Roundabout For Sale

We are offering for sale our 2 abreast Halstead children’s roundabout. Completely rebuilt by us in 1998 including new centre pole, it has eight horses and two cars. The ride has been used by us since restoration and has a paper trail of electrical and mechanical tests which will easily enable a new owner and tester to continue use. It has both motor and a Halstead cast handle so can be used with or without power. The motor runs on 110volt dc, there is an optional transformer rectifier available for mains operation. Build-up takes 1-2 people 1½ hour. The brass is lacquered and all paintwork is in excellent condition. The capacity is 20 children, and the cars have been fitted with safety straps for smaller riders. There is no owner’s name on the lettered rounding boards. The horses have gold leafed manes and horsehair tails. The four outer mounts are fibreglass copies of originals, and the four inner mounts are wooden copies of originals made by Terry White.

It is an attractive proposition for event organisers, being quite small at 14’ diameter, and it is easy to carry to sites that cannot be accessed by a large vehicle. We have used it successfully for 11 years at a wide range of bookings, but have now retired from ride operation.

The ubiquitous traditional “Dobby Set” made by WH Halstead of Sowerby Bridge was a mainstay of the fairground scene for many years and is the forerunner of many modern rides. The firm operated from the 1870’s until the 1930’s, and this example which probably dates from 1920’s was owned by a Mr Forshaw. Halstead’s produced hundreds of these little machines with small variations, they remained popular until they were overtaken by the toysets and car rides from other manufacturers. By the 1960’s they had become rarer on modern fairgrounds and have now virtually disappeared. The mechanism and design would be difficult to fault for its simplicity; its success is evident from the examples that still operate in preservation today giving their owners very few problems while retaining their appeal for children and adding a period feel to events.

There is a possibility that we may consider sale of the 37 key Verbeeck that we have used in both this and our previous ride. Offers to purchase the ride (without the organ) in the region of £12000-14000