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andrew
Moderator
Username: andrew
Post Number: 569
Registered: 11-2001
| | Posted on Sunday, February 26, 2006 - 08:19 pm: | 
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The following came in by email. I will direct Dennis here for more information. Thanks.
Dennis, you may get responses from Australians too... we have a lot of regulars from "down under"...
quote:Hi my American friends;
The picture I sent was a stationary engine called " THE GILE " it is a one and a half horse power
type A engine No 595 , manufacted by THE GILE BOAT AND ENGINE COMPANY, LUDINGTON , MICHIGAN, USA.
The engine was at some stage connected to a well pump.
It sits on a triangular shaped base with a small tag with the word DOLCUN.
I am looking for more information about this engine it appears that some of the parts are not geniune.
The information in Australia is very limited.
Hope you can help.
Look forward to your reply
Regards
Dennis.
[email protected]
I will attach four pictures of this strange engine.
Just a few extra details. It is a vertical and air cooled by a small fan driven from a belt around a single flywheel.
You can also vary the speed you want to run the engine at.
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ernie
Senior Member
Username: ernie
Post Number: 373
Registered: 01-2002
| | Posted on Sunday, February 26, 2006 - 08:28 pm: |
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My guess is that is some flavor of a New Way. However I don't think any of the New Way engines had mechanical intake valves. ??? |
Scott Peters
Visitor
| | Posted on Monday, March 06, 2006 - 11:07 am: |
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Greetings Dennis, Ernie and friends:
Here is a little bit on Gile Boat and Engine Company. I recently came across an article in the Michigan Investor indicating that they were doing a lot of overseas sales, especially Australia, in 1913 (still trying to track down the specific issue.)
Gile Boat & Engine Company was a boat building firm incorporated at Ludington, Mason County, Michigan on March 8, 1909 with a capital stock of $50,000. Its management consisted of J. S. Stearns, President; William L. Mercereau, Secretary and Treasurer, and W. L. Gile, General Manager. Stearns was also president of Stearns Salt and Lumber Company and the Stearns Hotel Company, (Stearns, Kentucky, is also named after him) and Mercereau was Superintendent of steam ships for the Pere Marquette Rail Road.
Gile Boat & Engine Company advertised in the 1911 Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory as: “Gile Boat & Engine Company/Manufacturers of/High Grade Launches and/Marine and Stationary/Engines/Office and Works at - - - Ludington, Mich.” A similar advertisement appears in the 1913 edition. In 1915 the advertisement mentioned the introduction of another new product: “Gile Boat & Engine Company/Manufacturers of/High Grade Marine and Stationary/Engines and Agricultural Tractors/Heavy Steel Boats/Office and Works at - - -Ludington, Mich.”
Several boat designs were prepared for the company by naval architect Stuart B. Kingsbury, including a special 40-foot shallow draft launch (1911); a trunk cabin crusing launch (no date); a 48 X 10 X 3-foot steel river launch (no date) and a power cruiser (1914.)
The company went out of business and changed its name sometime after 1916.
[1911 line listed in Wendel.]
Sources:
Polk, R. L. & Co. Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1911-1912 (Detroit, MI: R. L. Polk & Co., 1911.) pp. 1209, 1837, 2167.
Polk, R. L. & Co. Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1913-1914 (Detroit, MI: R. L. Polk & Co., 1913.) pp. 942, 1534, 1839.
Polk, R. L. & Co. Michigan State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1915 (Detroit, MI: R. L. Polk & Co., 1915.) pp. 1042, 1537, 1852.
Michigan State Archives, RG 61-11, Abstracts of Reports of Corporations, Lot 3, Vol. 4 (1903-1909). p. 227.
Homfeld, Max F. 753 Manufacturers of Inboard Marine Engines (St. Michaels, MD: Max F. Homfeld, 1991.) p. 5.
Walter Smith Miscellaneous Ship Drawing Collection, Kingsbury, S. B., Naval Architect—Designs. GLMS-74 mf, Historical Collections of the Great Lakes, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio. |
richarddurgee
Senior Member
Username: richarddurgee
Post Number: 1029
Registered: 11-2001
| | Posted on Saturday, March 11, 2006 - 12:43 pm: |
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With Scott's post above and Recent information from R.B.Price and Jason Harrison here's a bit more history on Gile Marine Engines.
W.L.Gile was a pioneer inventor and maker of marine engines in Muskegon, no specific dates yet but he must have been involved about 1900 with this early design single and twin.
By 1905-06 split case engines
W.Gile invented some of the most fascinating controls i've seen His Controlling lever would start, stop, reverse the propeller and control timing for speed.
He also mfgd his own carburetors
In 1907 C.T.Wright a formidable business man in Greenville bought Giles patents and machinery and moved to his plant in Greenville, Wright mfgd the Gile engs and hired William Gile to be superintendant of his factory.
Wright added a small 2 Hp engine into his line in 1907, From looking at it many can tell this was a different engine design ( Termaat & Monahan ?)
Scotts post above is the forming of a new and separate Co., W. Gile left the employ of C.T. Wright and with other partners founded the Gile Boat and Engine Co.in Ludington 1909.
The only Gile engines I have seen are these Termaat & Monahan- Detroit conglomerate rebadged engs ?
C.T. Wright kept the Gile patents and continued to mfg them untill 1917 ca.
Has anyone seen one of the original Gile Engines?
Another time and with more information at hand it would be interesting to look into J.S Stearns the President of Gile Boat and engine Co. I have data of a Stearns Engine Co. in Michigan as early as 1900 ca but don't yet know the tie in with these Companies ? |
johnderler
New member
Username: johnderler
Post Number: 1
Registered: 09-2005
| | Posted on Wednesday, November 08, 2006 - 02:37 pm: |
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Richard Durgee asks "has anyone seen one of the original Gile engines".
The answer is 'yes'!
Twenty years or so ago I purchased a 3-hp single cylinder marine Gile for my retired father, who was a member of the West Michigan Old Engine Club but who had no engine.
I bought the engine from a collector in North Carolina as a Christmas gift. After all, a member of the old engine club should have at least one engine!
After my father's death, the engine was donated to the Mason County Historical Society. I presume that they still have it and it may be displayed at the Historic White Pine Village near Ludington.
About the same time I saw another such small Gile marine engine doing artifact duty at a gift shop in South Haven MI. My attempt to purchase it was unsuccessful! |
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