Foley-Belsaw was a family-owned group of companies that designed, manufactured, and distributed a broad line of sharpening and locksmithing equipment, and sold home study courses for outdoor power equipment repair, locksmithing, and gunsmithing. Company headquarters and primary manufacturing operations were in River Falls, Wisconsin, with additional facilities in Kansas City, Missouri. The companies and divisions included Foley-Belsaw Company, Foley United, Foley United Industrial, and Neary Technologies. Foley Belsaw was a leading United States sharpening equipment manufacturer.
Foley history
Foley’s history began with Hugh B. Foley (1870-1926), an English citizen living in Seattle, Washington who invented a saw filing machine, US Patent number 837,922, issued December 11, 1906. Foley began manufacturing The Foley Saw Filing Machine after applying for the patent January 24, 1906, according to the name plate on an early machine. Foley formed Foley Saw Tool Company to manufacture the saw filing machine. By 1916 Hugh B. Foley was a US citizen living in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and he was granted US Patent number 1,224,293 in 1917 for an improved saw filing machine. Foley continued to invent and patent saw filing and saw setting equipment, with his last patent issued posthumously in 1928.
Foley history
Foley’s history began with Hugh B. Foley (1870-1926), an English citizen living in Seattle, Washington who invented a saw filing machine, US Patent number 837,922, issued December 11, 1906. Foley began manufacturing The Foley Saw Filing Machine after applying for the patent January 24, 1906, according to the name plate on an early machine. Foley formed Foley Saw Tool Company to manufacture the saw filing machine. By 1916 Hugh B. Foley was a US citizen living in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and he was granted US Patent number 1,224,293 in 1917 for an improved saw filing machine. Foley continued to invent and patent saw filing and saw setting equipment, with his last patent issued posthumously in 1928.
Walter Ringer purchased Foley Saw Tool Co. in 1926 and continued to develop and manufacture automatic saw filers and related saw setting and retoothing equipment in Minneapolis. In 1929, Ringer changed the name to Foley Manufacturing Co. The product line grew to include machines for sharpening everything from ice skates to carbide saw blades, plus key duplication machines. Foley developed training materials to broaden the market for the sharpening machines. Foley also made a line of household kitchen utensils including the Foley food mill, a rolling pin with ball bearings, a rolling cookie and biscuit cutter, and flour sifters. During the post-World War II manufacturing boom Foley briefly produced a small table saw and gasoline powered reel lawn mower. Many of Foley’s machines were the best selling of their type, particularly the automatic saw filer.
Belsaw history
Belsaw Machinery Co. started in 1928 according to their logo, and they were located in Kansas City, Missouri. Belsaw’s best known machines were the portable sawmill and planer-molder, and they originated the Sharp-All multipurpose grinder and sharpener. Although Belsaw’s product line was smaller than Foley’s, they developed saw sharpening and setting machines that competed with Foley’s equipment.
Belsaw Machinery Co. started in 1928 according to their logo, and they were located in Kansas City, Missouri. Belsaw’s best known machines were the portable sawmill and planer-molder, and they originated the Sharp-All multipurpose grinder and sharpener. Although Belsaw’s product line was smaller than Foley’s, they developed saw sharpening and setting machines that competed with Foley’s equipment.
Combined company history
Foley and Belsaw merged around 1982 under the Ringer family ownership, now in its third generation. The combined firm eliminated some duplicate products, but continued to manufacture machines developed by both Foley and Belsaw under the new name. Until 2017, its Foley Belsaw division in Kansas City marketed the Foley-Belsaw line of machines for key duplication, scissor sharpening, carbide grinding, knife sharpening, lawnmower sharpening, tool sharpening, chain saw grinding, drill and end mill grinding, honing, and skate grinding. Foley United made sharpening equipment for golf and turf markets. Foley United Industrial made sharpening equipment for industrial woodworking tools. Neary Technologies was founded in the late 1970s by a former Foley employee and purchased by Foley Belsaw in 1998. Neary sold a separate line of sharpening equipment for the golf and turf markets.
Recent history
As of April, 2017, what was called "Foley Belsaw Sharpening" was purchased from the Ringer family by Wingra Direct LLC, trading as Sharpening Supplies. As of June, 2019, all Foley-Belsaw sharpening machines have been discontinued except for the Model 310-16 carbide saw grinder. Sharpening Supplies sells machinery and supplies from other vendors and some supplies for Foley-Belsaw machines. What was Foley United is now called Foley Company, LLC, with partial Ringer family ownership. Neary Technologies is still also operating as of 2019.
Foley and Belsaw merged around 1982 under the Ringer family ownership, now in its third generation. The combined firm eliminated some duplicate products, but continued to manufacture machines developed by both Foley and Belsaw under the new name. Until 2017, its Foley Belsaw division in Kansas City marketed the Foley-Belsaw line of machines for key duplication, scissor sharpening, carbide grinding, knife sharpening, lawnmower sharpening, tool sharpening, chain saw grinding, drill and end mill grinding, honing, and skate grinding. Foley United made sharpening equipment for golf and turf markets. Foley United Industrial made sharpening equipment for industrial woodworking tools. Neary Technologies was founded in the late 1970s by a former Foley employee and purchased by Foley Belsaw in 1998. Neary sold a separate line of sharpening equipment for the golf and turf markets.
Recent history
As of April, 2017, what was called "Foley Belsaw Sharpening" was purchased from the Ringer family by Wingra Direct LLC, trading as Sharpening Supplies. As of June, 2019, all Foley-Belsaw sharpening machines have been discontinued except for the Model 310-16 carbide saw grinder. Sharpening Supplies sells machinery and supplies from other vendors and some supplies for Foley-Belsaw machines. What was Foley United is now called Foley Company, LLC, with partial Ringer family ownership. Neary Technologies is still also operating as of 2019.
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| Foley Co. LLC website 2019 |
This is a great article and deserves to be on Wikipedia. add those references and it will be perfect. I recently found an old belsaw m14 in the forest and was fascinated yo learn it's history
ReplyDeletePlease help me find information on a Foley riding rotary mower. We have one with a Wisconsin engine. It is 6 speed with engine and drive on the deck, and the seat on a cart behind, making it a very effective zero turn mower.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone has a foley belsaw A-14 or information about one or contact info of a sawmill for sale please email me at barrysusanclark@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteThanks again this article was awesome so much information it was very interesting. Too bad for Wikipedia I enjoyed it. Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteMark, thanks for this article. I had a Belsaw planner in the 1970s and commercially produced thousands of beehives and honeycomb frames with it. It was the most satisfying carpentry projects I ever did.
ReplyDeleteWikipedia relies heavily on reference citations supporting material presented in it's web pages. I agree with an earlier blogger, if you were to include sufficient references your article might well be accepted.
Questions about very early Belsaw sawmills:
ReplyDeleteWas the Husk wood, cast iron, or steel?
Was the carriage feed done by belts or friction drive?
I have a rather old Foley rolling pin — perhaps as old as 90 years. I’m wondering how to determine its date of manufacture.
ReplyDeleteWalter Ringer and Rodger were wonderful guys, in fact the whole ringer family were like family to us. My grandmother worked for Foley and then Foley Belsaw, we had every kitchen product they made and some shop equipment!!
ReplyDelete