Well, here we are at the beginning of 2001. It was sort of
difficult to get into saying ‘Two thousand’ after spending
all our lives saying ‘Nineteen,’ but I guess we’ll get
over the hurdle. I suppose now we’ll have people saying
‘ought-one,’ ‘naught-one,’ and various other
handles instead of the full version
With this copy coming to you just before Christmas, we take this
opportunity to wish all of you the very best Holiday Greetings. May
Santa fill your Christmas stocking with NOS magnetos, shop tools,
and maybe even an engine or two! We hope the New Year is filled
with nice surprises, too! We’ll grant that those exceptional
engine bargains don’t occur as often as they used to, but every
once in awhile someone stumbles across a nice old engine at a very
reasonable price.
Speaking of prices, we hear all kinds of things about engine
prices. Some say the market is a bit soft compared to what it was a
couple years ago, and others say the market is fairly strong. In
looking at various auction results, we would say that the market is
hanging in there pretty well.
With the approach of winter, now is the time for some engine
restorations. This writer acquired a Hallett diesel a few years
ago. The engine is like new, and in fact, never did a day’s
work. However, we all know it takes some time to mount an engine to
a set of trucks what with cutting, fitting, etc., not to mention
the paint job. Here’s one that we hope to have restored for
next summer.
Even though the Hallett is only 5 horsepower, it is either
getting higher compression or ye olde Reflector is dwindling in
cranking ability. Therefore we are hoping to develop some sort of
electric starting device … perhaps an old starter motor and a
friction wheel that will work against the flywheel. To our way of
thinking, any such devices should be incorporated in such a way as
to be inconspicuous. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Our first query this month is:
36/1/1Edwin Reynolds and Allis-Chalmers Alan
Jones, Newton, Kansas writes regarding 35/10/6C that the medallion
is of Edwin Reynolds, Chief Engineer of E. P. Allis Company, and
later, of Allis-Chalmers. In September 1902 the company cast some
souvenir ingots from the first heat of their new West Allis
Foundry.
36/1/2 Unidentified Engine Q. I recently ran
across an engine that is for sale. The owner thinks it is a
Massey-Harris, but there are no markings to indicate this. The
engine is red, and on the side of the cylinder the number 8-29-30
is cast. The nameplate says-.Made in U.S.A., HP 2-3, Model JK1272S,
Serial No. 25-1272. The engine has solid flywheels with cast lugs
for different sized belt pulleys. Any help in identifying this
engine would be appreciated. Robert Gates, PO Box 93, Yuma, CO
80759.
36/1/3 Feed Grinder Q. I have just acquired the
old feed grinder shown in the photos. 1 was wondering if someone
could tell me the make and the correct color. It now has a red
primer on it, but 1 would like to restore it to its original
condition. The only numbers are F85 on the frame and F981 on the
outside of the grinding unit. Any help would be appreciated. Jim
Barrett, Box 75, Colo, IA /50056.
36/1/4 Stover Engine Q. I have a Stover Model V
engine, s/n V56946. I would like to know when it was built, the
correct color, etc. Any information on this engine would be
appreciated, especially regarding the method of lubricating the
connecting rod bearing. Don Newcomb, 532 Kirk Rd., Rochester, NY
14612.
A. Your engine was built in October 1913. Your
engine is dark red, similar to DuPont 2564 or 34423. We have never
looked at one of these, so we don’t know about the method of
lubricating the connecting rod bearing. Can anyone be of help?
36/1/5 Smith Form-A-Truck Q. A friend is
rebuilding a shepherd’s hut, used in the UK in the past for
temporary (and very basic) accommodation during lambing season .his
basically a wooden box on four wheels. The front wheels are wood
with solid rubber tires and chain sprockets, obviously salvaged
from some other machine. A maker’s plate shows, Smith
Form-A-Truck Company, Chicago. Does any one have any information on
this firm? Dick Mason 33 Baldock Drive, King’s Lynn, Norfolk
PE30 3DQ England.
A. This company was organized to build the
Smith Form-A-Truck, a device that converted an old car into a small
truck. They also built the Smith Form-A-Tractor, pictured on page
463 of our Standard Catalog of Farm Tractors, just recently
published. The company operated in the period around 1920.
36/1/6 Athey Tracks Regarding Athey tracks per
John Caldwell’s question in 35/9/5 of GEM, we learn the
following from Bill Gascoyne, Box 354, Sedgewick, Alberta TOB 4C0
Canada: [Beginning in the 1930s], these Athey wagons were used in
all types of construction for hauling materials in swamp or sand as
in the deserts. I saw them used in pipeline construction with big
tar kettles on them for coating the pipes. Many contractors used
them to transport fuel.
36/1/7 Sears Handi-Man Q. Jeff Lauber, 21124 –
155th St., Columbus Junction, IA 52738 would like information on a
Sears Handi-Man garden tractor. If you can be of help, please
contact him at the above address.
36/1/8 Gile Vertical Engine Dennis Jeffery from
Australia sent an email with the following address:
marina_22@bigpond.com. He has a 1 HP Type A Gile engine, s/n 595
made at Ludington, Michigan. This is a vertical air cooled with
some resemblance to the New Way air cooled models. If you can be of
any help, please email Dennis at the above address. Unfortunately,
we do not have a regular mail address.
36/1/9 Some Questions Q. I have a
Fairbanks-Morse engine with a 6-inch fore and 36-inch flywheels,
carrying the s/n of 128225. Can anyone tell me the horsepower and
when it was built? I also am interested in the Twin City Industrial
Engines, but have not seen or heard of any in GEM. Any information
would be appreciated. Jim Soares, 7093 Dry Creek Rd., Belgrade, MT
59714.
A. Your engine was built in 1913. With the
36-inch flywheels and the 6-inch bore we would suppose this to be
the 6 horsepower model.
A Closing Word
This month we continue our series on lathes with an illustration
of the Niles 10-foot vertical boring mill. Sometimes these were
called a vertical lathe in the machine shops. Note how the operator
is dwarfed by this huge machine, even though this 10-foot model was
tiny indeed compared to the gigantic 30-foot model. Somewhere in
our collection we have an illustration of this huge outfit, and
when we find it, we’ll include it in the column. The model
shown here is from 1909.
Isn’t it interesting that these huge and heavy machines were
the foundation for today’s ultramodern, electronic and laser
machines? Yet in their day, these machines were the ones that built
America’s industrial base.