Circa 1900 Fairbanks-Morse
- Horsepower: 22
- Weight: 7,000 lbs. approx.
- Lubrication: Drip oilers
- Ignition: Igniter with battery and coil
- Cooling: Water-cooled with a circulating pump
- Model: Standard
- Flywheels: Two, 67-by-4-inch
This large Fairbanks-Morse gas engine is housed and permanently displayed on the Meriden Threshing Showgrounds in Meriden, Kansas. The following aged write-up is typed, framed and posted with the engine:
“This engine was loaned to the Meriden Antique Engine and Threshers Association by Mr. Bill Hurtig, Silverlake, Kansas. Mr. Hurtig bought this engine from a grain elevator in Reading, Kansas, several years ago. He moved this engine to Mr. Lovell Boyles’ farm near Lyndon, Kansas. The association moved the engine to the showgrounds in 1980. We completely disassembled the engine, cleaned and repaired all [the] parts.
“There was no radiator with the engine, so we built one similar to the original. The muffler is original, and if the engine was set up permanently, it would be buried in the ground. The skids and all the lumber used in this display were cut here on our sawmill. This engine is unique in that it has a match starting device. This starting device was missing, so with help from Melvin Rees and his lathe, we built one from scrap pieces of brass. A standard wooden kitchen match is placed in the plunger of the starting device. When the plunger is driven into the detonator by hand, the match explodes, giving enough spark to ignite the gasoline in the cylinder.
“This engine is also equipped with a hand-pump air starter. This pump has a small pocket near the bottom that is filled with gasoline. With gasoline in the pump, the engine is rotated to the ignition stroke. As the operator holds the flywheel in the ignition stroke, he pumps the air starter until he can feel the pressure trying to turn the flywheels. At this moment, he drives the match starting device in, igniting the gas and air mixture.
“This engine is a hit-and-miss type engine, meaning that the engine will only fire when the rpm are reduced to governor-set speed. The governor is located between the spokes of the flywheel on the left side. The governor consists of two weights and two tension springs activated by centrifugal force. The radiator in front holds 85 gallons of water. The water is cooled as it runs down over the wooden baffles. We wish to thank Mr. Bill Hurtig for loaning this engine to our association.”
— Meriden Antique Engine and Threshers Association
Watch It Run
2024 Shows
M.A.E.T.A. is a non-profit organization hosting three annual events open to the public: Summer Tractor and Threshing Show, July 19-21, 2024; Fall Festival and Swap Meet, September 28-29, 2024; and the Bloomfield Bazaar and Soup Supper held every November. Visit the M.A.E.T.A. website for more information on future events, or find them on Facebook by searching Meriden Antique Engine and Threshers Association.
