Jump to content


Photo

David R Taylor's mystery twin-cam Climax FWB


  • Please log in to reply
10 replies to this topic

#1 David Beard

David Beard
  • Member

  • 4,997 posts
  • Joined: July 02

Posted 15 July 2010 - 12:00

I’ve been in contact with David R Taylor who raced a Lotus 12 in the early 60s. The car was bought as a rolling chassis, but instead of fitting the usual Coventry Climax FPF twin cam engine, David used a special twin cam version of the normally single cam FWB motor. The carbs and exhaust were on the opposite sides to their position on an FPF. This motor was designed and built by a sub contactor to Rolls-Royce, based in Essex. The chap concerned built two of these motors, the other being raced by himself in a sportscar of some sort.

No one seems to remember the name of this engine builder, or the sportscar. Any ideas?


Advertisement

#2 David Beard

David Beard
  • Member

  • 4,997 posts
  • Joined: July 02

Posted 16 July 2010 - 12:11

I’ve been in contact with David R Taylor who raced a Lotus 12 in the early 60s. The car was bought as a rolling chassis, but instead of fitting the usual Coventry Climax FPF twin cam engine, David used a special twin cam version of the normally single cam FWB motor. The carbs and exhaust were on the opposite sides to their position on an FPF. This motor was designed and built by a sub contactor to Rolls-Royce, based in Essex. The chap concerned built two of these motors, the other being raced by himself in a sportscar of some sort.

No one seems to remember the name of this engine builder, or the sportscar. Any ideas?


I suppose the mystery man might have built this engine in the 50s, thinking about it, because there would have been little point when the FPF became available?

#3 bradbury west

bradbury west
  • Member

  • 6,096 posts
  • Joined: June 02

Posted 16 July 2010 - 13:38

David, I know that a nil result is a useless contribution, but there is no mention of it in Des Hamill's Climax book. Have you spoken to Tony Mantle? Perhaps someone from that period like David Piper might throw some light.
Roger Lund

#4 Peter Morley

Peter Morley
  • Member

  • 2,263 posts
  • Joined: October 02

Posted 21 July 2010 - 12:30

Didn't someone use a similar motor in the Lola Mark 2 that is now owned by David Pratley?
I think his Lola was built as an F2?

#5 wdm

wdm
  • Member

  • 164 posts
  • Joined: March 04

Posted 21 July 2010 - 12:57

Didn't someone use a similar motor in the Lola Mark 2 that is now owned by David Pratley?
I think his Lola was built as an F2?

The Essex location mentioned above would seem to fit with this: http://forums.autosp...a...t&p=2761985

Edited by wdm, 21 July 2010 - 12:58.


#6 David Beard

David Beard
  • Member

  • 4,997 posts
  • Joined: July 02

Posted 21 July 2010 - 20:41

The Essex location mentioned above would seem to fit with this: http://forums.autosp...a...t&p=2761985


Yes, that thread seems to give some answers. Great stuff!

#7 bradbury west

bradbury west
  • Member

  • 6,096 posts
  • Joined: June 02

Posted 22 July 2010 - 15:03

Is this not to be confused with the various Smith Climaxes? QV David Hodge's A-Z and a TNF thread covering it ages ago. Remember one was for sale at Retromobile a couple of years ago.
Much will depend on the year when it was supposedly built to identify it, surely, going by Hodges. Also, if it was 1960-ish, bear in mind Climax already had a twin cam head testing on an FW block then. In the "Essex" linked thread above, a 1500cc FWC is mentioned. Presumably this is an FWB.
Roger Lund

#8 David Beard

David Beard
  • Member

  • 4,997 posts
  • Joined: July 02

Posted 11 March 2011 - 02:37

I have now done quite a bit of research on this engine and now have the following...

The engine was built by Gerald G Smith, of Harlow in Essex, who had an engineering firm which supplied aero engine components to Rolls-Royce. The company still exists to in the form of Smiths of Harlow, and continues to be a supplier to R-R. Gerald’s son Robert is a current director.

Gerald Smith raced 500cc Formula 3 cars in the fifties, both his own front engined Kent Smith and an Arnott. It was in an Arnott that Gerald crashed at Montherly during a record attempt. He lost a leg as a result of the crash, but his passion for motor racing didn’t seem to diminish…

From Autosport, 9th July 1954:

"While attempting to break the 750cc International class records at Montherly track on 3rd July, the 600cc Norton engine in the streamlined Arnott driven by Gerald Smith broke its connecting rod, locking up solid and causing the car to crash. Smith sustained bad leg injuries and is currently in the local hospital. The Arnott was wrecked."

In the course of his racing activities, Gerald had befriended Ben Rood. “Benny” was motor cycle racer of note in the early 50s, notably with a Velocette 250 with a twin cam head he designed and manufactured himself. Later, he designed a similar head for Norton singles, one of which ended up in Gerald’s F3 car. Ben had his own machine shop in Walthamstow. One of his most successful projects was the Hogan-Rood hydroplane engine, with which Alan Stacey’s brother Philip was very successful. Benny, of course, went on to be one of the key figures at Cosworth. In fact it was Gerald Smith who introduced him to Keith Duckworth.

While looking after Gerald Smith’s cars, Benny’s attention was turned to the single cam Coventry Climax FWB engine. The design philosophy of the previous single cylinder motor cycle heads was applied to the four cylinder Climax. It seems that this was all happening in parallel with the emergence of the twin FPF engine from Climax, but presumably Gerald and Benny wanted more of challenge than just buying one of those! The head used a bespoke casting. The existing chain drive acted on a central sprocket on the head, the shaft of which was connected by gear trains to each of the camshafts. The inlet and exhaust cams were the other way round to the FPF.the position of the carbs and exhaust on David Taylor’s Lotus 12.

The engine was tested in a front engined Formula Junior Lola, but the offset driveline meant that the carburettors were positioned way outside the chassis. Gerald and Benny must have had some sort of influence at Lola, because a special “opposite hand “chassis was built for the engine, with the propeller shaft to the left of the driver. Peter Ashdown intended to race it in F2. Frank Lugg, one of Lola’s earliest employees, was involved with the car, and recalls that Gerald Smith tended to be rather impatient If something didn’t work straight “out of the box” even after lots of work and expense, he wasn’t interested in development. Perhaps that is why more weren’t made…









#9 David McKinney

David McKinney
  • Member

  • 14,156 posts
  • Joined: November 00

Posted 11 March 2011 - 06:08

Fascinating tale, David

Thanks for your revelations :up:

#10 Marticelli

Marticelli
  • Member

  • 283 posts
  • Joined: January 10

Posted 11 March 2011 - 08:12

In the course of his racing activities, Gerald had befriended Ben Rood. “Benny” was motor cycle racer of note in the early 50s, notably with a Velocette 250 with a twin cam head he designed and manufactured himself.

Benny raced his 250cc Velo special in the 1953 Lightweight TT but retired, and came a lowly 44th on a 7R in the same year's Junior in his only IoM appearance. This also puts me in mind of Doug Beasley of Coventry who made many special Velocette engines with single and double OHC, including the 250cc Mk8 KTT ridden by him in the 1952 Lightweight TT (but retired). The rule then was if it wasn't available, just make one yourself, and they often did with considerable success.

IIRC in 1947 Maurice Cann was controversially beaten into second place by Manliffe Barrington on the works single knocker Guzzi in the Lightweight TT. Not to be outdone, he famously built a double knocker head for his 250 Guzzi for the Italian GP at Monza where succeeded in beating the works single knocker Guzzis. The bike was impounded by the Italian authorities whilst returning from the Italian GP The following year, the works Guzzis had double knocker heads suspiciously like Maurice's home made one from the previous year!!

Marticelli

#11 Robin Fairservice

Robin Fairservice
  • Member

  • 599 posts
  • Joined: March 07

Posted 11 March 2011 - 16:58

On August Bank Holiday Monday 1953, I took the following picture of the Kent 500c c car, driven by David (?) Smith after going off at Clearways:

Posted Image

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Edited by Robin Fairservice, 11 March 2011 - 16:59.