A Brief Word
C. H. Wendel is recuperating well, and he sent in a brief note
for this issue to keep readers informed as to his doings. Thanks
again to everyone for their help answering reader’s questions
while Charles continues his recovery:
Sunday, July 14 we leave on the tour. We return July 29. I am
thinking of trying to resume at least some of the column beginning
with the November issue. I had to learn typing with my right hand
only, so that slows me down a lot. At the very least, I should be
able to write some commentary and give a report on the HMT and
other things from the tour, along with some photos.
I can get around fairly well with a cane now, and the left hand
is starting to wake up. The therapy is helping me immensely, and I
do tots of walking and exercising. While being home-bound, I am
working on a revised second edition of my Encyclopedia of American
Farm Implements. It will be somewhat larger than the first edition.
I type for a while, then go outdoors for a walk. It is tough being
housebound so I get out and tinker several times a day. My son and
I started the Lister diesel a few days ago. Diesel fumes smell
pretty good compared to the medicine smell from a month-long
hospital stay!
37/9/1: Battery Engine by the name of ‘The
Battery Company’ built in Milwaukee, Wis. It is s/n 234, rated
at 2 HP at 600 rpm and 1-1/2 HP at 400 rpm. It is a two-stroke and
can run either direction. I was wondering if you had any
information on this engine. Chris Jowett, 157 Mckendree Road,
Odessa, MO 64076-6389, or e-mail: WallaceN276K@aol.com
A: We have no information on the company, but
if anyone knows more please contact Chris and GEM to fill us in on
this interesting engine.
37/9/2: Side Exhaust Maytag I have a question
for you that no one can seem to answer. I bought a Maytag motor
Model 92 with a side exhaust elbow, which is fairly rare. After I
got it home I put a straight elbow on it just to see if it would
bolt up to it. It did. Now I am wondering if someone took the
straight elbow off and put a side exhaust elbow on it to make it
look like a rare side exhaust motor.
Are there any other characteristics on the side exhaust motor
that makes this motor different from other Model 92 motors? Gregg
Simpson, 4271 Rutland Dunn Road, Oregon, WI 53575.
37/9/3: Leader Engines Q: Does anyone know the
relationship between Leader of Owego, N.Y., and Leader of Elmira,
N.Y.? Although the cities are only about 40 miles apart, the
engines are quite different. The Owego engines appear to be older.
I would welcome any information. Al Wait, 177 Park Ave.,
Contoocook, NH 03229, (603)-746-328, or e-mail:
mausers@myexcel.com
A: Wendel’s American Gasoline Engines
Since 1872 has one entry for Leader, but the company noted is
the Leader Gas Engine Co. of Dayton, Ohio. No mention is made of
Leader engines out of New York.
37/9/4: Fairbanks-Morse Type H I have a
Fairbanks-Morse 4 HP Type H hit-and-miss, s/n 116225, with a
front-mounted Type O Accurate Engineering Co. magneto. Was this a
factory option or an aftermarket fitting? It also has the gas tank
mounted up high for gravity feed with a very unusual inline float
assembly. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Donald
Cook, P.O. Box 8401, Endwell, NY 13762, or e-mail:
doncooksr@earthlink.net
37/9/5: Ewing Info Sought I’m looking for
info on the Althaus & Ewing/Scott & Ewing line of engines
built in Bluffton, Ohio, between 1910-1911. Any info at all can be
a great help in figuring out an accurate history of these engines.
A brochure for the Scott & Ewing engines catalogs five sizes, 1
HP, 2 HP, 4 HP, 6 HP and 8 HP, all of them vertical four-cycle
engines. Interestingly, the 6 HP and 8 HP engines are identical in
all descriptions and specs except the horsepower rating.
The engines were first name plated Althaus & Ewing and the
company name later changed to Scott & Ewing. All sizes that we
know of were combined thermal siphon tank- and hopper-cooled. By
shutting off a couple of valves it was hopper-cooled for short runs
and winter use, or the valves were opened giving extra cooling
capacity for summer use and extended running. They validated the
cooling system by citing Ford, Maxwell & Overland as examples
of autos that used thermal siphon cooling. Standard set up for the
ignition system was make-and-break with a battery, but optional
chain drive low tension set ups were available.
A surviving postcard shows Althaus & Ewing engines of an
earlier design that were tank-cooled only. Additionally, Oscar Noe
of Kenton, Ohio, just a few miles from Bluffton, advertised an
engine that appears to be identical to the Althaus & Ewing
engines shown on the postcard.
At this time I know of 13 engines for sure, and there are rumors
of three others. Mark Shulaw, 454 County Road 33, Bluffton, OH
45817, (419) 358-5206, or e-mail: frappi@wcoil.com
37/9/6:Acadia Info Sought I have just found
valuable company records of the Acadia Gas Engine Co. of
Bridgeport, Nova Scotia, Canada. However, some of the key info I
would like is missing. I am a Canadian and interested in
Canadian-built engines, so I am always searching for history and
info on Canadian engines. What I am trying to achieve is dating
engines by serial number, but in the records I’ve found I have
serial numbers and sales invoice dates, but no connection between
serial numbers and engine size or type of engine. Acadia built both
marine and stationary engines and the sales info does not specify
the type or size of engine. The serial numbers do not run
consecutively, so I need help from owners of Acadia engines to try
and put pieces of the puzzle together. After 1 have gathered this
info I will try and put together a registry that will be accessible
to the public. This work will take quite some time as the records
are 1,500 miles from my home and only accessible during weekday
business hours.
I am appealing to all collectors to send me Acadia serial
numbers, along with the size and type of engine and whether
stationary or marine. Also, if possible I’d like to know the
bore and stroke. I will respond to everyone who offers information.
Larry Anger, R.R. 3, Tillsonburg, ONT, Canada N4G 4G8, or e-mail:
langer@lbxco.com or junkmeister2002@yahoo.ca
37/9/7: Merrill & Barnwell Engine Our club
has acquired a nice little Woodsman drag saw made in Eureka,
Calif., and powered by what looks like a clone of a Maytag Model
82, but with added rear crankshaft ball bearings and reversible
cooling fins (for reversed rotation). While looking for something
else, I ran across a note on page 13 in the November/December 1982
GEM describing and picturing a similar engine marked Merrill &
Barnwell on the crankcase and carburetor flange.
Ours is virtually identical, with the exception that the
crankcase back plate is fixed, not removable, and the maker’s
name appears only on the carburetor, the crankcase being marked
with the drag saw maker’s name and location.
We would appreciate any information readers can supply on the
Merrill & Barnwell engines, which were evidently out-sourced by
the saw manufacturer. Doug Elliot, 1801 Highway 128, Philo, CA
95466, or e-mail: floodgate@pacific.net
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.
