Several years ago I was given a rather nice 1911 Number 4 set with parts making it up near to a number 5. These were short lived sets with the 1911 patent tunnel fixings, by 1912 bossed parts were introduced with set screws although some sets lingered on with a mixture as did the manuals. This is the third model I have built with the set I choose it because it was a working model that was not a crane! This model of a Drilling Machine is taken from the 1911 instruction manual shown below. Unlike many other models in the manual that were continued this was deleted during 1916. It was probably short lived because of its many failings. The drill drive shaft is not very practical in theory it should work but even replacing the horizontal cord belt with a rubber driving band it failed to move. The very heavy chuck head easily falls off. The table moves up and down, to meeet the chuck, this is activated by using a worm gear as a ratchet.The early 1916 manual shows only one revised (re-touched) illustration with the clips removed and a p/n 63 coupling instead of the chuck. It was a good exercise in how the Meccano system worked in 1911 but the short comings of the spring clip tunnel fixing were all too obvious. Another problem was the long screws described as "Machine Screws" in the instructions this meant that corner fixings could not have both nuts on the inside.  It is a mystery as to why there are no washers in the set they were introduced in 1909 but were not in the standard sets set until 1922! There are places where they are essential on this model. To sum up, it was a very disappointing model that looks attractive but does not really work. Other models I have built from 1911 set are shown on the right click on images for pictures and information about these historic Meccano models. Page created October 12 2020 Revised April 10 2019
CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE