No, it isn’t a Seagull but our little Pilot shared the stage with British Seagull in the middle part of the last century. Technologically and from an engineering point of view, both families of small engines are fairly similar – small displacement two stroke types with relatively low horsepower. Offerings from both companies were used on small dinghies or as auxiliary power on larger sailing boats.
The company, La société des moteurs Anzani was an engine manufacturer founded in France by the Italian Alessandro Anzani (1877-1956). The Anzani company went on to produce proprietary engines for aircraft, cars, boats, and motorcycles in factories in France, Britain and Italy. To read more about the Anzani company visit the British Anzani Archive
Greg Blunt down at C.Blunt Boatbuilders in Williamstown was the little Pilot’s last owner and handed it over as a bit of a challenge to see if it could be resurrected. No parts that should have turned were turning so the internal state was probably going to be as dire as the outside looked. And that turned out to be the case. The piston was well seized in the cylinder with heavy internal corrosion welding aluminium to cast iron. It seemed likely that at some stage the motor ended up in the drink with salty water left inside to do its work over time.
Getting the engine apart went well until the stuck piston was the last job to tackle. The head came off without trouble exposing the piston. Thinking wishfully I gave it a few taps but no sign of movement followed. Next a bit of heat, then cool, then heat again but no luck – still stuck solid. Soaking with WD40 came next leaving the cylinder upright and full to the top for a few days. No change and I was beginning to think this would be a fail. Back to more serious heat and a few taps – no go. The last technique and also the riskiest to the piston, involved cutting a bit of steel pipe that just fit into the cylinder and on to the edge circumference of the piston with about an inch sticking out of the cylinder. This arrangement was then put into the vice lengthwise and tightened but not to extreme. A sharp tap to the centre of the vice handle and there was a fraction of a millimetre of movement. Repeating these steps finally got the piston out. The rings were corroded into the piston and had to be chipped out in many little pieces. After that, everything cleaned up nicely. The bore was in very good condition and only needed light honing. New rings had to be custom made by a fantastic engineering shop here in Melbourne, Phoenix Piston Rings, were it not for Rob the business owner, our Pilot would never have made it past being a static display.
With the powerhead back together the next ‘hold breath’ moment was to see if we had a spark – despite being fifty-five odd years old there was indeed a bright blue spark. No pitting on the points contacts was a good sign too. The rest of the work involved cosmetic detailing, cleaning, painting and chrome work. Custom decals were made by a supplier in Adelaide.
After a couple of attempts at starting, mainly getting the choke setting right, the old Pilot came back to life. A run out on Hobsons Bay showed the Anzani to be a willing engine for our Fazackerley dinghy, Gabriella.
The gallery below shows most of the restoration journey.
