1 1/2 HP Fairbanks Morse

This is my first engine, it was found in an auto wrecking yard under a sheet of tin.  I bugged the owner until he traded it for a bottle of Scotch.  I had no idea of what kind of engine it was, as the tag was missing.  A little sand blasting  and some Chevy orange paint it looked a little better.  On another trip to the wrecking yard the owner said he had the mag for the engine, a Sumter model Z Plugoscillator using the No. 14 Imp Magneto. 

The only problem area was the governor weights which were cracked and fell apart when disassembled.  I managed to start the engine without the weights in place. Having no prior experience with old engines I ran it very fast, but fortunately didn't blow it up. A dental lab technician friend made a mold to cast new weights.  The first set were made of lead, and proved to be too heavy.  The second set were made of Zinc (pot metal) and proved to be just right. 

I had the engine running, but still had no idea what it was. An announcement on the radio advertised a local fair with antique engine display.  After seeing the first display I recognized similarities to mine, it was a Fairbanks Morse.  Eventually I found the serial number stamped on the end of the crankshaft, the number on the hopper was rusted away.  Nice running engine, just needs to be painted the proper color.

1½ HP Fairbanks Morse # 382679