I called to Tom Yates at Dollardstown, Athy, Co Kildare, recently to see two oil cake breakers or mills that have a long history within the Yates family. Tom has retired from active tillage farming and he still retains some of the items that were part of his family heritage going back some three generations.
Vintage collecting is not always about tractors and oil engines. Tom Yates’ collection of oil cake breakers is evidence of that. Listening to Tom’s story prompted me to look at the history behind these farmyard machines that have not been in use for more than 50 years.
On first impression, the oil cake breaker or mill looks like a very simple machine. They appear to have been offered in the 1800s when farmers were being supplied with oil cake, a cattle-feeding product that was made from the waste of the oil extraction process from seeds such as cotton and rapeseed. This product was referred to as a cake.
The cake was imported into Ireland and the jute bags of cake were usually half a hundredweight (about 25kg) in size.
The oil component meant that the contents hardened during transport, often from as far away as America. Before the cake could be fed, it had to be broken up, as it was almost as hard as concrete. This led to the development of cake breakers or mills to make the job of breaking it up much easier.
Some of the cake breaker machines were hand-operated, with a large hand wheel fitted on one side. The later models were dual-power. These had a hand-operated wheel on one side and a pulley on the other, which could be powered by a stationary engine or smaller tractor.
The cake breakers from a number of manufacturers appear to use very similar shape and size of castings. This gives a hint that there may have been some collaboration between companies making this type of equipment.
The twin roller mechanism (two upper and two lower) ensured that the dense cake was properly broken up. These machines required plenty of elbow grease to drive, as the smaller models were rated in today’s terms as having a 2hp requirement.
Tom Yates has both a Bentall and Bamford mill on his farm. They are very similar in appearance, but have what was then the added sophistication of guards for the gear wheels. Tom is currently looking for a good home for this Bamford one.
Tom’s grandfather moved from Offaly to the farm at Dollardstown in the 1800s. The Bentall cake crush had been used by him at Ballinacarrig Mill outside Kilcormac, Offaly, up until that time. The second Bamford mill may be a later addition.
The historical reports show that Ballinacarrig Mill was water-powered and was used for milling grain, as well as to operate a saw. This means that it was an extensive operation at the time.
The remains of the impressive mill complex are located on the left bank of the Silver River, just upstream from Ballinacarrig Bridge. This was a sizeable mill, as it was mentioned in Charles Coote’s Statistical Survey of King’s County in 1801. For Tom, the cake crushers remain as an important memory of the family link with Offaly.
Bentall – a brief history
Bentall and Bamford were two major British names in the supply of farm machinery in the 1800s and into the 1900s. Their machines were widely used in Ireland and the Bentall name was an important one here for more than 150 years.
There is a long history to the Bentall name. William Bentall opened a small foundry and smithy on land opposite his farmhouse around 1795. Like John Deere, he too developed a steel plough, called the Goldhanger plough, which drove his business forward.
William Bentall is reported to have introduced the first steam-powered threshing machine in 1806, followed by a selection of other agricultural implements. Bentall never took out patents on his designs, but relied on customer satisfaction to ensure the continued success of his products.
In the early 20th century, Bentall rose to the challenge of the new internal combustion engine. The Bentall-designed engine was a slow running machine with small fuel consumption and was also one of the cheapest petrol engines on the market. Designed for ease in repair, the engines found themselves used for purposes as varied as driving chaff-cutters, crushers, pumps and even milking machines.
Bentall became part of an unfortunate engineering merger called Agricultural & General Engineers Ltd in the early 1900s that was to result in disaster. The Bentall family bought back some of the business and over 40 years, brought it back to life.
Its product range in 1921 included oil and petrol engines, silage cutters, power and hand chaff cutters, oil cake breakers, root cutters and cleaners, and hoes. By the 1950s, that included muck spreaders.
At that time, Bentall was represented in Ireland by JH Donnelly & Sons Ltd, then based at Dame Street, Dublin. Even though it was competing with local companies such as Pierce and Star, it could still muster a listing of 48 dealers in the Republic of Ireland. Today, JH Donnelly continues to operate at Summerhill, Co Meath.
In 1961, Bentall was taken over by the Acrow group of companies to concentrate on coffee machinery, grain drying, bulk storage and handling equipment. In the early 1980s, Bentall was merged with Simplex to form Bentall Simplex. In Ireland, it traded for a period during the 1980s as the Bentall Simplex group until receivership in 1984.
Journey for Louise in March
Michael Hoey and supporters are planning a special trip to the west of Ireland in March to raise funds for health support for a daughter of one of his team working at Country Crest.
The trip over the weekend of 19-20 March, called From the Irish Sea to the Atlantic Ocean and Back, by two New Holland T7 tractors with a 1916 Titan tractor on board a trailer, will aim to raise much-needed funding for Louise’s medical support.
Michael will be aiming to get support along the route and bring back a special net of balloons from Galway to be released in Balbriggan on their return.
Michael and his team of John Hagan and Chris Harmon can be contacted at 01-8437061 for support details.
Date Event Location Contact
21 February Shrule Vintage Autojumble Shrule Hall, Mayo 087-618 7903
21 February Carrickdale Model Show, Ravensdale Dundalk, Louth 087-907 2495
25 February Meath Vintage AGM, Teach na Teamhrach Navan, Meath 087-251 6771
27 February Mullahead Vintage Ploughing Armagh 044-7710804819
13 March IVETA AGM, County Arms Hotel Birr, Offaly 086-867 2664
17 March Nenagh St Patrick’s Day IVETA parade Tipperary 087-900 5163
17 March Vintage rally Blarney, Cork 087-279 5814
19 March Irish Sea to Atlantic Ocean tractor run Dublin 01-843 7061
20 March Ballyglass Heritage Club autojumble Claremorris ,Mayo 086-820 0652
20 March Rathcormac Vintage Club road run Rathcormac, Cork 087-810 1828
20 March Camross club run and ploughing, Mountrath Laois 087-979 3807
20 March Thurles Andy Horgan Memorial road run Tipperary
20 March Mad for Models show, Dolmen Hotel Carlow 087-267 0737
26 March Easter Maurice Collins vintage tractor run Kerry 087-751 1831
27 March Easter Sunday Maurice Collins rally Kerry 087-751 1831