|
Saturday & Sunday - June22nd &
23rd - 1000 Engine Rally at Astle Park and the Anson Engine Museum
The weekend for Astle Park was brilliant (all due to the weather control powers of the visiting Yank of course).
Astle Park, like Portland in the USA, tends to bring out the very best engines that a bloke has to rally. These
are a few that caught my eye.
* The Petter-Light outfits were out in force…
* And one lonely Delco
Light
Plant with very nice furniture
* 1906 2 hp Hornsby
pump
outfit with a very clever set
of removable
wheels
* 1908 1-1/2 hp New
Holland
* 1920 1/3 hp Leek
* 1923 1-1/3 hp Hartop
"S"
Type
* 1911 1-1/2 hp Rock
Island restored by Harry and Lieuwe Terpstra
* 1931 4-1/2 hp Ronaldson Tippett
Austral Oil Engine
* 1913 ¾ hp Gardner
* 1908 ¾ hp hot tube Type H Crossley
* 1921 ¾ hp Lion
Gas Engine
* 1920 ½
hp Hobbs and a 1912 1 hp Hobbs
* 1920 3-4 hp Benz
* 1928 Pelapone
* 1915 5 hp Imperial
Pitt that runs on hot tube or magneto
* A nice pair of Petters;
an Apple Top and a Bog Top
* 1910 3 hp Brown
& May lamp start hot tube oil engine
* 1912 Hornsby
Stockport (the baby brother of the 140 hp model
at the Anson Museum)
* 1935 Stuart
R2 engine driving a Lister water pump
* 1934 Spring Injection Blackstone
* 1923 1-1/2 hp Fairbanks Morse
"competition model" that's in great original condition right down to the steel oiler (Richard Walker
has done a nice display sign
as well)
* 1917 6 hp Fairbanks
Morse Z in nice original condition
* 1920 4 hp Tangye
"V"
type
Some really nice driven displays included a grind stone,
two drills, a Lister water pump, and a Frank Pern water pump
* 1928 5 hp Petter Appletop
(rare petrol only model owned by Nick Chancellor)
* 8 HP Petter Atomic
* 1903 1-1/2 hp Crossley JJ
* A rare blue Economy
* 1903 1-1/2 hp New Holland
with a rare Wizard friction drive magneto
* 1912 1-1/2 hp Leader
Iron
Works
* 1914 1-1/2 hp Type H National
Gas Engine
* 1909 2-3/4 hp Tangye Type AA
1915 17 hp Allan Oil Engine equipped with the optional
wench starting system
* 1914 Pilter
(a Type K Stover)
* 1918 Foos
Junior (with owner Hugh Stannard)
* Nice sheep shearing
outfit
* 1925 1-1/2 hp IHC "M"
(with owner John
Hammink)
* Hot air engine driving a small butter churn (with owner Dave Croft)
* 1 hp Butler Brothers
* 1/8 hp Stuart Turner
"Meant for Hard Work"
* There was even a pair of 3-4 hp Lorenz
engines for
sale for £1400 each
* I don't normally care for marine engines, but this Thornycroft Handibilly
caught my eye.
And, as always, there's a nice assortment of 2-1/2 hp
Tulip Top Bamfords
Our engine
line included Dolly French's Margaret Maytag,
Jim French's Fairbanks
Morse Eclipse and Douglas the model Eclipse,
and Fat Bastard my 7 hp 1070 Crossley.
Rally field engine
repairs and adjustments
are pretty standard
activities. But sometimes the only thing that
works with a reluctant engine is an appeal to a higher power
and, in extremis, group prayer.
The engines are just one part of an event like the 1000 Engine Rally (or Portland). The best part is getting together
again with good friends both old and new.
Creature comforts are well taken care of at an English rally as evidenced by the chips shop
and the beer tent. Two-fisted drinking
is an integral
part of an engine rally. And this leads to
engine mates providing a travelling Yank with interesting things to drink, in this case a bottle of Cockle Warmer
and an "appropriate" King Dick spanner. The scene is suitably lit with Tilley lamps.
And if you ever wondered where, exactly, Guinness
came from, well now you know.
Putt-putt boats in the UK, kewl!
Fat-Bastard… OK, what were Jim's directions again, 'just set the mixture
and compression release and wind like fuck.'
Gee, that wasn't so bad. Anyone up for a cuppa?
Now for the lighter side of the rally… Custom rally apparel is VERY important to creating the right image. As in
the "Wild
and Woolseley Scotsman" and our very own
Flame
Mistress in her signature embroidered jeans.
This was either Richard Walker
doing the famous call "Gentlemen, start your engines" or doing a public service announcement as to who
was doing what with whom off in the bushes. And the question for the day is… ARE his eyes open?
Must not be, as he ALWAYS seems to be asleep!!
Finally to end the day, a nice group photo…
On arriving at the Anson
Museum we're greeted by a nice, new, nearly
ready BIG engine:
A 140 hp Hornsby Stockport gas engine (21" bore,
10'-diameter flywheel)
There's also a huge Crossley Brothers that's "on the list". Maybe next year…
The 1921 Blackstone Oil Engine always drew a crowd at starting time.
Inside Geoff Challinor gave us a look at one of the
stolen Gardners that had been repainted prior to recovery by the Anson.
Next up is Pubs, Shopping, and Starting Tillie.
Also:
 |
Part 1 |
Lister-Petter Rally |
|
Part 2 |
A Narrowboat Cruise on the Grand Union Canal |
|
Part 4 |
Pubs, Shopping and Starting Tillie |
|
Part 5 |
Belgium and Dover Castle |
|
Part 6 |
Abbey Pumping Station Urban Rally |
|
Part 7 |
Peter Forbes & Melton Mowbray |
|
Part 8 |
Philip Thornton-Evison & Tony Harcombe's Museum |
|
Part 9 |
Roland's Yard |
|
Part 10 |
POETS Day and Hollowell Steam Show |
|
Part 11 |
The London Eye and Imperial War Museum |
|
