Skip to main content

Some non Burrell messing a-bout's

Some non Burrell messing a-bout's

In an older time, model glow engines use to career around a pond near me, and lots of fun was to be had running model power boats, on the purpose built lake. In this day and age, all has been spoilt by the noise police, and the impact on the Canadian goose, so they are now free to mess the pool up!

As a throw back to the good old days, here is one of my cheapest engines purchased at a car boot sale for £1.50; and successfully ran in a small boat mostly on Sundays.  These were taken after some freeing up of the piston, and a quick test run confirms its a animal 20,000 + rpm using old sport 40 fuel. 

So why? 
Well one of the reasons why I started to make the traction engine was because I had come to the end of messing about with petrol engines, and the fact that IC engines were also banned. An alternative plan was decided upon, making use of the skills and machines I have. It was just a small distraction in (January 2025) to run one or two of the old engines, just for the sake of making a noise and proving they still worked. Also to admire the work involved in the modification of such engines. Below was my KT12ADV Kawasaki 22.6cc Flymo engine, from a big power boat! Engine mounts a water cooled head and homemade carburettor were all designed and made by me.  I even ran it on glow fuel!! with a special adapted plug to use a std glow plug, and ran well.

Where Did it come from ?

Below is one of my late father's engines, this one sadly not even run to my knowledge. He was a prolific builder of E. T. Westbury's engines having made none less that 4 of the designs including:-

  • Kiwi Mk2 -  is a 15cc, OHV 4-stroke single
  • Whippet -   is an elegant 10cc, single cylinder, side valve, 4-stroke petrol engine.
  • Sealion engine  -  was released in 1959, coinciding with the launch of BMC's Mini and the opening of the UK's first motorway, the M1. The Sealion sports a gear driven overhead cam; an expensive performance feature for 1959
  • Wallaby - 360º vertical twin provides a useful 29.0cc of swept displacement.




This one I reassembled from a near box of bits and intend putting in some time to see if I can iron out the running condition with a view to starting it.

Until Next month, stay safe, make swarf and be the best you can be, Happy New year!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Midlands Model Engineer Show 2024 - Warwick

 Midlands Model Engineer Show 2024 - Warwick This year’s Model Engineers Show 2024 was a huge success! All four days of the show were fantastic with exhibitors and visitors alike enjoying plenty of opportunities to purchase items, learn and explore the very latest in machinery tools and model engineering. The 2 exhibition halls were abuzz with vibrancy, excitement and anticipation. I went with a usual shopping list, and a few parts that I had organised from suppliers to take to the show for me for collection and postage saving opportunity. I ordered an expansion Link and had it water jet cut this being the results after only minimal cleaning up required. I reamed the holes out and basically park this until the rods are done. Back to the show report. There were some fantastic models on display and also the gas turbine demonstrations running outside along with the traction engines and a few helicopters in the main carpark. Below the pictures I took on the day and a few videos of the ...
Post a Comment
Read more
1" Minnie Traction Engine By Stephen Meredith   Background Working Progress (Gears) Front End Parts Following the completion of a small marine steam engine "Trojan Engine", I decided to tackle a larger project. Having visited various shows and the model engineers Exhibition, I decided to buy the Construction book for building the popular 1" scale 'Minnie' traction engine. The initial workshop experience was limited but keen to learn, and research has enabled me to get it this far. A s can be seen, this is basically finished well almost, it steams, and runs well a few tweaks are needed but tweaks don’t make piles of swarf. The intention was to show the engine and run it, at rallies but what I really wanted was a capable engine that could pull an adult or (me) on a field. This engine was, therefore, a stepping stone to be able to tackle the engine I wanted. After research, I bought a set of drawings for the Plastow 3” Bur...
Post a Comment
Read more

Stoke Prior Steam Rally 2025

 Stoke Prior steam rally 2025 📣 Show Report ✅ Strong Attendance – Rain or Shine! The show, as usual, was well attended, and we’re pleased to report that paying numbers held up strongly —despite a soggy Saturday. Fortunately, Sunday brought sunshine all day , which made up for it! A big thank you to everyone who braved the elements. This year’s weather was a definite improvement on last year’s continuous showers—and a far cry from the scorcher we had the year before that (we still remember those sunburns!). 😎 🚜 715 Exhibits on Display! We were welcome a whopping 715 individual exhibits this year, offering a fantastic variety for visitors to enjoy. This included: 25 Miniatures 7 Full-Size Engines 2 Steam Cars A huge number of commercial vehicles , classic cars , motorbikes , military vehicles , and stationary engine displays From the tiniest model to the largest working machine, there was something for everyone to marvel at.  <---This is us on the Su...
Post a Comment
Read more