UPDATE: Thanks to Brett, I've added some photos of a later model General Supply V4 (possibly a Ford V4) at the bottom of the post.
Rick Webb shared what he knows about the history of General Supply Compressors & Hesse Compressors. His father Paul Webb played a principle role in the compressor's development. I've included pics below to show how much alike they looked.
For reference, this is a General Supply GS-250 Compressor powered by an L-head. More pics here:
Contrast the one above with this one, a Hesse Horney Compressor powered by an L-head. More pics here:
Rick began, After reading information on youtube and the forums it seems as though there are a lot of questions concerning the hesse hornet and the gs-260 air compressors.I don't claim to have all the answers however I can shed some light on the development of these units.
My father, Paul Web, lost his dad at the young age of 24 and took a job at the General Supply and Leasing Company in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1951 as a delivery driver. A division of the McDowell Tire Company, General Supply sold tire changing equipment.
When he took the job he met a man by the name of Dick Roberts who was an engineer. They soon hired a man with the last name of Simes (pronounced "Sims") whose first name I do not recall.Simes was from Arkansas and was a self taught mechanic. He could not read or write, so they taught him to sign his name so he could cash his paycheck. He never used a torque wrench; however when his engines were tested his torque specs were spot on.
At the time, they were using Model A engine powered compressors for tire trucks made by the Gordon Smith Corp., when they learned Ford was going to quit making the Model A engines. So, the engineer, the mechanic, and the young student set out to design a new air compressor. They approached GM about using the all new small block V8, but GM wouldn't warranty the engine after it was modified.
Next, they met with Willys Motors. They reached an agreement. Then they had to develop a custom head for the L-134 engine. These heads were cast from iron in Coffeeville, Kansas. The pilot valve and air valves were custom designed and my father received patents on these, which he sold back to the company for $1.00.They utilized a stock engine, swapping out the head for the newly designed one and slightly modifying the carb. The result was an engine that ran on two cylinders and pumped air on two.These proved to be highly popular and were found in many tire trucks around the country. They were basically stock engines and repair parts could be found in most major cities. They went on to produce approximately 12,000 jeep-engine powered compressors.
About this time, the Hesse Corporation copied the compressor and renamed it the Hesse Hornet. They, too, were built using jeep engines.
Soon thereafter Kaiser announced it would no longer make the L-134 4-cyl engine.The General Supply trio set out once more to create a new design based on a V6 and a Ford 4-cyl OHV. This design would not succeed as the lower ends were too weak and were soon discontinued.
A new design was developed utilizing the 302 Ford engine running on 4 cylinders and pumping on 4 cylinders and proved to be wildly popular in not only the tire industry but also in the construction industry as they were lightweight, simply designed and parts were readily available. Once again, the V8 heads were cast Coffeville, Kansas, and the V8 used the same air valves and pilot valve as the L-134 4 cylinder jeep-powered compressor.
In 1983, Mr. Mcdowell turned the company over to his son. The younger McDowell computerized the business. He also demanded that torque wrenches be utilized and records kept on the new fangled computer.The engineer was no longer allowed to draw his designs in chalk on the floor. Within a year, the multi million dollar company was bankrupt.
Mr Simes passed before the company went broke. and Mr Roberts found other employment. When Sims died it really hit my dad hard as they had become very close The company was sold to Iowa Mold Tool Company. They carried some compressor parts for a few years, but I'm not sure what is available today. Mr Roberts passed about a year ago. We lost my dad in 2010 the morning 0f his 80th birthday.
I hope this sheds some light on these machines as they were very popular at one time.
Thanks again to Rick for sharing this story. There are a few forums where members discuss the GS-260.
- https://www.smokstak.com/forum/showthread.php?t=117523
- http://www.yesterdaystractors.com/cgi-bin/viewit.cgi?bd=toolt&th=7397
Here's one of several videos of a General Supply GS-260.
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Thanks to Brett, we now have some pics of a Porta Air V4-35 compressor manufactured by General Supply.
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