REFLECTIONS

By Staff
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We have lots of ground to cover this month, so we’ll not
spend much time talking about various items. We do wish to pass
along that we will be taking a group to the Great Dorset Steam Fair
in England this Fall. The Dorset is a huge show and has lots of
steam power, in addition to engines, tractors, and other things.
Aside from this, it will be much like our Vintage Engines tour
scheduled for June. If you would like a tour brochure, contact: C.
H. Wendel, Dorset Tour, Box 257, Amana, IA 52203 or email us at
reflctr9@netins.net.

We will send you a brochure by return mail.

This means that we will miss attending the Midwest Old Threshers
Reunion at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa for the first time since 1960. In
total, that will make three times we have missed it since 1954.

By the time this issue is in your hands we should have
everything completed on our Standard Catalog of American Farm
Tractors book. This one goes into the 1950s, and is by far the most
complicated of any project we have ever tackled. It should be
available by autumn from Krause Publications or your favorite
bookseller.

Our first query this month is:

34/5/1 Fairbanks-Morse Problems Q. I have a
Fairbanks-Morse 1? HP Type Z engine I chose as my first restoration
project. I have some problems that perhaps someone can help me
with: How do I determine the sizes of the bolts that attach the
ignitor to the cylinder, the main bearing cap screws, and the
connecting rod bolts? Were these high crown head? Heat treated? 2)
I am having a problem finding the oil shield and the complete
igniter trip rod. I have written to several GEM advertisers to no
avail. Any help would be appreciated. Gary Ostby,4921 Beam Rd.,
Zillah, WA 98953.

A. The bolts are all common sizes, such as
3/8,7/16, ? inch, etc.
In some of the instances you mention, these were studs that
threaded into the casting, and then a nut went over the top. Check
around at farm supply stores or automotive shops, and someone will
probably have some stud bolts from something or other that will
work. Be sure to check the vendors at the various engine swap
meets, too.

34/5/2 Thanks!

To Brad Reive, 8809 Graham Rd., RR 2, West Lome, ONT N0L 2P0
Canada for sending along a stack of photocopies from some old
Country Gentleman Magazines. There are some interesting engines and
tractors in the ads!

34/5/3 Why Not Send a Thank you?

Joe Morris, 112 Irwin Road, Powell, TN 37849 comments regarding
people who are looking for materials on an engine, and when someone
spends their time, cost of copies, plus the postage, and
doesn’t even bother to send a note of thanks, it sort of takes
the fun out of being helpful. If you are looking for information,
please be so kind as to respond to the sender. Enough cash in your
thank you note to buy a cup of coffee or a glass of beer would be
even nicer!

34/5/4 National Oil Engine Q. I have a National
Oil Engine, 13 HP, Type KB, s/n 49703 built in Aston-under-Lyne,
England. An open pan under the injector suggests it was used to
contain burning fuel to heat the injector. I would appreciate
hearing from anyone having information, especially the starting
procedure for this engine. Paul Rowley, 467 Vereda Leyenda, Goleta,
CA 93117.

34/5/5 Information Needed Q. Elmer Rath, 1000
N. Mae St., Storm Lake, IA 50588 inquires as to the year built for
the following: IHC Type M, No. A42323M, with American Bosch
magneto; Ottawa Log Saw, s/n C21755; Sears-Roebuck No. 450.96 with
a Wico EK magneto.

A. The IHC engine was made in 1919; we have no
information on the others.

34/5/6 Valve Timing etc. Q. On page 2 of the
March 1999 GEM there were two excellent drawings on valve timing
and detent setting. Where did you get them? I would like to find
similar drawings for my Economy, especially because it is short of
so many parts. Harold L. Mathieu, RR 2, Box 279, Chassell,
M149916.

A. The drawings were for Stover, but as we
pointed out, the majority of engines will have approximately the
same settings. I don’t have anything for Economy, though.
Perhaps Glenn Karch of 20601 Old State Rd., Haubstadt, IN 47639
might have such details.

34/5/7 Woodworker Q. See the photo of an old
woodworking machine that has a saw, handsaw, drill press, and
jointer, all in one machine. There is no name or numbers on it. Can
anyone identify this machine? Brian Bear, 3158 Minnich Wysong Road,
Lewisburg, OH 45338. Email: badbear@infinet.com.

A. There were a number of companies that built
woodworking machines, but we have no name for yours.

34/5/8 Information Needed Q. I have three
engines for which I would like some information: 1) Flying Dutchman
1? HP, s/n 25816; color and year built; 2) Empire separator engine,
2? HP, year made and color; 3) Fairbanks-Morse Eclipse #1 ,no s/n
can be found, but would like an estimate on the year. Alton O.
Jones, 31420 Town Line Road, Philadelphia, NY 13673.

A. The Flying Dutchman is a dark maroon, but we
don’t have an exact color match, nor do we know when it was
made. We have no information at all on the Empire. The No. 1
Eclipse pumper was built between 1912 and 1922.

34/5/9 Novo Engine Q. I have a Novo engine,
Model AG, s/n 25381 and need further information on it. I detected
a Novo Rollr decal under newer paint. Stan Rankin, 1212 Foothill
Dr., Champaign, IL 61821

A. Your engine was shipped to the University of
Illinois Farm at Urbana, Illinois on 12-29-1931. It was painted red
and black instead of the usual Novo colors.

34/5/10 Information Needed Q. I need to know
from our readers where the Duwel Tool Division went to. The last
address was Chicago, Illinois . I need a new handle for my
half-inch reversible drill. Ron Konen, PO Box 47C, Genesee, ID
83832.

34/5/11 Gard-N-Mastr Tractor Q. I have a
Gard-N-Mastr lawn tractor s/n 20813 made in Liberty, Indiana. It
has a 4 HP Kohler engine. I am interested in restoring it and would
like to know the year built and the correct color. Any help would
be appreciated. Ray Schmerge, PO Box 54,Botkins, OH 45306.

34/5/12 Precision Saw Q. See the photo of a
Precision Saw made by Precision Parts Ltd., Montreal, Canada. I
would like to know how old it is, and how rare it is. Harvey Josh,
1014 So. Buffalo, Yuma, CO 80759.

34/5/13 Horsepower vs. Compression Ratio Q. I
would like to see a chart or graph that plots Horsepower vs.
Compression Ratio for an internal combustion gasoline-fueled engine
with no other changes at a constant r.p.m. There must be some data
somewhere, but I have not been able to find anything. Corwin Groth,
24880 – 145th Ave., Eldridge, IA 52748.

A. We checked through numerous of our texts and
found nothing except some complicated formulas for determining the
output of an engine, given a specific set of conditions. Does
anyone know of a graph showing the rate of increase as the
compression rises?

34/5/14 Your Help Would Be Appreciated Q. I
have the following engines (see photo) that I acquired after my
uncle’s death. Bean Special Cub, Model R20B, 3 HP; Jaeger 2 HP
S; Sattley 1?HP; Stover 1 HP; Economy 2?HP; and Deere Model E,
1?HP. I would like to find more operating information on these
engines. Rob Crain, 3611 Ply Spg Mill, Shelby, OH 44875-9581.

34/5/15 Franklin Valveless Q. See the photo of
a Franklin Valueless engine, 12 x 16, Model OFCL #4590. Any
information on this engine would be appreciated. Charley Nelson,
1545 Hupp Rd., Bloomington, IN 47401.

34/5/16 It Pays to Have Old Issues

George B. Huhn, 6405 W. McGeoch Ave., West Allis, WI 53219
writes that by referring to a September 1988 article on pouring
babbitt bearings he was able to do the job without difficulty; the
point being that it pays to keep those old back issues of GEM!

34/5/17 Sawing Outfit

Thanks to Aaron F. Heisey, RD 1, Box 273, Centre Hall, PA 16828
for sending this photograph of a cordwood saw in operation. The
flywheel was mounted low on another shaft to keep it out of the way
of the saw table. Some sawing outfits used an extra flywheel,
especially when the engine was too small. Mr. Heisey would like to
know the make of this sawing outfit.

34/5/18 Unidentified Engines Q. See the photos
of some unidentified engines. Photos A and B are of a small
horizontal engine with a 3? x 5 inch bore and stroke. All the small
part numbers have a B-prefix, followed by the number. The man I
bought it from said it was a Folsom engine, but I can find no
reference to any company of that name. It was bright red with
orange striping.

Photos C & D are of an engine with a T-head configuration
and using a Schebler carburetor. The single fly wheel is 20 inches
in diameter and appears to have been dark green in color. Any help
in identifying these engines would be greatly appreciated. Jim
Sherman, PO Box 14, Vashon, WA 98070. Email:
Jsherman66@aol.com.

34/5/19 Low Tension Coils

Bob LeBaron sends along some information he found regarding the
operation of the plain coil or the low tension coil used with
battery and ignitor. Electrically, this system is very simple. We
have always used the water pipe analogy. If water is flowing in a
pipe, and the flow is suddenly shut off, or interrupted, the
pressure rises considerably. The longer the pipe, the greater the
rise. The same thing happens when the ignitor points open. The
voltage (pressure) rises considerably over its initial value,
albeit for only a brief instant. That’s when we get that nice
orange fireball between the ignitor points for perfect ignition
every time.

Ye olde Reflector has always been a proponent of using a battery
with enough stamina to get the job done, rather than using a tiny
little lantern battery or even a discarded Polaroid battery.
We’ll allow that these will probably work, for awhile anyway,
but for good day-long operation, use a battery and coil worthy of
the name. Case in point is our 1? Stickney. Using the original
Stickney coil, we could never get it to run more than a couple of
hours tops, without the ignition throwing a fit, and the engine
would stop. One day, we had nothing but a spare 12 volt battery, so
we hooked it up. The engine ran the rest of the day without a
problem, and at various shows after that, ran all day long without
missing a lick, just because we changed over to a 12 volt
battery.

Look at some of the old wiring diagrams. Seldom did they use
fewer than five 1? volt cells, or 7? volts. Many of them used six
cells for 9 volts. In our opinion, raising the voltage to 12 volts
isn’t going to do any harm, and it certainly makes an engine
run better. In the words of a famous comedian, ‘I could be
wrong, but that’s my opinion.’

34/5/20 Clarke Troller

James Dekle, 432 Colton Ave., Thomasville, GA 31792 writes in
response to 33/11/1 GEM, that the subject engine is a Clarke
Troller, made by Clarke Engineering Company of Detroit, Michigan.
Mr. Dekle owns one of these engines that he bought from a retiree.
It is in excellent condition, and has joined his collection of 102
different vintage outboards, all made before 1940.

34/5/21 Retrofit Magnetos

Regarding 34/1/3 of a Fairbanks-Morse engine with a Wico
magneto, Dale Volgamore, RR 1, Box 9, Almena, KS 67622 sends along
some interesting data. Most of the major magneto manufacturers
offered retrofit kits for various engines. Webster of course, is
the best known, since the Webster could be used on almost any
engine. Wico provided EK retrofit kits for many different makes,
and Fairbanks-Morse offered retrofit kits using their own magnetos.
These were available for the Fairbanks-Morse engines, as well as
numerous others.

34/5/22 Sheldon Cement Mixer Q. See the photo
of what remains of a Sheldon Cement Mixer made at Nehawka,
Nebraska. I would like to hear from anyone having one of these so I
can make the necessary parts. jerry Kirsch, 5114 S. Hwy 41,Boswell,
IN 47921.

34/5/23 Unidentified Engine Q. See the photo of
an engine with a 3? x 5 inch bore and stroke. It is much like a
Model AF Novo, but does not have a cover over the rocker arms, and
no place to put one. The head has 3-21-26 cast in. the color is
green.

Also, why did the older engines and tractors always use a
positive ground? Carl E. Blackwell, 1804 W. Union, Wynne, AR
72396.

A. We’re not so sure your engine isn’t
a Novo, but lacking the serial number, we can’t tell you much
about it. Regarding the positive ground question, we’ll defer
that one to our readers.

34/5/24 Rayner Field

Information needed by Glenn Schultz, 1561 Strieter Rd., Ann
Arbor, MI 48103. He needs information on the engine or the company,
including the correct color. The engine is a 23/4 HP, s/n 16908,
and was made by Field-Brundage Co., Jackson, Michigan.

34/5/25 Unidentified Engine Q. See the photos
of an unidentified engine. It stands 45 inches high, and flywheel
is 23? inches in diameter, It is missing one flywheel and some
other parts. I would like to find make, model and horsepower for
this engine. There are no casting marks. Any information will be
appreciated. Ken Boychuk, 713 Irwin St., Prince George, BC V2M 2X6
Canada.

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  • Published on May 1, 1999
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