It was close to eight years ago when the Hauraki Vintage Machinery Club decided to get the Kerepēhi Flaxmill up and running.
Flaxmill co-ordinator Brendon Adams said it was the last flaxmill left in the North Island. “It’s not restored as such, but we’ve got it operational,” he told The Profile.
“If it’s not the last one operating in New Zealand, we’d have to be pretty close to it, because all the other mills ceased operation in sort of the mid-1960s.”
On April 26, people around the community will have the opportunity to head along to the Kerepēhi Flaxmill Open Day and see the machinery in action for a gold coin entry.
While there will be barbecue food, tea and coffee for sale, people were also welcome to take along a picnic. “If they’ve got an old engine or an old car or truck or tractor, they’re most welcome to bring those along too. That’s all part of it.”
The flaxstripper is a fluted cast wheel, with a two inch or 50mm bar in front of it.
“And what you do, basically, it’s got feeder rollers, so the feeder rollers grab the flax, which is just the length of it, and it feeds it into it [and] goes between the… 50mm bar, and [the] spinning wheel,” he said.
“So by doing that, it strips sap out of the leaf, and so what you’ve got left is just the fibres. The fibres are what they used for making rope or textiles.
“They used to use it for making woolpacks, a number of things, really, and the short ends of it, which they didn’t use, could use in mattresses.
“It was quite a good product,” he said.
DETAILS: Gold coin entry for the Kerepēhi Flaxmill Open Day on April 26 from 11am to 3pm at 668 Kaihere Rd, Kerepēhi.
By DAVIDDA HIKATANGATA
