Joseph Bramah - Locks, Water Power & Precision (2023)

This film is of a lecture given by Tim Brown on 1 February 2023 in which he discusses the life and works of Joseph Bramah from Stainborough who was involved in a number of inventions concerning toilets, fire engines, locks and hydraulic power at the end of the 18th and start of the 19th Centuries.
Tim's lecture follows his curation of an exhibition held at Kelham Island which celebrated the life of Joseph Bramah. The exhibition was supported by the Newcomen Society and included exhibits from Barnsley Museums, The Royal Institution, Bramah Security Equipment Ltd and Harrolds of Sheffield (Locksmiths).
To find out more about the Hawley Collection and to donate, visit our website: www.hawleytoolcollection.com/

[@caiusofglantri5513]

My hobby is making online quizzes and in my research I came across Joseph Bramah - I'm surprised I'd never come across him before - he deserves to be known alongside Newcomen, Smeaton, Watt, Stephenson, Bessimer, Bazalgette, Arkwright, & Brunel. Thank you so much for this fascinating and well-illustrated talk!

[@dichebach]

Today, I watched a single workman drive a large truck into my driveway and use a hydraulic system to place a 16ft long by 8 by 8 feet metal storage box precisely where I wanted it. My wife, knowing my love of all things technological asked me how that worked and I had to confess I knew only the basics: it was an hydraulic system, a closed loop with fluid inside which pressurized the fluid in different elements of the system in order to extend or retract pistons using petrol powered pump. This prompted me to consult on the history of hydraulic systems and to learn of Joseph Bramah, an English engineer who patented the first hydraulic press in 1795.

[@yorkshirejoinery2869]

I have a lovely cast-iron strong box cast in Leeds with a Bramah patent lock. I knew it was old but didn’t realise it was probably 200 years young! Thanks for sharing. It still functions correctly with its original key, however, it is not of the tubular type, rather a warded type.

[@KenHawleyCollectionTrust]

Tim Brown would love to see a photo of the lock and key as he has doubts it might be a Bramah as it is warded. Are there any other markings on the lock?