Engineering in Coventry

Thank you for asking. Yes, Steve's been very fortunate and is now in his second year of a decent four year apprenticeship. Not only that, but it's at a classic old Coventry firm, Matrix Machine Tools - shrunk since its heyday perhaps, but still thriving. It's not in electronics, as I'd expected, but on the mechanical side, which we all hope will give Steve a steady and bright future.

Hello all, I'm building a history of my grandfather's employment in Coventry, pre and post war. He's no longer around, but wondered if anyone had any information on the following; "Gulson Road Engineering" - Possibly Autocycles and Fairground Petrol Cars (1936) "Super Car Limited" - Electric bumper cars, Possibly opposite Red House, Stoney Stanton Road? Many thanks. Martin.

There's a little on Gulson here... Graces Guide

Thanks bohica, I did see that but wasn't sure if it was one and the same. Thanks for posting

Hi, here's a start, does this help? 1926 directory, 121 Gulson Road, William Montgomery, Gulson Engineering Co., Ltd.

Here's an article on Supercar... Telegraph

Supercar (Coventry) Ltd moved to Gunnery Terrace, Leamington Spa, maybe during World War Two or shortly afterwards. They moved again in the 1960's to a factory in Lock Lane, Warwick. There is a picture of one of their dodgems cars on the 'Our Warwickshire' website but I can't get into it to have a look at the moment.

Here is a youtube clip of some Supercar dodgems in a back garden in Nuneaton

A picture that I think Notlocal refers to... Supercar

Worth a read on Supercar... Bingham Vintage Services

If I remember right, you got a clout round the ear from the ticket stewards if you bumped any other cars. This was at Hearsall Common fair.

Thank you very much everyone, great response and a great help ! Martin.

Not sure that it was around in the 30's, but does anyone remember a firm called "John G Bush & Sons"?

I certainly do, via my father. I only have recollections from childhood. IIRC, their premises at the time was somewhere near the ring road, maybe around the bottom of Far Gosford St...? They were a small engineering (machine tools) works, owned and run by Gordon Sampson, who either inherited or purchased the firm. My father had known him since the war, probably from the Gauge, I'm guessing. He often did small private jobs for my father, who would spend many a Saturday morning chatting and drinking coffee or tea with my father. As a boy I would often accompany him on these visits, on the pretext of delivering or collecting pieces of metal. There being no elf 'n safety in them there days, I would wander round the untenanted factory, fascinated by the machines, later asking questions of the two gents, such as "what does a milling machine do?". One area where my father did not see eye to eye, in a mild way you understand, was that the machines were all left covered in swarf over the weekend. My father was horrified - he would have made the machinists clean their machines on Friday afternoons, before knocking off for the weekend. Gordon's view was that this was a waste of time, as the machines would be just as dirty on the Monday morning, so why bother? Answer: discipline. My father served his time at Herbert's (Edgwick), and that was how they were all brought up. Gordon Sampson used to live in Ainsbury Road. I can still remember the house, as it was one of the houses on my paper round.