27/08/2024
W.H.Tildesley is proud to announce that we have joined the Federation Of British Historic Vehicle Clubs (FBHVC) as a Trade Supporter. Following an extensive 2-year archive collation and preservation project, WHT has learned of its substantial involvement with iconic British brands spanning...
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19/07/2023
W.H.Tildesley is actively involved in many heritage locomotive projects, assisting with critical forged components to ensure they remain in operational condition. Over the years we have worked closely with the West Somerset Railway regarding their Great Western Railway (GWR) 4500 or Small Prarie...
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13/01/2023
The Ferrari 250 is a series of sports cars and grand tourers that were built by Ferrari between 1952 and 1964. The 250 series includes many variations that are designed for road or motorsport use and were characterised by their use of the Colombo V12 engine designed by Gioacchino Colombo. Models...
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06/09/2022
The Jaguar C-Type is a competition model originally built by Jaguar between 1951 and 1953. Given its primary motorsport use it was successful in many competitions and is most commonly recognised for winning the Le Mans 24-hour race twice and breaking every speed and distance record in the process....
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07/06/2022
The Ford Escort Mk1 is a highly recognised and iconic car in the world of classics. Launched in 1968, initially as a small and practical family saloon car, it immediately saw success in motorsport by dominating the rally scene throughout the 70s and 80s. Our client who specialises in the...
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26/04/2022
Historically, the Northern Counties Committee of the LMS in Northern Ireland operated the main lines from Belfast to Portrush, Derry, and Larne, together with branch lines and narrow gauge lines. In 1932, the main line from Belfast to Derry was re-routed at Bleach Green to avoid an awkward reversal...
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04/03/2022
Austin-Healey was a British sports car brand, founded in 1952 as a joint venture between the Austin division of the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and the Donald Healey Motor Company (Healey). The first model built by the firm was the Austin-Healey 100 and production ran from 1953 to 1955. The...
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15/02/2022
The Jaguar E-Type is an iconic British-made sports car produced by Jaguar Cars Ltd between 1961 and 1974. At the time, its combination of beautiful and functional aesthetics, forward-thinking new technologies, and exceptionally high performance elevated it to global acclaim. W.H.Tildesley...
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14/12/2021
The Porsche 911 is a two-door, high-performance rear-engined sports car and one of the most iconic and recognised cars of all time. The 911 was first introduced in 1964 by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany, and continues to be a staple model of the brand. We were approached by our client, a Porsche...
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10/02/2021
Frazer Nash was one of many iconic British sports car manufacturers and brands, founded in the early 1920s by Archibald Frazer-Nash. They produced a relatively small number of vehicles and focused on custom-made bespoke options for their customer base, many of which were looking to use them in...
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01/12/2020
The legendary Supermarine Spitfire is an iconic aircraft that supported the effort during World War II. It continues to be enjoyed by enthusiasts today and airworthy examples are being commissioned and built every year. It is rumored that there are only 60 flight-capable examples worldwide with...
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09/09/2020
The Clifton Suspension Bridge, a Grade 1 listed structure, is one of the oldest surviving iron suspension bridges in the UK. Spanning 214 metres across the Avon Gorge, the bridge has become one of Bristol’s top tourist attractions and an inspiration for bridge engineers all over the globe....
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19/09/2019
The Triumph TR2 is a British sports car produced by the Standard Motor Company between 1953 and 1955. It is said that a total of 8,636 TR2s were produced up until its successor the Triumph TR3 was launched in 1955 and that approximately 2,000 vehicles survive today. We were approached by our...
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26/03/2019
The Jaguar D-Type is a legendary British-made sports car produced by Jaguar Cars Ltd between 1954 and 1957. The D-Type was designed specifically to win the Le Mans 24-hour race, with its straight 6 engine and innovative monocoque construction that offered advanced aerodynamic capabilities based on...
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28/09/2018
The Morgan Plus 4 (+4) is a British sports car produced by the Morgan Motor Company. Initially, production ran from 1950 to 1969 with an estimated 4,584 vehicles produced. The Plus 4 model was revived several times and a modern version is still in production today. Our client, a Morgan parts...
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15/06/2018
The Aston Martin DB4 is classed as a grand tourer and produced between 1958 and 1963. The designation ‘DB’ is from Sir David Brown who was the owner of the company from 1947 onwards. Many model variations were produced including the DB4 Convertible, DB4 GT, Vantage, and Vantage GT. We...
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25/05/2018
The Lancia Lambda was first produced in 1922 and saw 9 ‘series’ revisions up until production ceased in 1931. Considered innovative for its time, it was the first car to feature a load-bearing unitary body and pioneered the use of independent suspension. We were approached by our...
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28/03/2018
Colonel David Tildesley, who has died aged 101, was praised for his 'determination and cool courage' in the course of winning two Military Crosses during the Second World War. But despite his heroism, Mr Tildesley rarely spoke about the conflict and bore no grudges towards Germany. After the war,...
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30/01/2018
Vincent Motorcycles is a brand synonymous with British motorcycles, founded in the late 1920s by Philip Vincent following the acquisition of Vincent HRD. It is said that the most famous Vincent models were developed after the war, particularly towards the late 1940s when the Vincent Black Shadow...
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26/12/2017
The Lagonda Rapier was a car produced by the British Lagonda Company that saw a short production run between 1934 and 1935 and again by the Rapier Car Company up until 1938. It is believed that only 376 were produced with only 69 surviving today. We were approached by our client who specialises...
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10/05/2017
We were approached by our client, Hawk Cars, which specialises in the manufacture and supply of replica kit cars. Their focus is recreations of famous cars from the 1960s and 70s such as the AC Cobra and Lancia Stratos. W.H.Tildesley looked at and produced new forged components, including new stub...
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13/09/2016
The Hawker Tempest is a British-made fighter aircraft that first saw use by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Originally developed as the Mk2 version of the earlier Hawker Typhoon, it was decided to name it Tempest as it had deviated too far away from the original design. It is said...
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14/03/2016
The now classic and timeless Austin Mini is known as a small, two-door, four-seater car that saw many iterations such as fastbacks, estates, and convertibles. It was produced in 1959 by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors Britsh Leyland and the Rover Group. Our client, a...
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10/07/2015
The Norton Motorcycle Company, back in the late 1940s, developed a new motorcycle model and engine known as the Dominator. This was released to compete against their rivals Triumph Engineering who were the first to release a twin cylinder powered model known as the ‘Speed Twin’. Our...
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03/04/2014
The Aston Martin DBR2 is a specialist sports racing car built in 1957 and is said to have been created from a short-lived Lagonda development project known as DP166. Designed for competition use, the DBR2 saw its first entry into the 1957 24 Hours of Le Mans where it retired early due to...
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03/02/2012
The replication of components for heritage projects is a specialty of W.H. Tildesley. We were approached by a client requiring new production of forged exhaust rocker arms for 1914 Cleget 9A aircraft engines. Clerget was the name given to early rotary aircraft engines designed by Pierre Clerget....
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07/10/2011
We were approached by our client, Atalanta Motors, to produce forged stub axles for their continuation project of the 1936 Atalanta sports car. Atalanta Motors was originally founded in the 1930s and stopped production due to the war after a short production run of only 21 cars. The brand was...
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30/05/2011
Different parts of The Black Country have long been associated with certain products or trades. Willenhall for its Locks & Keys, Brierley Hill for its Glass, Cradley Heath for its Chain & Walsall for its leather. Such was the success of the Walsall leather trade, that the town was home to...
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23/02/2011
W.H. Tildesley is rightfully proud of our involvement in the manufacture of components for medical devices and prosthetics. An industry that we are still serving to this day. The earliest example of a Tildesley component for use in a prosthetic device is dated August 1928, with hundreds more...
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01/02/2011
Willenhall has been the centre of the British lock-making industry since the 16th century, with the Industrial Revolution turning Willenhall’s lock and key industry from a Craft Trade into a world-spanning giant. With W.H. Tildesley operating out of the same works in the centre of...
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20/06/1972
Invacar Ltd is a name we came across in our heritage customer and drawing archive. W.H. Tildesley produced a small collection of forged components for the company around 1972 that coincided with the production of the Invacar, a unique 3-wheeler vehicle designed for the disabled. Around...
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18/06/1970
When analysing drawings in our archive we discovered that W.H.Tildesley produced forged steering and torque arms for the Bristol 411, a car that was produced by Bristol Cars between 1969 and 1976. During original production, it saw 5 model revisions that were mainly cosmetic such as the quad...
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23/11/1955
W.H.Tildesley produced a wide range of drop forged components for Crossley Motors Ltd between 1933 and 1958. With over 150 drawings in the archive, a small selection of parts with Fighting Vehicle (FV) designation were discovered. We reached out to Malcolm Asquith, historian and expert in...
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27/01/1950
W.H. Tildesley Ltd is a drop forging specialist and has been producing components for many of Britain's iconic automotive and motorcycle brands since 1874. The archive at WHT holds leather-bound forging drawings dating back to 1919 and two of our largest heritage accounts are motorcycle legends...
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10/01/1945
One model of motorcycle that Tildesley produced forged components for was the Velocette LE (Veloce). Velocette is a brand created by British motorcycle manufacturer Veloce Ltd, located in Hall Green, Birmingham. The Velocette LE saw a lengthy production between 1948 and 1971, with three model...
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18/04/1944
The name Fordson was a brand established by Henry Ford & Son in 1917 and was primarily given to vehicles produced for the agricultural sector. Prouction, between 1919 and 1923 took place in Cork, Ireland, and later moved to Dagenham between 1933 and 1964. Upon checking our drawing archive we...
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18/09/1941
W.H.Tildesley was a well-known producer of forged components during the war effort and worked with Blackburn Aircraft Ltd from 1941. Given the age and lack of archived material relating to the original customer part numbers it is difficult to determine what forged parts were used on which...
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05/12/1940
Rolls Royce is one of W.H. Tildesleys most recognisable aerospace/aviation brands, with the company producing forged components for their different engine models during the Second World War.This included the Rolls-Royce Griffon, a 37-litre V-12 engine, earning its name after a bird of prey, the...
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04/12/1940
One of W.H. Tildesleys most recognisable aerospace/aviation brands is Rolls Royce, with the company producing forged components for their many models of aircraft engines during the Second World War. This included the Rolls-Royce Merlin, a 27-litre V-12 engine. Initially known as the PV-12 it was...
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14/11/1940
W.H.Tildesley is a well-known producer of forged components for the war effort and worked with The Bristol Aeroplane Company Ltd from 1940 to 1942. As with many manufacturers of critical vehicles for the war, shadow factories were deployed to safeguard our deterrent, and thus very limited records...
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08/11/1938
When looking through our extensive archive we discovered several forged components produced for the Vauxhall 10-4, a small family car that was produced between 1937 and 1947. Vauxhall is one of W.H.Tildesleys largest heritage accounts with over 300 components produced for the company between 1931...
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22/07/1937
W.H.Tildesley was involved with many great and now iconic British car manufacturers, producing a diverse range of drop-forged components that saw in the birth of the motor vehicle. The Alvis Car and Engineering Company was one of the pre-war heritage brands that WHT worked with, supplying...
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02/01/1935
Matchless is one of the oldest brands of British-manufactured motorcycles, producing a wide range of iconic models between 1899 and 1966. They grew to become one of W.H. Tildesley's largest heritage customers with over 200 forged components produced. One model of motorcycle that Tildesley...
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04/09/1934
Veloce was one of W.H. Tildesley's primary heritage accounts, with them producing many forged components for the company and their established motorcycle brand Velocette. When analysing our archive we linked many forged components to the Velocette MOV, MAC, and MSS models. This motorcycle range...
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28/03/1933
Morgan Motors produced their range of V-Twin Three Wheelers between 1911-1939 and used engines supplied by Matchless, commonly known as one of the oldest marques of British motorcycle producers in the UK and one of WHT’s largest heritage accounts. When analysing our archive we discovered...
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24/03/1933
Sunbeam Motor Cycles were produced by John Marston Limited between 1912 and 1956. They were one of many iconic motorcycle manufacturers operating out of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands. Their production site was commonly known as ‘Sunbeamland’ works. Upon further review of our...
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22/08/1930
The W.H.Tildesley archive holds customer records for many heritage car brands dating back to 1918. Morris Motors Limited is one of WHT’s largest historic automotive customers with us producing forged components from 1919 up until the late 1950s. In 1924, shortly after Morris Motors...
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17/09/1929
The W.H.Tildesley archive holds customer records for many heritage car brands dating back to 1918. Morris Motors Limited is one of WHT’s largest historic automotive customers with us producing forged components from 1919 up until the late 1950s. In July 1929, Morris Motors Limited...
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09/07/1929
W.H.Tildesley was heavily involved with local motorcycle manufacturer A.J. Stevens & Co Ltd, producing numerous drop-forged components for bike frames and engines between 1910 and 1945. It was recently discovered by the Heritage Components Division at WHT that the company was primed and ready...
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26/07/1928
W.H.Tildesley was involved in the forged component production for many models of motorcycles supplied by Veloce under the Velocette brand. One model of notable interest was the Velocette KTT, a motorcycle designed and built for racing that is identified by the ‘TT’ designation linked...
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06/04/1928
W.H.Tildesley was involved with many automotive brands, including the world-famous Ford Motor Company. Many early Ford models, some now considered the holy grail in the heritage automotive scene, all used drop-forged components manufactured by WHT. When analysing our drawing archive we...
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08/09/1918
Established in 1874, W.H. Tildesley has produced many types of forged components in support of the British war effort. When reviewing our original archive several components linked to the Martini-Henry Rifle were found. First entering service in 1871, the rifle has become one of the most...
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28/02/1918
During the First World War, W.H. Tildesley was involved in the production of many different types of forged components used within military fighting vehicles and general arms and personnel equipment. When studying our extensive archive we discovered numerous drawings detailing components for a...
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