Identity of Glow Engine.

Recently I was given this engine. It has been in an open box under a bench in a friends shed for 40 plus years and was in a very dirty state. It cleaned up very well and after a strip down and rebuild it is in very nice condition. Surprisingly there was no corrosion inside.I have searched various engine galleries without finding any engine that looks the same. The crankcase has been machined from solid and there is no backplate,so all assembly is through the front..The thin walled steel cylinder has integral cooling fins and two inlet ports plus a boost port through the piston Front bearing is plain but is a light alloy bush not bronze. The prop retaining flange is very unusual in having a series of drilled holes that look as though they have been drilled free hand. The plastic bodied carb has a brass disc with + / - engraved ,to alter slow running, something I have not seen before. Other than the curious prop driver all machining is first class and I wonder if it was a prototype, or a short run manufacture. I will be interested in anyones thoughts and opinions if your memory goes back far enough.

Keith

Edited By KEITH BEAUMONT on 24/09/2018 17:11:39

Edited By JasonB on 24/09/2018 17:25:14

Help Jason ! I thought I was loading four photos of this engine.

Keith

I can see 4 pictures. Have put the first one into the thread with the others.

The plastic carb is a commercial Veco one will have to think about the engine, looks like someone wanted a light weight prop driver.

Edited By JasonB on 24/09/2018 17:25:52

Looks like an Irvine carb, looking at prop driver could it be a home made job?

The carburettor is actually a Perry carburettor. Veco engines came with them. 'Mit Perry Vergasser' !! it says on my Veco 19 box.

The engine looks like a home brew of some description. There are some very knowledgeable model engine guys to ask, but the best and most knowledgeable of them avoid the internet like the plague.

I do not recognise it as a commercial engine that I have seen in the last 45 years or so. The Perry carburettor was used by Veco and HB, both distributed in the UK by Irvine Engines who held good stocks of spares. The castings and Cylinder look professional to me but the use of cheesehead screws very unprofessional. I wonder if it is something built up by somebody from spare parts? Also the way that the rear of the crankcase is cut back maybe to minimise crankcase volume seems rather unusual and distinctive. It could be a prototype of some sort.

Plenty of old engines used cheese or round-head screws.

N.

Certainly an HB carb, but the rest of the engine is a mystery. Looks like a good home build.

Andrew.

Neil I think the preferred head on old engines was the "Fillister" Head - parallel sides like a cheese head but a slightly domed top, slotted. Well that's what Ramon says

Keith

I am sure someone on a sister forum modelflying will know. You can find them here
Looks a nice engine.
I have some engines where the prop driver has been drilled but only a few holes and probably for balancing. Lightening would seem a bit of s waste of time but most prop drivers have knurled contact faces arranged radially to grip the prop. The holes would do the same I think but a bit OTT.

Tim

All my Davies Charlton engines have plain cheese head and the Circle K round head Phllips I can't imagine they have all been replaced. The GP has slotted dome heads, but it's only about 25 years old.

Neil

Just had a look at my old Veco21 and that has Fillaster head but cross point as does a OS 20, both about 35yrs old

It looks to me, that it is someones home made engine case, and has used commercial piston liner assembly and carb. They may have made the crank and prop driver as well. But there were several makers who used the flat on the crank for the prop driver, instead of the tapered collet.

Neil L

I have a British designed and made Merco 61 mark 2 engine of 1965 vintage. It was the stunt engine to have in those days, powering the first three planes in the world championships of that year and that has cheese head fixings identical to my mystery engine.

Keith

Edited By KEITH BEAUMONT on 24/09/2018 20:30:47

Jason,

You are quite correct about the Phillister head bolts they are common on old US spark ignition engines. I wished I could source some, but no luck even in the USA! Some of my old O&R engines could do with new phillister head screws!

Andrew.

Before anyone writes in about a source of Phillister head (or Fillister!). The modern ones are quite unlike the old American screws. The modern ones are more or less slotted cheesheads without the slightly domed heads and indeed curved sides.

Andrew.

slightly off topic but whilst an apprentice the whole department of apprentices were given the task of building ten model aircraft engines, this involved making the engines and all of the jigs and fixtures, we had drawings and castings etc and we got to visit a company in Essex near the Thames who made model engines, ironically our training manager was into radio control so its fairly certain where the engines went and I could assume that they all ended on the open market at some point.

Martin P

Martin, sounds like a visit to ED workshop, made a large range of diesel engines from 0.5cc upwards over many years.

Emgee

Emgee,

The cylinder head and barrel look similar but then it was 45 years ago

Martin P

Couldn't have been a visit to E.D. because their factory was in Kingston-on-Thames, or at least Surrey not Essex.

The crankcase of this engine seems to be modelled on some of the Fuji which had removeable front end, though this ones from solid instead of cast. I think that the carb is either Perry or Kavan, I've had both on the dozens of engines I've flown/crashed! but can't remember the differences. Head looks similar to K&B or 1960's style OS Max. but I can't remember an engine that had circular exhaust ports, so I think that it's 'home designed' based on general '60's features. Does it run well enough to fly? that's the important question!

Trevor.