The solid fuel Rayburn, a combined cooker and water heater, was first introduced by Allied Ironfounders Ltd in 1946. It was considered a revolution of its time due to its simplified flueing design and easily controlled variable oven heat.

The Rayburn was freestanding giving good background warmth to the room. It was vitreous enamelled; the first Rayburn was only available in cream mottle. There were two models launched, the No.1, which had one oven and manufactured until around 1958 when it was modified to become the Rayburn Regent. The other model was the No.2, which had two ovens! Later the No. 3, an improvement on the No 2, became the most popular model.

1950's

The early Rayburns were manufactured in four of Allied Ironfounders` foundries; Falkirk, Dobbie Forbes, Planet Manchester and Coalbrookdale.

This is a great decade for the sales and manufacture of Rayburn. Peak production was 1,250-1,500 units per week, many of which are still to be found in older homes today!

In order to cope with the ever-increasing export demand, Allied Ironfounders set up two foundries abroad: one in Durban, South Africa and one in Melbourne, Australia.

At one time a four oven Rayburn was manufactured, the Rayburn 40, which had two cooking ovens and two warming ovens with a long hotplate and a central insulating cover.

1968

On 1st July 1968 the first oil fired Rayburn was introduced, the OF7. This consisted of a single oil `pot burner` which replicated the workings of the solid fuel model. The OF7 was a continuous burning appliance and could be controlled manually by a control knob on the oil box.

1969

Glynwed International takes over Allied Ironfounders.

1971

Over the years the Rayburn concept has evolved; boiler outputs increased resulting in the introduction of the central heating cooker.

With the increased demand for central heating in homes throughout the UK a Rayburn oil fired central heating cooker was introduced: the Rayburn OF22.

To demystify the nomenclature this stood for Oil Fired 22,000Btu. The OF22 was a central heating cooker of modest means, serving a few radiators but soon sold in great numbers into the rural community.

1972

Production assembly of Rayburn cookers moved to Ketley, Telford, where they share the same factory premises as the Aga cooker. The vitreous enamelling plant also came to Ketley enabling the manufacturing process to be undertaken at one site. Rayburn cookers are assembled by hand before leaving the factory.

The Coalbrookdale Foundry was almost the sole manufacturer of Rayburn cast iron parts, a few older patterns only being made at Larbert in Scotland.

1974

With `conversion` over (where the whole country changed over from town`s gas to natural gas 1971-1973), 18th June 1974 saw the introduction of a gas fired Rayburn, namely the G7. This was later followed by the G33, a Rayburn gas fired central heating cooker, again of modest output compared to today`s systems.

1979

The first multi solid fuel Rayburn central heating cooker was launched: the Rayburn MF. It was capable of burning a range of solid fuels as well as wood and peat. Around 5 radiators could be heated together with domestic hot water.

1982

The Rayburn Supreme was launched. This was a major step forward as it provided a solid fuel central heating cooker, which was rated at 35,000Btu enabling more radiators to be heated by a cast iron range cooker than ever before.
It was available in three colours, brown, white and the very popular sable. The Supreme was DSFAAS (Domestic Solid Fuel Appliance Approval Scheme) approved. As so, the Supreme appeared on The Solid Fuel Advisory Service stand at The Ideal Home Exhibition.

1983

Following the success of the Rayburn Supreme the first high output gas fired Rayburn central heating cooker was launched, the Rayburn Gas Ranger, giving a heat output of 60,000Btu. It was soon to be superseded by the Rayburn Nouvelle range.

1985

The relatively modest range of colours was expanded in 1985 to give a smarter look and to enhance the latest models.  

The Rayburn Nouvelle range saw the launch of the Rayburn Multi Solid Fuel Nouvelle, The Rayburn Gas Nouvelle and the development of the Rayburn Oil Nouvelle (introduced 1988). They were available in deep glossy colours, such as green, dark blue, red.

The 1980's

With the excitement in the marketplace on the launch of the Rayburn Nouvelle range a television advert was produced, which was shown on Midlands television: `The Best of Both Worlds` - The world`s best cooker and the world`s best central heating boiler. This featured a rather magnificent black cat, with voice-over by Joanna Lumley. This raised awareness for the products and supported a series of popular Rayburn Roadshows.

1994

The Rayburn is still ever popular, with a bias toward the rural areas. In the 1990`s the Rayburn developed technically and 1994 saw the launch of a new breed of Rayburns. Names changed from Nouvelle or Royal into the 200, 300 and 400 series, with models denoted by size, fuel and output.

The 400 Series, initially an oil fired central heating cooker, is a highly controllable unit which can be turned on from cold and heats up very quickly. The programmer for the cooker and boiler is internal, hidden behind a door. Also, the dimensions changed so that the 400 Series met standard worktop height.

The first of the 400 Series was the 480K, an oil fired central heating cooker with the heating capacity of up to 80,000Btus. It quickly became the best selling Rayburn.

1994 also saw the launch of a dedicated range of Rayburn accessories.

1999

The Rayburns are classified into Cookmasters (cooker only) or Heatrangers (central heating cookers)

2002

The 400 series now account for the majority of Rayburn sales. There is however still strong commercial appeal for the conventional continuous burning models.

The Rayburn 308K is the first cooker to be tested and approved by OFTEC.

2003

Introduction of the 400K PF and 400G PF, power flue cookers, that can be installed almost anywhere in the kitchen.