Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

RogerB

Good afternoon to you all on the last day of 2016 (except in New Zealand where it is already 2017!).

I would like to rattle the collective memories of the OCC Forum and ask the the question..
Does anyone who followed motor racing in the early/mid 50's remember the AJB swing valve engine?
I remember it running at Brands in a Tojeiro (?) sports racing car; it was very quick but the engine tended to go 'bang' quite frequently.

As well as my on-going RedeX research I would like to find out more about the AJB.

A happy and healthy New Year to all Forum readers and writers........
Rogerb

Penman · Joined: 23 Nov 2007 Posts: 4756 Location: Swindon, Wilts.

Hi
No doubt you have seen these.

http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/november-1984/44/archie-butterworth

http://mc-engine-design.996302.n3.nabble.com/Butterworth-swing-valve-td8331.html
_________________
Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

mikeC · Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2016 5:54 pm Post subject:

The Butterworth-Tojeiro is for sale in Belgium at this very moment:

http://www.prewarcar.com/postwarclassic/classifieds/ad206971.html

_________________
in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!

mikeC · Posted: Sat Dec 31, 2016 6:07 pm Post subject:

It seems as if the Tojeiro-Butterworth may have never raced! The car you saw at Brands Hatch was probably the Elva-Butterworth driven by Archie Scott-Brown:

www.elva.com/elva-archie-scott-brown.html
_________________
in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!

RogerB · Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 4:44 pm Post subject:

Thank you all for the information on the AJB engine; it must have been the Elva-AJB I saw at Brands in the 50's.Regrettably I never got close enough to the car in the paddock to see the engine, maybe someone out there has a picture of the engine I can use.
Re Archie Scott-Brown, I remember an apocryphal story about him driving the Lister-Jaguar. He turned the car over and the marshall who went to try and get him out fainted because he could only see one hand not realising that Archie only had one hand anyway......
rogerb

mikeC · Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 7:05 pm Post subject:

This is the engine in the Tojeiro:

There's a nice picture of the engine in the Elva, on the alamy.com website (Crystal Palace page, about 2/3 down) http://www.alamy.com/stock-photo/crystal-palace-circuit.html - they may give you permission to use it.
_________________
in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!

mikeC · Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 7:19 pm Post subject:

Roger,

Two more for you; the original patent drawing for the swing spring, and his single-cylinder prototype engine which I understand has been fitted into a Norton frame:

_________________
in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!

RogerB · Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2017 5:30 pm Post subject:

Thank you......