The Automatic Lumberjack Of The Future

The Automatic Lumberjack Of The Future

In the 1950s, Americans were obsessed with push-button convenience. The future promised push-button meals, push-button cleaning, and even push-button schools. But this 1955 ad for ball bearings imagined something even weirder for the world of tomorrow: the push-button lumberjack. Amazingly, it was a vision that was delivered on.

From the March 1955 issue of Scientific American:

Even Paul Bunyan couldn’t match the pace of this “automatic lumberjack” of the future. It fells, sections and loads trees — all at the push of a button!

The company that launches this wonder will probably look to New Departure for ball bearings. For New Departures have proved their ability to hold moving parts in perfect alignment, cut wear and friction, and work long hours without letup — or upkeep. Above all, New Departure has lived up to its name — being first with ball bearing advancements.

So, when improving or designing a product, count on New Departure for the finest ball bearings.

The future is now. The robo-Bunyans of today slice, dice, and stack like nobody’s business. And while it took more than a few push-buttons (and a few more years) to get them going, the only thing they didn’t predict accurately was the roll New Departure ball bearings would play. Which is to say, none.

Picture: March 1955 issue of Scientific American via Modern Mechanix


The Cheapest NBN 50 Plans

It’s the most popular NBN speed in Australia for a reason. Here are the cheapest plans available.

At Gizmodo, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.