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Home Updates Hydros Cars Engines Contacts Links ←PIt Box 24 Pit Box Index |
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Pitbox 25 |
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| Nordec Special Series II
We have previously shown
two examples of this motor that was to be the next version of
the Nordec produced by the North
Downs Engineering Company. Unfortunately, due to changes in
personnel, the purchase tax case and a factory relocation, the
Special Series II never got beyond the prototype stage before
the company ceased to manufacture model engines. The Series II
is easily identifiable through the much wider transfer bulge,
the deeper exhaust stack and
most importantly, the monobloc crankcase casting, although this
was due to be changed to the standard, removable fins on the
production version. Neither were the pre-production prototypes
ever blacked as the earlier versions were. What makes this motor unique (so far) is
that it is the only one that has not seen duty in a speed plane
so still has its full exhaust stack and the NORDEC letters on
the transfer. What none of them have is the downdraft venturi backplate that John Wood appeared to be working on when the
manufacture of engines ended in 1950. The venturi on this
engines appears to be a non Nordec replacement and why the
standard R10 front housing? We can however
finally confirm that the motor previously claimed to be a Series
II is actually a standard R10 and that the backplate with the
down draft venturi is from a completely different motor and that
the second downdraft backplate photographed is a standard Series
I with a neat elbow on the bottom of the venturi. |
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Viking tethered car
From Denmark
comes this tethered car
produced in 1948-1950, by the company CTC 'Claus Thorlund
Clausen' Allesø, who also produced the Danish Viking Engines,
and was distributed through DMI – 'Dansk Modelflyve Industri'
Notice that the compression is set by the steering wheel! The
engine shown on the advertisement is a VIKING 2,5 which was done
also in 3,2 ccm and also in a double shaft version. The engine(s)
were done in more than 21.000 pcs |
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| Brown Hydro motor
Prior to WW2 the 30cc hydro A class was
dominated by single cylinder four stroke motors with those using two
strokes, very much in the minority. This was mainly as development lagged behind with
the main source of designs and information being Edgar Westbury
through the pages of Model Engineer. Some did persist with two
strokes as there were inherent advantages with the much lighter
weight and mechanical simplicity. Options were limited so many
resorted to building their own motors from scratch, including Bob
Brown of Brighton who made the patterns and built this 30cc motor in
the late 1930s. A very compact back end with a rotary valve and
engine mounts on the front half of the casting only, simplified
construction somewhat. In a large scow type hull the engine was good
for 40+mph, which matched many of the run of the mill four strokes.
In the 1990s, the engine, drawing and patterns were passed to Peter
Hill, current whereabouts unknown. |
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| IR 10
The late Ian Russell was well known for his
model flying activities and later his commercial engine
building. However this motor is an example of an earlier attempt
by Ian to build a British motor to compete with the McCoy 60. It
shows elements of both the McCoy and the Nordec, but apart from
that nothing more is known and just these two photos that turned
up after Ian's death are
evidence that it ever existed. It is possibly out there
somewhere if anyone recognises it? |
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| OPS B20 Two more examples of the relatively rare but very very expensive OPS twin, built in limited numbers in the 1970s. The motor on the right is exactly as it was when Gualtiero Picco passed it to a fellow tethered car racer. It still has the original prop driver from its test run where the certificate states that it produced 4.1bhp at 20,500rpm, signed by both Picco and Piero Muzio. Both engines are from the very first production run, number 5 on the left and 18 on the right. Oddly, the documentation is for a later engine though, so someone out there probably has the certificate for #18. See this month's Pylon for the history of the B20. |
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| The 'portly' Picco On the face of it this looked like a 'put everything together' project, but that could not have been further from the truth. All the parts in the finished car were there, but nothing fitted. See this month's Pylon for the full, sorry saga. As the top photos show, perseverance and ingenuity had a complete, but effectively useless car. |
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