Reflections

By Staff
1 / 13
36/11/8
36/11/8
2 / 13
36/11/10A
36/11/10A
3 / 13
36/11/4 A
36/11/4 A
4 / 13
36/11/10B
36/11/10B
5 / 13
36/11/10C
36/11/10C
6 / 13
36/11/4B
36/11/4B
7 / 13
36/11/4D
36/11/4D
8 / 13
36/11/4C
36/11/4C
9 / 13
36/11/5A
36/11/5A
10 / 13
36/11/5B
36/11/5B
11 / 13
36/11/7A
36/11/7A
12 / 13
36/11/7B
36/11/7B
13 / 13
36/11/7C
36/11/7C

A Brief Word

At the recent Old Threshers Reunion at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa we met
the new GEM editor, Richard Backus. We spent an enjoyable day
together, and we’re confident that Richard will be doing a nice
job for us. You will also notice some changes to GEM, although they
will be conservative, and aimed primarily at making the magazine
easier to read. Richard tells us (we’re stealing his thunder)
that in the next few months the classified section will be revamped
with sections dealing with various aspects. That way we won’t
have to scan the entire want ad section looking, say, for
lubricators.

We also met several of Richard’s colleagues at Ogden
Publications and admire all of them for their enthusiasm and
insight. We’re sure you’ll be hearing more about the
various aspects of the new publisher within the next few months.
Meanwhile, we urge you to support our new editors and hope
you’ll give them a chance to strut their stuff as they endeavor
to reinvigorate the magazine. Oh yes, ye olde Reflector plans to
keep up with the Reflections column in the foreseeable future.

This year marks the first time in nearly 40 years that the
Reflector didn’t setup a book and merchandise stand at the Old
Threshers Show! Despite cautions that we would be bored to death,
it was actually quite a pleasant experience to play with engines,
visit with literally hundreds of different folks, and have the
chance for an occasional break during the day. Thanks to everyone
who stopped by!

We’re also planning our upcoming Germany/Switzerland Tour.
As this issue of GEM goes to press, we don’t have the final
itinerary, but hope to take care of this in a couple of weeks.
Plans are for the tour to fly from Chicago to Zurich and from
Frankfurt to Chicago, leaving in early July. It will be 16 days,
including air time, or about 14 days on foreign soil. We’re
trying to incorporate a rally or two into our schedule, but it is a
bit early to have the 2002 rally dates. However, we plan to start
our tour in Zurich, spending a few days in Switzerland. Then it is
on to Germany where we have assembled what we call ‘the best of
the best’ in museums, private collections, and a bit of culture
as well.

A number of good friends in Germany are working on details of
the tour. As with our tour to Australia, the 2002 Germany tour will
be limited to 40 people, and per our advertisement, reservations
will be made in the order received. Oh yes, and the usual question
is whether we’ll see some ‘iron’ every day? Yep, there
will be some iron almost every day, with the Deutsches Museum in
Munich being one of the highlights. We read somewhere that if you
spent one minute looking at each exhibit in this huge complex, it
would take something like 18 years to see everything.

Ye olde Reflector is still actively collecting diesel and oil
engines, and has just acquired a Bamford vertical diesel, as well
as a Lister diesel. The latter is fairly common, but is a nice
running engine. The Bamford is a four-cycle but has no cams. The
valves are operated by a peculiar and unique pushrod coming from
the depths of the crankcase. Through a linkage system on the side
of the cylinder head, this single rod operates both valves. Perhaps
we can provide further details in a coming issue. We now have a
fair number of diesel and oil engines, with a favorite being our
single-cylinder Junkers made in Germany back in 1933. But then, we
also have a couple of IHC Mogul engines, which stand at the top of
the heap in our estimation, as among the finest engines ever built
(we’ll probably hear some rebuttals to that statement).

This month we begin with:

36/11/1: Fairbanks-Morse Q: Tom Stoskopf 2449
Fairview Ave., Waverly, IA 50677 has a Fairbanks-Morse 8 HP Type N
engine, s/n 113439, and would like to know the proper color and
when it was built.

A: The engine was built in 1912, and was likely
comparable to DuPont 74713 Green or Sherwin-Williams 4811 Green.
Very early F-M engines were a blackish green or greenish black.

36/11/2: Rivett Lathes Regarding the Rivett of
36/8/7, Doug Elliott sent us a nice letter. Doug resides at 1801
Hwy 128, Philo, CA 95466. He reports that for those with internet
access, go to www.lathes.co.uk, scroll down the list to Rivett and
click on your model. Tony Griffiths of England has a wealth of
data, photos, instructions, etc., on all types of lathes, including
the Rivett. Since this is slow to download, you may want to spend
the $25 for his two-CD catalog to run your own. If you do not have
internet access, drop Doug a line with the model number and any
other data and he will send you copies of what he has (we’re
sure you’ll send along a modest stipend to at least cover paper
and postage). Doug sent along some very interesting data on the
Rivett Company and its eventual demise in the 1970s.

36/11/3: Fairbanks-Morse Type Y Q: I have just
bought my first big engine. It is a 25 HP Fairbanks-Morse Y, Style
H engine with center injection, s/n 401111. What is the correct
color? I have many questions and would like to contact other
owners, especially of the 25 HP model. Zach Nagel, 20 Redwood Ct.,
Lafayette, IN 47905.

A: Your engine is of 1919 vintage. According to
company records, the first center-injection engine was built with
No. 444633 of 1920. We think there is a good chance that your
engine was retrofitted with the new style cylinder head, probably
in the field. The color often appears as black, although it seems
that this was actually black with a hint of blue. Sometimes they
have appeared in a gray finish, but this was probably at the
request of the original purchaser, at least for the earlier
engines. Our book, Fairbanks-Morse 1893-1993, carries lots of
pictures and information on these engines. It is available from
GEM.

36/11/4: Information Needed Q: Cleo Philbrick,
110 W. Purdue, Enid, OK 73701, sends along several photos for which
he would like information. If you can be of help, please contact
him directly. The first is shown in 36/11/4A and 4B. Cleo writes:
‘I bought this engine at auction. It looks like a Waterloo
(Boy) but has a barrel governor with dogs in it. The bore and
stroke is 3×5-inches. Any information on this engine would be
appreciated.’ In photo 4C is shown a Windolph Model C crawler.
‘It uses a two-cylinder Wisconsin engine. I would like to hear
from anyone having any information on this tractor.’ Photo 4D
shows an engine of unknown make. ‘There is no nameplate
information. It has a 3×3-5/8 -inch bore and stroke, and uses a
Webster magneto. Any information would be appreciated. ‘

A: The engine in 4A and 4B is undoubtedly of
Waterloo origin. However, it could be a kissin’ cousin of the
Waterloo Boy, since quite a number of different, but similar
engines came from Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company. Can anyone be
of help on this one? The Windolph C and several other of their
models are illustrated and described on page 505 of the Standard
Catalog of American Farm Tractors, available from GEM. These are
fairly scarce, and we have it that a mint copy of the Model C might
sell for $4,000. These tractors were built in the decade of the
1950s. Regarding the unidentified engine of 4D, check the Webster
magneto bracket number. Then refer to Wendel’s Notebook and the
listing of magneto bracket numbers. That might give you and instant
clue as to the identity of the engine. This book is available from
GEM.

36/11/5: Unidentified Engine Q: See the photos
of an old engine I discovered in my neighbor’s back yard. There
is no nameplate, but s/n 50007 and 5 HP is stamped in the housing.
The flywheel is 14 inches and is screwed onto a 1-inch threaded
crankshaft. The output shaft has a rubber-coated wooden pulley. Any
information would be appreciated. Ernest C. Mills, PO Box 118,
Howley, Newfoundland, Canada A0K 3E0 .

36/11/6: Fairbanks-Morse Q: I recently acquired
a 3 HP Fairbanks-Morse Z engine. At least, that’s what the
decal says. There is no nameplate. The hopper is tapered from the
cylinder to top with an oval opening. The back cover is cast iron
and has the appearance of the back of a frog. There is a speed
lever on the upper left of the cover and a dipstick at the rear of
the engine. It is equipped with a F-M J magneto. The serial number
on the rear of the hopper is very faint. Any information would be
appreciated. Joseph L. Betz, 3581 Falmouth Drive, Library, PA
15129.

A: A photo or two of your engine would be most
helpful in identifying the specific model. If your engine isn’t
correctly identified with the above description, we would suggest
this method, since it would likely give you the information you
seek.

36/11/7: Racine Sattley Marion Brock, 2619
Bernhurst Drive, Knoxville, TN 37918, sends some photos of a
Racine-Sattley 5 HP model, showing the governor mechanism and how
it is arranged. This is their 3-speed arrangement.

36/11/8: Water Rams Ray Webb, RD1, Emlenton, PA
16373, sends along a photo of an unidentified water ram. It has no
name, but is entirely workable. He would like information on how to
properly pipe it up. If you can help, please contact Ray at the
above address.

36/11/9: Stewart Flexible Shaft Engine Rich
Howard, Sarpy Rd., Hysham, MT 59038, would like to hear from anyone
having a Stewart Flexible Shaft engine made by Stover. His is s/n
KA166082 (1925 vintage). Rich is looking for any information on
these machines. If you can help, please let him know. There are a
surprising number of these machines to be found in Australia.

36/11/10: Unidentified Engine Tim Nolting, 2457
S. Lemons Rd., Vincennes, IN 47591, sends along several photos of a
big three-cylinder engine and pump along a levee. It is an 18-inch
pump. Although the engine has been badly cannibalized, perhaps
someone might be able to identify it. We’d guess that this big
three-cylinder engine sounded mighty nice pulling that big 18-inch
pump!

A Closing Word

As is our time-honored duty, we again remind you of draining
those engines and tractors before Jack Frost appears! Aw, we know
we drained everything, or did we forget to take out a vital plug or
petcock? Well, there’s no use lying awake on that first cold
night with visions of freezing water pushing and expanding those
metal parts into unrecognizable junk. Over the years, several
people have written us saying they were glad they caught our
warning here in GEM. Last winter a fellow wrote us. He told of how
he read this little article, and was ABSOLUTELY SURE that all the
engines were drained. Then he remembered how he was interrupted
with a phone call, and never got back to the shed that day. The
evening he received GEM he read about frozen engines, and decided
to go check (just for safety). So with a jacket, cap, and trusty
flashlight he checked his engines, and guess what? There, off in
the corner, was an engine that was overlooked, and still holding
plenty of water for a heap big freezeup!

Some collectors use some permanent antifreeze, and that’s
okay, but don’t leave it in the engine for years and years.
Harmful substances will tend to pit the iron. Dump that stuff out
every year or two and put in a fresh batch. By the way, be careful
in disposing of old antifreeze. It causes mortal illness in adults,
little kids, cats, dogs, and other living things.

We’re excited about a new era for GEM! We think that over
the next few months you’ll be seeing some new and interesting
changes to the magazine, and we’re happy to provide whatever
information we can. See you all next month.

C.H. Wendel is a noted authority on antique engines and
tractors. His books constitute a vital reference resource for
collectors and hobbyists. If you have a query for C.H. Wendel, send
it along to Gas Engine Magazine, 1503 SW 42nd St., Topeka, KS
66609-1265.

Call For Help: Resource Notebook Stolen at Show

At the Sheppard Annual Tractor Reunion, which was held in
Bluffton, Ind., the weekend of August 10-12, a very valuable
notebook was lost or stolen. This notebook, belonging to Lynn
Klingaman, contained many one-of-a-kind letters from the R.H.
Sheppard Co. to Lewis Zettlemoyer, a dealer. Also included in the
notebook were numerous manuals and literature concerning Sheppard
equipment. Sheppard enthusiasts as well as the owner are concerned
about the loss of this valuable resource. This letter is to ask you
to use your resources to aid in the recovery of this notebook. A
reward is being offered for its return. Your efforts are greatly
appreciated.

If any readers have information about this notebook, please
contact Clifford L. Martin at 458 CR 1302, Ashland, OH 44805, or
Lynn Klingaman, 6775 N. Etna Road, Columbia, IN 46725.

  • Published on Nov 1, 2001
Online Store Logo
Need Help? Call 1-866-624-9388