was there 1970 to 1984. Great bloke whom I had a lot of respect for. Sorry for your loss.

Thank you,

Hi Mike18 A bloke called Bob Smith worked for your dad. Did he ever mention him?