Cape Vintage Engine &
Machinery Society Newsletter
Paraffinalia No 27
October 2004
Hello All!
South African News:
Very soon (like minutes) after sending the request for information on the
Coventry Diesel CDU engine in the last Paraffinalia, I had this reply
from Peter Forbes in England: The CDU engine was one of a series (CDU, CDM,
CDB) of engines sharing the same cylinder bore and stroke of 3.248" X 4.134".
Output for the CDU was quoted at 5.5bhp nominal or 6.0bhp maximum. Speed
range was 800 to 1500rpm. 392lbs dry weight. Data from the 1954 3rd edition
of the British Diesel Engine Catalogue. In fact, I found that I could
have answered my own question from the shelves of my own library, the range
appears in my 1950 5th Edition of the Oil Engine Manual published by Temple
Press, and given to me by Alf Heiberg.
In this book it is stated that the CDU was available with
either an aluninium crankcase, like this one, or one made of cast iron.
Ellwe Start-up:
On 4th September, I was invited by Kosie van der Merwe
to accompany him, along with Derick Kleynhans and Emile
Cronjé, to Kalkfontein, on the Britstown road out of Victoria
West, to see whether we could get the rare Swedish Ellwe vertical 2-stroke
engine going, which we had discovered there last year. We had been promised
by owners Sakkie & Barbara van der Merwe, that they
would treat us like kings for the weekend. A very early start for
all of us meant we were stripping the engine by 10.30am; I had 620
km under my belt by then! Discussions on the way up meant that we each knew
what to tackle, and it wasn't long before the engine was stripped of head,
sleeve and piston, and the stuck piston had been driven out of the heated
sleeve. We had to sort out problems on the water pump, which had broken,
and the fuel injection pump, which had an air lock; and the injector needed
freeing off. A cool-drink can was cut open and used as a reed valve in the
crank-case cover. Thousands of bee carcasses had to be removed, either by
hand or with a high pressure washer, so that we could be sure that no 
oil passages would get blocked, particularly that to the big end. With the
engine reassembled, we tried to work out the air-start system, but even after
setting the cam follower, we simply couldn't compress the air sufficiently
to turn the engine over properly. We also hadn't brought any starting 'pills'
with us, so we had to rely on diesel-soaked paper. A Fordson Super Major
tractor was then pressed into service with a flat belt, and only by heating
the inlet air could we get the engine to fire. By then it was 7.30 pm, it
was dark, and we were pretty tired, but after 9 hours at it, with a short
break for a delicious lunch, you can imagine our excitement! Once running,
the performance of the engine improved, as the air start valves seated themselves,
and the fuel injection system and governor settled down. The mood during
the braaivleis afterwards was one of intense satisfaction (and
relief?), while we ate ourselves 'dik' with lambs' tails and liver
in 'netvet', done to perfection by Toi Lubbe over
hot coals.
Next morning, we couldn't resist the temptation to start up again. Even
then, it was necessary to hold the gas flame near the air inlet before the
engine would fire, even while belted up to the tractor. We would have
liked to stay longer, but after a sumpuous breakfast, we had to leave, as
the two from the Southern Cape had 740 km to drive to get home. What a weekend!
Winter Warm Up.
For a change, it didn't rain! Held later in the year, on account of host
Arthur Wilding's recent trip northwards to take in the
Nuenen and Astle Park shows, maybe 
this might be a better time of the year. There was a good turn-out
by members from far and wide, from Yuri Peila in one direction
to Derick Kleynhans in the other. They were there to make
an exchange, Derick was returning Yuri's John Deere E looking like new, in
return for his 'payment' in the form of a Hercules. The assembled tinkerers
couldn't help doing what was necessary to get the Herc running at the show,
even though the carb was not functioning, and the coil was missing. However,
it ran well. Then Yuri had brought along his much-mentioned Petter S, which
he wanted the same team to 'sort-out'. Well, with a can of 'doom', it did
start and run, completely enveloping the engine display area with white
smoke. We really needed Roland Craven there, I'm sure he
would have had it starting with a nudge on the flywheel, and running like
a sewing machine in a jiffy! Yuri had brought along a Bouncing Neddy, freshly
cast for my Aveling Barford GD motor roller, so I've got some fettling
and polishing to do! On the subject of rollers, Arthur had his Aveling Barford
DX motor roller running, and many people had a chance at the controls of
this machine which is powered by a disguised hopper-cooled 
Ruston & Hornsby engine. Arthur also had his 1921 Aveling &
Porter traction engine in steam. Philip Gray-Taylor
had an impressive stand featuring Fichtel & Sachs engines and gensets,
all on a trailer, with impressive signage, worthy of a present-day trade
stand. (See above Right) At one stage, Ferrari
Dino owner John Flack pulled up his pride and joy of the
last 32 years next to Arthur's Aveling & Porter so that we could compare
the prancing horses which both marques have as their emblems. (See Right) New members met on the day included
Dave Lyons, Bruce Hendry & Johan van Deventer. Yuri
brought along Johan Krohn, who is busy with Yuri's
Ruston & Hornsby 2HRE, radiator cooled, ex Light-Service, (probably
Danger Point Light House), and Blackie who is doing the
paintwork on it.
RSME Show: John Menasce kindly sent
in this report. About 30 Stationary Engines were on display at the RSME premises
in Len Rutter Park.There was no shortage of public visitors who streamed
in to look both at the engines on display
outside and the museum engines inside the shed. At one time the visitors
were standing 2 to 3 deep in the museum listening spell-bound to the bass music of a 50 BHP Blackstone and
a Tangye. The old car enthusiasts also took the opportunity to display their
treasures and there were some very nicely restored classic Ford Model A's,
Vauxhalls, Zephyrs.
Weather started off cool and then turned into a magnificent spring day.
RSME was well represented by its stalwarts and not to be outdone, Cape Vintage
was represented by John and David Menasce, Koos and George Botha
and their families who had come up from Stilfontein for the day, and Clem
Davidson and many others who belong to both. George Botha gave
us a demonstration of grinding mielies and there was no shortage of takers
for his coarse ground mielie meal!!
Deon Bouwer took David, Clem and I on a "behind the
engines" tour of the museum and we looked at various unusual variants including
a fuel research Lister CE that had two separate fuel pumps and a variable
timing control. The engine, which was donated by Wits University, originally
had two injectors and two combustion chambers in the head with a shuttle
valve
between them.
Engines on display varied in size from our baby 0.6 BHP Villiers Atco to
Koos' Type M Lister and an HR Ruston. The oldest working engine on
display was an Ericsson hot air engine from 1890s.
Seeing how many people were at Koos Kriel's day, in Potchefstroom and the
at Cars in the Park in Pretoria, the next
day, the turnout of spectators here was disappointing for such a central
venue.
Mention of
George & Koos Botha and their collection prompted me
to ask them for a list of their Lister collection. Can anybody beat this?
George asks for the list to be circulated, "who knows we might stumble
onto a new one we don't have?!. We have the following:"
3½/1;
5/1; 6/1; 8/1; 9/1; 10/2; 12/2; 16/2; 18/2; 27/3; VA; JP4;
HA: 2, 3, 4 & 6; FR: 1, 2, 3 (Looking for 4 & 6); SL 1, 2, 3, (Looking
for 4); CE; LV 2; TX2; A; B; D; M; P; (Hopefully Q and X shortly.)
Short of: F, G, H, J, K, L, R. (And CD, we'll have
to rectify that! Ed.) The N is a Petrol P and the L is a Petrol M.
"We have started collecting Petters too now. Have AV Series 1; AA1;
AC1; AVA; PH1 & 2."
Jeremy
Ricketts from Caledon wrote in: The section on Andre Nel's
Ruston Hornsby 3HR (?) was of particular interest as it brought back a flood
of memories of Swaziland days, where I had the pleasure of owning a 7HR.
This engine ran the original plant to supply electricity to Bremersdorp/Manzini
from about 1925 until sometime in the mid-fifties when it was kept on as
a stand-by generator. I came to hear of it in 1972 when I farmed at Sidvokodvo
and bought it for R200 to drive a pump to fill an irrigation dam. It 
came complete with a smaller Ruston which filled an air vessel to start
the 7HR, and various tools, including a web gauge to check bearing alignment.
It was dismantled in Manzini by a remarkable man, the late Richard
Goddefroy, who transported it in two sections swinging from a truck-mounted
crane. I had taken measurements of the concrete block mounting and duplicated
this on the false bank of the Usutu River, which was entirely sand. The
mounting block was in its turn cast on top of a very substantial larger block,
steel re-inforced, and about one meter thick, with a depression to accommodate
the bottom of the 7' flywheel and so keep the engine at a respectable waist
height for ease of working on it. This all took a long time! Goddefroy eventually
arrived with the main frame, piston, and cylinder swinging from his crane
behind the truck, remarking on how light the steering was. He had to reverse
down a steep section to the site, during which short section the steering
became even lighter, what with the front wheels lifting about a foot from
the ground. Fortunately for once I had done my homework properly and everything
lined up, so that by the end of the day all was bolted fast. The flywheel
and crank came out in similar fashion the following day, much less heavy
of course, and after some time thoroughly cleaning everything of dust and
grit, was placed in position and the bearing caps lightly bolted down. This
was the end of the brawn, and the beginning of the brain, stage! Alignment!
The book said a tolerance of "between 4 and 7 thou" was permissible, as
measured between the webs with the gauge. Try as I might, tapping the pedestal
bearing forward and back, adding and removing shims, the closest I could
achieve was around ten thou. The injector, which had been serviced by the
Ruston agents in Jo'burg, had meantime been re-installed, and we decided
to give it a go. She took at the second attempt, and that beautiful POW-POW-POW
at about 275 rpm gave me an adrenalin rush like I hadn't had since
a mamba stood up in front of me as I was climbing out of a donga, or the
first night on honeymoon. However, we hadn't got the cooling system in order
and so after a minute or so shut it down. Removing the pedestal cap I was
mortified to see that the journals had picked up metal. These were re-metalled
by a local firm of "precision" engineers who also re-installed them and
pronounced it impossible to align an engine that size to anything less than
20 thou, the handbook notwithstanding. By this time the crop was up and
needed water and I was forced to throw in the towel until the next season,
and bought a portable Lister to carry me through. It was also discovered
that one of my enthusiastic staff had used the web gauge as a punch to drive
out a rusty bolt on an implement, and it had suffered far more than the
4 to 7 thou permitted. Sadly, the 7HR was never brought into service being
run only occasionally as a means of increasing a dwindling supply of
adrenalin. The honeymoon was over. I don't really want to tell you the rest
of the story, but of course I can't help myself, always been like that.
The farm was sold in 1976 with the Ruston in situ, and it remained there
until 1984 without ever being run again. Then along came Hurricane Demoina
and the whole lot, including the huge concrete foundations, were washed
away and not seen again.....
Jerry Evans sent us this report on the small show they put on at
the Centenary Celebrations at Henley-on-Klip:Unfortunately there were only a few
of us, as the Nottingham Road Show was on the same weekend but it went off
very well. It started with a parade through Henley-on-Klip led by a pipe
band and followed by drum majorettes, vintage tractors, Harley's, vintage
cars and trucks. Neville Botha had 2 Field Marshalls (I
drove one), his John Deere 60, 1929 Chev truck and his 1926 Chev Sedan in
the parade. At the show he had a 1946 Ruston & Hornsby 1Z HR running,
his Bamford driving a Premier Grinder making mealie meal which was sold
to spectators by his wife Lu-ann, his 1926 Blackstone milling
oats, a 1928 Petter Appletop, the 2 Field Marshalls, John Deere, Chev sedan,
Chev Truck as well as a display of cream seperators and other farm equipment
under an old army tent. Norman Spykerman had his Lister
A, Lister D (See right) and a diplay of vintage
Briggs & Stratton Engines. 
Justin Ludewig had
his International (with the gorilla), a 1929 Southern Cross pumping engine
actually pumping water all day and his display trailer which has various
of his inventions but the most important part of it is the refrigerator
section for keeping the beer cold which is powered by a small Norman engine.
I only had my unrestored (but running) Wolseley WD 9. The gorilla (See right) needs some explanation: It dances for the kids - driven by a 1934 International
LB with a Myers Pump that has been converted to a compressor by the addition
of an Aspera cylinder head which charges a motorcar shockabsorber to make
the gorilla jump up and down and shake its head - the kids at shows love
it!
Robertson Spring Show. Friday and Saturday 1st and 2nd October
were the main days of this week-long show. There was nearly a disaster as
the organisers had sold more space than they realised to the commercial
exhibitors, squeezing us into a corner which was also a thoroughfare. Good
for exposure, to be sure, but it meant that our Tractor cousins were out
on a driveway outside. However, as I've said before, this is the show
that knows how to spoil the exhibitors, as I found out again, when I pulled
in with my lorry after a 2½ hour drive and was whisked off to breakfast.
Returning from breakfast, I found everything unloaded including 2 tonnes
of Petter Fielding on its trailer! As is usual in our shows there was
a good selection of makes and models from all over the world. What caught
my eye was a display of three as-collected engines on the back of a Thames
Trader lorry, which took part in the parade and road run. From a distance
they looked like three horizontal Deutz diesels, but on closer examination,
the third stated on the hopper it was made in London! Indeed it was a Uniporn
Diesel, from Porn & Dunwoody, the first I've ever seen! At the same
time in the show itself was another similar engine, a Sendling Diesel, (See above Right) made in Munich, which in some
eyes, at least, is in a different country from Cologne, where the Deutzes
came from :-)
Then later it was lunch on the house, and
there was no question of driving home on Friday night; I was put up by Johan
& Heidi Stemmet, and royally entertained! After the Saturday
lunch-time feast and prize giving, the show was spoilt at the end when we found that a Potjiekos
(food prepared over an open fire in a heavy iron pot) competition had been
allocated our pitch, and our engines which we had left running had been
switched off (How?) and fires were burning only feet from our priceless
toys! So we had irate contesters on one side, and live entertainers on the
other, while we were trying to load our stuff with a forklift in the middle!
At one stage there were nearly fisticuffs! We had to move, apart from the
Petter Fielding EH (See Right) , Johan's
Ruston & Hornsby 3HR on a lorry chassis belted up to a Ruston
centrifugal pump, and lots more smaller stuff besides. I rather enjoyed
emptying the contents of the big cooling tank of the PF right in front of
the temporary stage which left the revellers dancing in hot mud
:-)
Villiersdorp Show: Various snafus meant that the few members who
did manage to attend this show weren't positioned together. Without going
into detail it would help if there were people at a show to receive early
attenders, bearing in mind that it takes a long time to set up an exhibit,
certainly longer than parking up a tractor! The engines in attendance represented
a wide range of make and size, from a large Petter Atomic, and a Campbell
from their time in Cardiff, from oom Flip Viljoen, to tiny
washing machine motors, nicely presented by Philip Gray-Taylor,
(See Right) an example each of a Maytag (rare
here) and Briggs & Stratton. Philip walked off with the trophy for this
presentation. Stuart Turners aren't frequently seen, but Andre 
van Wyk had one, immaculately restored. One day we're going to measure
the unbelievable capacity of the JAP-powered Hathaway floating pump which
Denis Usher brought, (See Right)
along with a tank of water for it to float in. I reckon it could empty a
swimming pool in 10 minutes! Whereas at the Robertson show, the Condy's
Crystals with which I make 'wine' for my Marmonier wine pump didn't
fool any of the seasoned wine-farm labourers.... at this mainly fruit-growing
area, they weren't too sure.... I wonder whether anybody went home with
guts-ache after sampling some while we weren't watching! The Fairbanks
Morse Z Style B which I use to drive it is well matched, both in age
and power. The pump really makes that engine work, and running on straight
illuminating paraffin, it doesn't miss a beat! After being treated
to a great lunch, it was time to load it all up again :-(
Australian News: Ron Wiley has become
interested in the Villiers Mar-Vil engine, (See Right)
and anybody who knows him will realise he won't leave a stone unturned until
he has found out all there is to know about these enigmatic little engines.
There has also been a lot of correspondence recently about them in the pages
of Stationary Engine Magazine, with an article by Nick Highfield
and a letter from Ian Barnes from Swindon. Philip
Gray-Taylor in Cape Town took some pains to track Ian down by phoning
the Swindon Club secretary through the number in the "clubs" section of
SEM. He says: Trouble was the club was disbanded but the ex-secretary
was able to phone a couple of his pals and was able to get Ian's postal
address. Took about five phone calls! Philip now feels that with
Ian, Nick and Ron, who is also in contact with Martin Pope
in Canada, there is a good chance that they can unravel the mysteries of
the Mar-Vil, Johnson Utilimotor and the Australian Marino version. Ron would
appreciate any input from readers, on ronwiley@iinet.net.au
UK News: Patrick
Knight kindly sent in this report on the Gardner
Exhibition at the Anson Engine Museum: The 75th Anniversary Exhibition
of the Gardner L series engine, hosted by the Anson Engine Museum at Poynton,
Cheshire, has been an outstanding success, with attendance figures far exceeding
all expectations. Visitors included members of the Gardner family, former
Gardner employees, vintage vehicle owners/restorers, and of course, stationary
engine enthusiasts. The Gardner family have shown a great interest in the
exhibition with six of Lawrence Gardner’s great grandchildren
attending the closing ceremony. Opened in June by Paul Gardner,
great grandson of the company founder Lawrence Gardner, the exhibition was
brought to a close on Sunday 19th September with a few words
from Paul and then Mrs Susan Gardner (Paul’s wife) drew
the lucky winners in the Grand Raffle. The exhibition, which contained various
examples of the L series engine, included the 4L2 (See
right, from Patrick's A-Z of British Starionary Engines, published by Kelsey)
prototype built in 1929. This 36bhp motor was originally displayed at the
Shipping Engineering & Machinery Exhibition at Olympia. It was retained
by Gardner’s and used for many years in the works powerhouse. Since entering
into preservation the engine has been lovingly restored by volunteer staff
at the Anson Engine Museum. In addition to the L series engine there were
numerous examples of early Gardner gas and oil engines on display, many
of which were run during the weekend. The Museum also had several non-Gardner
engines running throughout the weekend. The Anson Engine Museum is currently
closed for the winter, allowing building work to proceed uninterrupted and
will re-open Easter 2005 for the new season. If you are travelling in the
UK during 2005 the Anson Engine Museum at Poynton, Cheshire is one place
you should endeavour to visit; I guarantee you will not be disappointed.
USA News: Dusty Erickson has sent word
that he has recently got his Invincible engine running (See Right) and sent us this dramatic picture of
its first cough in many years. He reports: This is a continuous lamp-ignition
four-stroke engine with operating principles much the same as a Blackstone.
Its only indication of an engine serial number is # 1072, clearly stamped
on the upper half big end bronze. The tarnished brass tag states: The "Invincible"
5 B.H.P., Speed 350, The Invincible Engine Co – Makers - Keighley, England.
To date, very little history is documented regarding the firm. Dusty would
relish any further information. dme@gameguns.com
New Members:
(Remember, this is a No Rules, No subs society!)
Dave Lyons from Hout
Bay attended the Winter Warm-up, where we also met Johan van Deventer
from Lynedoch Bruce Hendry, Johan Krohn and Blackie with
Yuri
Steve and Garratt Baker
are welcomed in the place of their late father, Peter,
who was tragically killed on a motorcycle recently. Airline pilot Conrad
van Reenen is planning a museum in Namaqualand. Ian Barnes
from Swindon in England is mentioned above under Australian News. At the
Robertson Show, Gido & Dean Kriel asked about magneto
problems for their three Faifbanks Morse engines which share one working
example! Jerry Evans found us through Norman
Spykerman, and he in turn has introduced Justin Ludewig.
At the Villiersdorp Show, we spotted a lady with a cell-phone,
holding it next to the engines. It was Pam Syndercombe,
phoning her husband Colin.
We sadly report the death after a short
illness of Robert Page, one of the Friends of Mostert's
Mill in Cape Town. He was their secretary and is sorely missed. We were
in regular contact ever since we had the show in the grounds of Mostert's
Mill in Cape Town, and it is sad that he didn't live to see the article
about his beloved Mill in the current issue of Farm & Horticultural
Equipment Collector magazine :-(
Info requested: Gary Przbilla
in Renmark, South Australia sent this request in:
I
have recently purchased a Deutz engine. (See
Right) There is a number on the name plate which I believe is
the serial no 619896. I would like to know if some one can date it for me
and also if their is some where I could purchase a owners manual for it.
I do remember reading in one of the Paraffinalia's about a man in Germany
who was good with Deutz's but I do not know how to contact him. I have attached two photos for you to be able to see
what sort of engine it is. My email address is bigrivertrench@hotkey.net.au
I sent the request
directly on to John Menasce in Johannesburg, who gave Gary
a few hints, which were a great help to Gary who replied: Thank you for your help with the Deutz and for
forwarding my email onto John. I have pulled off the rear plate to find
the engine number stamped there as John suggested and it is 619896. I also
did see (now that numbers mean a bit more) cast in the rear plate MAH 711.
The bore is 8 cm and the stroke is 11 cm. The flywheels measure 50
cm with a 4.5 cm face.
Curt Andree from Freeport Illinois has just got hold of a Lorenz
Horizontal Engine, (See Right) and he asks
whether any reader can help him with information on it. He writes:Just acquired this Lorenz 3-4hp sideshaft engine from
a friend in England. The engine was purchased from a fellow in Belgium,
then shipped to UK and was shown at the Astle Park Rally this summer in
my name, then shipped to USA earlier this month. I had to drive out
to Pittsburg,PA. to retrive her last week and she is now part of my collection.
Thought maybe you could post it in your newsletter for me along with a request
for other Lorenz owners responses. I am looking for owners/parts/instruction
manuals. cgandree@mchsi.com
What's on:
Peregrine Show,
on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th November 2004.
As usual, this is my local show so I will fill it out both days, but would
like as much support as possible on either or both days as it suits people.
It corresponds with the Elgin Open Gardens, so the rest of the family can
go off and view whatever our beautiful valley can offer.
Neville
Botha is having his "Open Day" in Henley-on-Klip
on the 20th November 2004. His phone number is 082
388 2604. It promises to be very good this year!
The 3 'main
manne' are already advertising the 17th Nuenen Show
in the Netherlands over the Whitsun weekend, 15th and 16th May 2005.
The biggest engine-only show on Continental Europe, which by all reports
is not to be missed!
For a long time
now, John Thorby has been advertising the forthcoming Anderson-only
Rally at Shantytown, in Greymouth, New Zealand, on the 22nd
and 23rd October 2005. He's hoping to have 100 examples of this
New Zealand made engine, to mark the centenary of their first engine.
Andy Selfe (021) 859 2430 Weathertop
Farm, PO Box 41, ELGIN 7180, South Africa aselfe@mweb.co.za Please write in if you have comments, or want a bigger image of any
of the pictures! My thanks to Jerry Evans for producing
the small images above.