Unknown engine with brass crankcase, English?

[sarolea31]

Hello. a friend of mine has this engine.
He would very much like to know what it is from.
to me it looks ike a pre 1910 engine because of the atmospheric inlet valve, but i have not managed to find a match in any of my books.
There are no visible markings on it, but i would guess that someone who knows what this is, would recognize it instantly?
There has been pictures of it on a the German VFV-forum for a while without any answers, so i am guessing that it's not German.

any answers/sugestions are welcome.

Greetings from Norway, Per Bjornstad.

[cardan]

Hi Per,

The motor is very primitive, with its bronze cases, exposed timing gears and the coarse fins on the barrel. These are all hallmarks of a home-made motor, and I'd be pretty certain that's what we are looking at. No production engine would have these features, particularly the lack of enclosed timing gears, even pre-1900.

Magazines like "The English Mechanic" gave serialised instructions on how to build your own motor, and many enthusiasts gave it a try.

The motor looks quite large, so it could have been built for a car rather than a bike.

Is there a story about where the motor came from?

Greetings from Australia,

Leon

[P.V. Motorcycles]

Any indication of the bore and stroke?

Knowing those (and so the cc/cm3) might point to a particular application or manufacturer.

Otherwise, some more in-focus photos would be useful.
It's difficult to tell what's going on with the timing gear etc - is there the remnants of the ignition system there, or not?

PS - I'd agree with the 'primitive' point - under the barrel flange on the cases, the casting looks quite rough, like a one-off sand-casting - I'd have expected a 'fillet' between the flange and the side of the case.

[murdo]

Looks a lot like the engine in the book 'Motor Bicycle Building' by Paul Hasluck from 1906. This gave instructions on how to make your own frame and engine. The barrel flange looks very similar to the one shown on page 51. It lists the engine as 3.5 hp, with 82mm bore, but doesn't list the stroke. Also the valve looks similar too.

[R]

The motor looks quite large, so it could have been built for a car rather than a bike.

Yes, it would be quite useful to have an indication of size.
It looks quite tall, quite a hefty lump in fact.