British Anzani Racing Motors & History

[twister]

Recently there's been a lot of interest in these old motors, some of it triggered by my running one in the USA in January. Hopefully we'll have another one running for a CMBA meet this year - if of course we can find a suitable venue where a bit of noise isn't too much of a problem!

Does anybody have any old photos, parts or even old motors? Anzanis were raced all over the country in the 50s & 60s, so there were lots around at one time - where are they all now? It'd be great if we could find a few more and get them running.

The designer of the motor was Charles Harrison, who ran British Anzani in the 50s, after working on the BMB Britannia motors before WW2; he raced a boat called Silver Arrow and designed a well-respected racing lower unit which he named after his boat. The racing version of the Unitwin followed soon afterwards.

Let us all know if you have anything - info or something firmer - and let's make some noise on the water this year!

rod

[SpiritOfSelkirk]

I can vouch very much on what Twister is saying about British Anzani racing outboards. To me they are an amazing UK engine. The Youtube videos, four of them show the engine waking up from a long abscence as a stock racing engine seen last running so many decades ago.

It is a methanol fueled variant of this same engine (Twister was demonstrating in its stock racing form in January 2009) that reached speeds to 107 miles per hour and was not at full throttle yet as a 322cc engine in kilo trials in Region 10 of the APBA in the USA the early 1970s. The official 2 way record of just over 100+ miles per hour was set in 1970 and stayed for several years unchallenged. There will be more Anzani powered racing runs added to Youtube featuring those actual record runs that produced the records attained in the 1970s in the not too distant future.

Until Twisters gas burning stock racing engine was started and run I never knew what one sounded like with stock racing water level exhausts! I have heard the methanol engines since the early 1960s and had my 250cc and 322cc methanol burners running exhibition since the 1970s. It was truly exciting with its animal like near unrestrained growl. On open pipes Twister might treat you to some day, they become even more unbelievable in sound and motion. A great job Twister, in Florida 2009 and I am looking forward to seeing you at it again once the weather warms up during the rest of this year. Like Twister it is my hope you all look in dusty bins, under tool tables and benches and with some luck come up with some of these old dusty packed away restorables that some day could add to some more action to your shows there someday.

-SpiritOfSelkirk
-Your Canadian member

[Alacrity]

Great to have you here. You wouldn't by chance be the gentleman who has been talking with one of our members re. his MK 40H would you??

Geoff

[SpiritOfSelkirk]

Geoff: Yes I am one and the same. And like Rod very much an ardent to even fanatical Anzani outboard racing engine restorer.

[SpiritOfSelkirk]

I am trying to find a picture attachment to provide a bit more of an intro to readers. I hopes this works.

[SpiritOfSelkirk]

The following is a picture of my wedge R & D 250cc hydro from circa 1978 powered by a 250cc methanol and nitromethane burning British Anzani single carb racing outboard. If it wasn't the fact I was just around 200lbs in weight the hydro would not have stayed down on the water doing in the high 80+ miles per hour as a closed course racing boat. It would go faster setup for kilo trials but I would not want to be in the boat for that as the hydro would have been too short and unstable.

Enjoy the picture.

[SpiritOfSelkirk]

For your viewing pleasure, the following is one of the most simple yet far out variants and one of the most successful closed course engines ever run in the 1970s of a British Anzani 322cc class B Alky (methanol & nitro fueled). Built for hydro driver Roger Wendt of Montana by legendary USA Northwest builder and racer Ron Anderson, it was a 2 carb version open pipe engine that could take on 4 cylinder loop charged 350cc Konigs and could win or dead heat against them in closed course 1 mile X 5 lap competitions. The engine was capable of 90+ mile per hour straightway speeds during close oval course competitions. The engine is restored and part of a future marine museum collection for Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada.

Some unique engine facts, it is highly hybrid: Anzani crankcase, block, pistons & cylinder head, Harrison crankshaft with Konig connecting rods, Phelon flywheel ignition combo system, on the fly adjustable Vacturi & Tillotson carbs, OMC fuel pumps, spring floating megaphone open pipe exhausts, steel midsection, Mercury clamps and Konig gearcase.

[twister]

Do the twin carbs feed just to the inlet ports under the piston skirts? If so, what's been done with the original secondary inlet tract via the crankshaft rotary valve? Strikes me that there could be some conflicts here...unless the crankshaft tract has been closed off somehow?

[SpiritOfSelkirk]

The following picture is that of the 107 mile per hour attaining 322cc British Anzani class B Alky racing engine. This was built by well known engineer Jim Hallum of Duval, Washington state in the USA's Northwest and is a 4 carburetted (3 Tillotson HLs & a single Vacturi A0-500) variant burning methanol and nitromethane (30%) fuel mixes. The entire carb system was run with cams to phase in each stage of allowing more carbs to open up as the engine progressed to its highest rpms which happened very fast. The exhausts are classic fixed megaphones, the midsection is custom as is the lower unit gearcase with an offset skeg with deep water pickup to allow the prop a clean bite of water as it spun. This motor was a variant more complex and more powerful than the 2 carb Anzani that set the speed record in 1970 at 100+ (and a fraction of 1 mile per hour) mph. This 4 carb variant was mounted on a larger Karlsen (USA) hydro hull longer and wider than the original record was set up but again at 107 miles per hour the engine was not fully throttle open and the Karlsen hull kept lifting trying to flip over so the testing came to an end with the 107 mile per hour run. It is unknown if there has been any attempt with this engine mounted on a modern day pickelfork hydro but Jim Hallum's guestimate is that the Anzani could do somewhere between 110 and 115 miles per hour and given newer prop techologies of today maybe a bit more.

This picture is a permitted courtesy photo from Charlie Williams, from his outboardracing.com site.

[SpiritOfSelkirk]

The following picture is of the only known to have been actively raced British Anzani twin blocked coupled, single prop driven (250cc X 2) class C - NOA sanctioned Alky. The engine built by Bill Tenney of Crystal Bay, Minnesota USA was owned and run by midwestern racer Floyd Harris Jr. who ran it strictly in the Class C Alky runabout class. This 4 cylinder coupled Anzani engine rating is approximately between 130 to 150 horsepower @ 9,000rpm depending on how much nitromethane was mixed into the methanol fuel mix. It is probably the first over 100 horsepower engine in the world ever seen when engineered and assembled in 1961 and actively campaigned until 1964 never loosing a race it entered and started. The engine disappeared in 1964 until the winter of 2007-2008 when its components turned up here from engine parts and assemblies given me upon Mr. Tenney's death and estate dispersal in 1996.

Enjoy the picture. The engine sits in a private collection here on display. Rumour has it that there is one somewhere in either New Zealand or Australia but its only that a rumour and it might be a gasoline burning version as was originally intended but was soon chamged when it got to North America in the hands of Bill Tenney.