911 Carney Blvd., Marinate, Wisconsin 54143-2528
Being a Briggs and Stratton collector and also a flywheel engine
collector, it was inevitable that the two would become one. Not
having a machine shop at my disposal, it was clear the engine would
have to be simple, using as many standard parts as possible.
The engine starts with a basic Briggs and Stratton F. H. block
cut out to expose the crankshaft and cam gear. A hole was bored in
the cylinder and a one-eighth pipe fitting brazed in it for the
cylinder oiler. An oil groove was cut in the piston along with a
drip hole through the piston skirt for oil to run down the
connecting rod to lubricate the wrist pin. The crankshaft was
machined down to fit the flywheels that were found at a local
engine show. The cylinder head is a standard F. H. with the intake
tube and carburetor being off a standard Y. The fuel tank is made
from a piece of two inch square tubing, with a check valve for the
carburetor being made from a Briggs and Stratton model 5 S. The
ignition system of the engine, to make it Hit and Miss with a
flyweight governor, is off a Maytag 92. The base is made of simple
plate steel and the small wheelbarrow truck of maple.
The engine runs well and shows that had Briggs and Stratton
chose to enter the flywheel engine market, rather than the small,
high speed, air cooled market, it could have easily competed and
lived on to be the legend it is today.
