Hello Folks! Yes we have a news page and I will add bits to this page as and when.
I will be adding to the page at the top in future so you will not have to scroll to find the latest additions
John Williams SOS
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February 2008
Seagull 75 stolen from Poole, Dorset.
Owner is Charles one of my forum moderators and frequent contributor.
This nice looking motor has no serial number?? (new crankcase..) Note the unusual thrust block and another distinguishing feature is the clutch lever has been welded. If you are offered this get the sellers details and contact the police and SOS.
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December 2007
'Maddy' the Moggy Van is coming up for her 40th birthday, so to prepare her for this auspicious date, I have sent her off to be refurbished. She is to be stripped to the chassis and rebuilt, repairing and replacing any parts needed to keep her on the road till well after she is 50!
(Last time she had a real make over was 10 years ago....)
She will still be green, but the sign-writing will change slightly, to accommodate a modification I have had waiting to go onto her for years....
She will be back in February... or March.. or April... Last seen end of Feb still all in bits strewn round the workshop... I have loads of bits here refurbishing them, waiting till the chap is ready to refit them....
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October 2007
Seagull stolen from Chard, Somerset, Saturday 29th Sept.
This distinctive modified Seagull should be easy to spot!!!!
Richard would like to have it back, have you seen it, if so,
call the police and Richard....on 07966366096
September 2007.
I get many letters of thanks and testimonials, but I do not normally print them, they just make me feel good,!! but this one had a snippet of advice that may be of use to our American Seagullers, so I print part of it here.
I am not in the habit of writing a testimonial but I have to admit your
advice counsel and humour have brought me happiness.
I have the above mentioned Seagull (Forty Plus with Bing Carb) and it was
dead!!! Or so I thought. I carefully followed your instructions moving
from the fuel to the spark plug and even on to the re-magnetizing drill trick.
Along the way I found out a lot about my engine and myself. (Read "Zen and the
Art of Motorcycle Repair") What was the greatest experience after cleaning
the carburettor, getting a spark and of course changing the lower gear oil, was
having the satisfaction of a start in one pull.
I could not have done it without your web site.
I learned two things along the way which I did not find on these pages which
might be some help. On the Bing Carburettor you can only
re-insert the barrel in the correct direction a surprising and amazing
engineering feature. The alignment of the ports is very confusing due
to the fact that you almost need a third hand to reassemble the throttle
linkage.
The second is of assistance to the American market where odd wrench/spanner
sizes are required. The cap nut holding the rope pull
plate matches the sizing for the standard American faucet wrench which usually
comes in a hand socket it will neither damage the nut and is
designed with holes for a cheater. All very useful, on a frozen nut.
Again thank you for your efforts in putting this site together, and happy
boating.
W. Lawrence Lopez
Thankyou sir, I enjoy doing it!
John
September 2007.
For years I heard the story that British Seagull, at some time in the 1960's, tried a single ring piston. Up until this week I had never seen one. I am indebted to Brian Graham for not only this picture, but for the piston itself, which is added to my collection of Seagull curios.
The story goes that, as Seagulls were so low compression, the boffins thought they could run on a single ring piston, thus of course saving a few shillings.
A thousand were made, they were fitted to a batch of Seagulls and tested. It was found that though the motors ran OK at first, for some reason the top of the piston overheated and the ring became trapped by debris.. Thus the idea was dropped. The remaining stock was sold off to dealers.. This was not a clever move, as doubtless some found their way into motors subsequently, causing problems for the hapless owners.... I have heard from Charles Large, that he had seen some new ones in New Zealand, where the racing boys thought they might be useful... they were not!
Brian's Seagull, a mid 1960's Century, had probably never been repaired or serviced, but had been one of the ones fitted with the single ring piston at the factory and somehow got out onto the market.
If you consider that in those days Seagull were making 2,000 motors a month, the 1,000 pistons would have only amounted to a months Centuries, if they were all fitted at once... I suspect only a few were ever fitted with these.
Needless to say I sent Brian a two ring piston to fit back into his Century!
Now we have to find that wooden piston.....
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I recently, August 07, had a holiday, a special one, to celebrate reaching 'bus pass' age!
Went to the standing stones of Calenais, in the Outer Hebrides!
John, SOS
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Sunday 24th June 2007.
As some of you might know, John has been a little preoccupied for the past 8 months or so since he bought a little boat to renovate. The idea was to present it to Dave and Jenny as a wedding present... After some initial doubts, my wife Darian pitched in to assist and the final paint finish is down to her!
As they are both very Eco conscious, he being a tree warden with a woodland, she trekking eco trails in the Amazon and working in an endangered species sanctuary etc... It will come as little surprise that the event was to be a green and eco friendly as could be planned. There was no confetti!, at the simple feast in the field later, there were recycling bins for everything!
Her best idea was for the 'favours'. To celebrate the wedding every guest was given a small (recycled) envelope with a certificate, hand made, announcing that a tree was to be planted for every person in the new St. Paul's Wood, Tillingham, and listed the types of tree. There was a nice little poem to go with it! I will be adding details of the day and the 'Favour' to the TWIGS website, go and have a look.. http://www.twigs.org.uk The names of all those attending will also be displayed later.
All ready to go!
The day was perfect, best was that the predicted heavy downpours all missed us and we had day long sunshine! Interestingly, as the happy couple got into their Jeep to leave, late that night we had 5 spots of rain, then it stopped... they drove through heavy rain all the way to Gatwick! They now have a heat wave in Greece!
We named the boat 'Beachcomber', which if you know anything about them is what they do... with the articles they find they produce the most exquisite items of jewellery and other craft items, that they sell at the Brixham craft fair every week!
Waiting for the couple!
A new Seagull for power, a Curlew, made by John
We gave the boat the home port of 'Brixham' where Dave and Jenny have bought an old house and are now based! We have their faces captured as the first saw their transport away from the Castle where they were wed. (They asked me to arrange something 'quirky'! )
As they see their transport for the first time!
Opening the card and parcel
Dave had no idea still and the odd look on his face when he finds a 'red ensign' on a pole is classic. What the.... However Jenny has now twigged and has found a boat shaped key ring and key.
Jenny has now reads the card to Dave
In tears she reads out the card, 'Bon-voyage, just add water'! The hugs and tears and the look on Dave's face, priceless!
Daves' Grin!
Onboard for the first time!
A toast from the bride and groom!
Normal service will be resumed as soon as my feet touch the ground again!
April 2007.
Just strayed onto the Seagull section on E-Bay, whilst looking for a compass, and was appalled at the prices asked for Seagull parts! One item caught my eye, a gearbox plug, at twice the price of a genuine one! I am not sure how these guys sleep at night. Engines that are plainly past their prime with starting prices in 3 figures. I even saw a 102 with a buy it now price of £200. Who in their right mind is going to buy one at that price? Sadly people are mug enough to and there are those that seem to prey on them. I will not sell on E-Bay, nor have a 'Shop'. If you really know what you are buying and the carriage is not extortionate, (this is where they make their money also I'm told), you can pick up a bargain, but I have too many customers who bought pups on E-Bay, there are a lot of rogues out there! And the compass??? Got better and as cheap at my local chandlery, with a warranty!
Beware!
John
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April 2007.
I have just recorded a 'Podcast' for Furledsails.com. If you would like to hear an interview with me try this link.
FurledSails.com Podcast #84 Saving Old Seagulls
I tell a little of my sailing experiences, my Police background and my Seagull work, amongst other things!
John SOS
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February 2007. I have just added some great adverts and information to the new Marston page, and this week another twin Marston has come to light!
More info on the Non Seagull outboards page and to the nostalgia pages.
Also more items for sale, i.e. Waterproof covers, Old style Bakelite HT caps and leads to match! 25 years old plus, brand new, for these and more see the for Sale Page.
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To try and stop the web crawlers picking up mail addresses I have taken to removing the '@' and substituting 'at' on any of your mail addresses you supply. Simply remove the 'at' and any spaces, then substitute '@' to make the addresses work.
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Gold and Treasure!
I had an interesting phone call earlier in the month, from a researcher for a TV company. They were searching for a Robert Groves, and stumbled upon him on my site. Robert was the artist who supplied Seagull with many a fine drawing for their adverts....
His son was in touch with me re his fathers work some time back, and it was he they wanted to find. I was able to put them in touch, nothing to do with Seagulls though.
The story that un folded was instead one of treasure, gold, pirates and kings, of treasure maps and wills!
It seems Mr. groves for many years had an old parchment framed on his wall. It related to a will of a pirate, one 'Eli Fleete'. It seems this pirate probably nicked the treasure, in gold, of bonny Prince Charlie! The will was found in a chest, a real pirates chest no less! It had also contained a map, and Mr Groves had written about this in a Scottish newspaper years ago, the 1930's. this is how the researcher tracked him down... Seems Mr Groves mounted an expedition to try and find the treasure, but the map led to a spot off Ireland, where the land had been reclaimed by the sea, so the sea probably took the gold!
All will be the subject of a TV program, and when I find out more I will give the date of the program. In the meantime I have a couple of files sent me, a copy of the will and an explanation of sorts too... I reproduce them here. What Robert's son is after now is the whereabouts of that old will? Must be hanging on a pub wall somewhere!
All stirring stuff!
As a post script, I have now had a mail from 'Lion TV' who have made the television program.
It is due to go out in October...
BBC TWO at
7.30pm:
Friday
12th Oct :
Charlie's Gold
John SOS
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January 2007
New waterslide transfers in stock! £10.00 plus £1.00 p&p UK.
£1.50 overseas
As fitted to 1960's and 70's tanks.
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Villiers 25:1 needles reduced to £6.00 each.
That's less than half the old price!
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New SOS Engine cover gets Special approval!
Thanks to Albert in the Netherlands for this one! His daughter has adopted it!
Now where do I fit the outboard Dad!
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New 'king Dick' spanner, Nov 06
Charles Large, oft contributor and moderator on the forum, has tracked down some special spanners. they are 85 degree offset open enders, see pic. I have used one to great effect yesterday, far better than the traditional open ender, see pic of the two together.
Apparently all Seagull workers were issued with one of these, but they were not chrome plated as these are. Speak to Charles to buy them, see the forum for more. We are informed they are properly called 'Obstruction Spanners'. All I know is it does the trick!
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November 2006.
I have just received the first batch of my new line, engine covers, they are made of strong, grey, waterproof fabric, printed with the SOS logo on both sides, with a tough nylon draw cord and large enough to fit all Seagulls, even the QB's with plastic tanks and 102s. Priced at £17.50 plus P&P, £2.50 UK.
Now with 'The best outboard motor in the world' printed on top!
Coming shortly, waterslide transfers! sourced one I think as good as the originals!
Also , a new range of Stainless Steel nuts and bolts,
Above is new tiller and clutch stud , £7.50 in Stainless inc nut pin washer and spring washer, not shown...
Also new Stainless dome nuts for Wipac points ignition. £5.00! Villiers dome nut now also available £5.00!.
I will make up kits for gearboxes, power heads, etc for most Seagulls.
John SOS
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October 2006
I have at last started to alter the pages to make a dedicated Marston section. I will add all things Marston to that page, so nice pics and explanations of all the models needed!
I hope we will have a register and parts swop going via this page and the forum.
I am also adding adverts to the nostalgia pages and pics to some of the others too, a lot of housework to catch up on!
John
SOS
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August 2006
New items in stock include the 25:1 Villiers needles, £12.50,
Stainless tank straps for 102 tanks and S/S straps, with fittings,
for long range tanks, £7.50 each.
Stainless Exhaust clips, with fittings. £6.50
New Villiers 'thumb' throttle levers, as original, £20.00!
Better Stainless thumbscrews with captive washers. £13.00!
new waterproof fabric outboard cover and waterslide transfers!
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Had a delightful call the other day from a gent who was researching his fathers life and work, for the sake of his grandchildren. He had been informed that his father, one Robert E. Groves, has done some art work for British Seagull! I was able to confirm this and send him to the more Nostalgia pages. He was delighted and subsequently sent in this pic to me!
Entitled simply 'Seafarers' it shows that Robert E. Groves had an eye for boats of all types!
1865-1949
We know Robert as the early Seagull artist. I have a contact number for his son, Bob Graham.....
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The Choke assembly below was brought to me in a box of Little Forty parts, but it is not from any Forty model I have seen. Can you identify it.??
As you can see these are plainly Seagull parts, in full working condition, almost as new,
but the carb is an Amal 2 jet, not a Villiers as fitted to the Little Forty Models... Or was it?
We now have an advert, or Charles Palfreeman has, with a picture of this carb. So they did fit an Amal to the early Little forties. I wonder if the chap who came to see me with these parts has the motor back together again, love to see it!
John
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There is a new batch of pics on the More Nostalgia pages, nothing to do with Seagulls either!
It is the Atco boat impellor!
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Charles Palfreeman sent this one in, who is this famous man from the 1950's, recruited to help build a 102 Seagull?
Clue, the Mekon ring a bell?
There is a marked resemblance!
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More Seagull nostalgia on the More Nostalgia Page, a range of old adverts from the 1950's, including other outboards as well, the Atco Boat Impeller, the Britannia Swordfish and the Anzani range.
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Seagulls for Sale!
I have placed a couple of adverts on the For Sale page. I am working on getting more out from the workshop soon. Hopefully clearing some space so I can uncover more Seagulls worth restoring in the store!
John, SOS
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Yes the new Forum is up and running and we all seem to be able to navigate round it with little trouble. there will no doubt be refinements, maybe the ability to leave little pics etc. We are working on it.
The Old Guest page files are still readable from it too! clever stuff.
John SOS
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Problem with spam on the site
For a long time I have been aware that the 'open' guest pages could be subject to attack by the mindless. So far I have avoided calling for you to register, wanting to make it as easy as I can for you.
However, February 2006 the site has been targeted and as a result we are opening a new Forum. You will have to 'register' but only to give a mail address that we can contact you on. This will hopefully stop the spammers.
We hope to save all the entries on the forum, except the spam, and enable you to search them, but first my Webmaster is working on the forum...
Watch this space as they say!
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Greg Taylor from Queensland, Australia has sent this leaflet in, though not an old one, early 1980's, I had never seen it before. Printed in the USA and distributed in Oz we believe.... It will appear on other pages too.
I particularly like the comment about the Seagulls being used by commandos (to creep up on the enemy?) Not my first choice of a stealth machine! Other writings talk about the Seagull being used for barge moving and pontoon bridge moving, not as 'daring do' as 'for the Commandos'' though!
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Just to prove that even Seagull were fallible, look closely at the picture of the tank on an old LS model. Spot the Error?
Thanks to Al Girling for mailing this in.
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Hello Folks some time back one of my customers in Finland told me about his Seagull, he had got it to run in reverse!
At first I was thinking it was a clever bracket, like the old 'Rota Gull' device, but no, Mika has thought this out and had changed the ignition, so he could move the backplate, then restart the motor, 'ROTATING THE OTHER WAY' The explanation would take pages, but he has put a load of pics on his website, go and be amazed! http://kotisivu.mtv3.fi/hilu/seagull.html The pages have Finnish text, but the pics speak for them selves... He has even made special thrust washers up to allow the prop thrust in astern to be transmitted. Clever!
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Just had to copy this page off of E-Bay. A warning to all who buy there and a commendation to this chap for his humour!
John
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Wonderful, nice to see someone with a sense of humour!
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My grateful thanks to Charles Palfreeman who has supplied me with scans of leaflets, adverts and other information that I have added to the Photo Gallery, Re the 'Olympic', to the 'Nostalgia' and 'More nostalgia' and the 'Seagull history' pages. The Marston Lightweight, the Twin and some of the unusual and odd add ons and accessories that were fitted to Seagulls over the years, do have a browse and enjoy!
I will publish any information on Seagulls sent to me, all I have is also on here, for all to see, this is why so many of you send in your leaflets or scans of them.. I hope I have given anyone who has the proper recognition. Recently I tried to obtain a leaflet on the Marston that I had never seen before, sadly the auction price spiralled out of my range, so unless the new owner of this leaflet in Canada likes to scan the pages and send them to me, we shall have lost them.
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Mystery Gull? Sandy sent this pic in, (nowir1 at btinternet.com) it is one I have trouble figuring out..... Is it a Factory Made?? Or is it a 'Bitsa'? The block is 102, the Engine number odd an 'EH' The ignition is Wipac CD and it is even fitted with an Alternator. An Amal 400 carb and late all Ali bracket... Sandy acquired it in Suffolk. I heard of another very similar a few months ago... that one in Scotland. Is there someone nearby making them up or is it just chance. I have heard of batches being made to order, non standard, is this one of those? Anyone any ideas.....
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Happy New year to all.......
In my absence the counter has clocked up the magic 100,000 figure! Pleased we are still as popular as ever! Thanks to all for the additional info I have now been able to load onto the site.
Thought I would add this little poem sent in by Seagull Owner, Ferd in the States!
John SOS
MERRY CHRISTMAS
T'was the night before Christmas, I swung on the
hook
With snowflakes a'landing, asleep with my book
When up on the deck I heard footsteps and stuff
"I've been boarded!" I thought, and I tried to be tough
Then down the companionway hatch came a dude
He was dressed like a nut and I thought, "I'm so screwed"
But he laughed and he hummed as he surveyed my junk
So I figured he must be the resident drunk
His eyes were lit up like a junkie on speed
But he gave me a whole bunch of stuff that I need
Like rum and cigars and new charts and a dinghy
And some kind of fancy electrical thingy
I knew it was stolen but I wasn't telling
I just hoped he was giving and wasn't just selling
And I poured him a grog which he downed with a wink
Then I poured one for me (Lord I needed a drink!)
Then he staggered above to the dark snowy night
As I peeked I beheld an incredible sight
Eight tiny dolphins and a beautiful sleigh
And the ! dude hopped aboard and prepared to make way
The dolphins were ready to power the sled
But the guy raised a genny and mains'l instead
With a burp and a chuckle he gathered the breeze
And called to the dolphins, now swimming with ease
"Hey Stalker and FEMA and Cancer and Nixon!
Or Stinky and Pepper Spray, Mason, and Dixon!
Or whatever your names are, you cute little fishes,
Here's to every last sailor, my best Christmas wishes!"
As he sailed away leaving a wobbly wake
I hoped he had not many stops left to make
He got close to shore and he soon was aground
But the dolphins proceeded to pull him around
And I heard him exclaim as he sailed out of sight
Happy Christmas to all... and to all a goodnight"
by
Captain Michael Rafferty
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At last!!!! See the Pure Nostalgia page to see the 1938 catalogue sent to me by Tim Wilkes.
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Just a brief word to note to say that I see the counter on the home page is hovering on the 100,000! I am off to find some sunshine for a week and will not see it clock up. To all of you who have contributed to the site, a big thankyou! It has grown into the largest and thanks to all the information I have been able to publish, the most informative British Seagull site on the web. Just what my late webmaster intended!
John, SOS. Dec 22nd 2005
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Another of those wonderful old adverts from the 1970's, Sensible Accessories!
Thanks to Richard in the Isle of Man for a clean copy of this one!
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I have been busy on the Nostalgia and more nostalgia pages with old adverts and booklets. I have yet to scan the real gem, but hope to do that this week!
New pics on the Gallery pages too.
John, SOS
19 December 05
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The text to the left, as it appeared in the Classic Boat article, inspired Lucien in France to make this rather charming Christmas card for me, complete with Seagull on Seagull, with silk tie!
Thanks Lucien!
Christmas 2005
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Hi John,
There is a chap on ebay mrbow999 selling a download of a Seagull Service
Manual. A friend in O Z bought one off someone else and was not down
loaded
to him , 10 pound was the price. Is this worth mentioning on your
site , as
you are aware this contravenes copyright.
Regards John Holmes
Dec 05.
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Hello Jimmy,
Update. Jimmy has now swapped this veteran for a working century Longshaft, as a back up motor.
I expect Charles who now has this motor, will make it gleam!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Do you recognise this motor above? Pics sent in by Graham, along with a sad story of how it was complete and he got it going, only for it to catch it's prop, causing the damage here... Any one any idea where he could get a spare conrod!
contact him at the address below, ( remove the 'at and sustitute '@' you know the drill )
<graml at exemail.com.au>
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The pics above come from Bruce Guppy in Australia, can anyone I.D. this beauty! Is it a Montessa?
Contact Bruce if you know!
Bruce Guppy <alectra at iinet.net.au>
Hi John
I have found out what it is as follows;
Extract from "The Old Outboard Book" By Peter Hunn
ISBN 0-07-031281-8
"A play on the action-packed words "sea" and "power", C-Powa was an early
1950s outboard brand name that's easy to recall. Perhaps remembering the
success of British Seagull outboards, the C-Powa people designed their
motor
to strongly resemble that famed U.K. boat motor. More than a knockoff,
though, C-Powa sufficiently impressed officials in Her Majesty's Royal
Australian Navy for them to order some motors. The outboard's components
were indeed sturdy, salt water resistant, and nicely finished.
Representative of C-Powa output from the makers Beverly Hills (Australia)
factory was a 5 hp model that weighed just under 40 pounds. Though a
quality
local product, C-Powa production ran out of steam during the early 1960s."
The read valve and direct crank-case induction, the propeller driven
cooling
system and some really, really serious compression along with excellent
materials of construction is probably the reason why my old thing is still
a
runner.
It is a shame that the tank is not correct. It is a Villiers lawnmower
type.
I have an Australian Golden Cheetah, about the same vintage, that has the
same tank and brackets. I will be hunting for another such type tank in
the
local Australian avenues. Once complete, should be unique as I have not
been
able to find another C-Powa in any condition.
PS: When this old dear is flat-out, the exhaust goes clear of the water.
Add
the induction howl from the carb to the crackle of the exhaust and it is
really quite something! At more sensible "old age revolutions" the note is
subdued by the water cooling in the leg. The motor remains "warm to the
touch" however it is pushed and always starts, even in the rain. (I put a
spark plug cap on it!)
I believe I am extremely lucky to have this in my "family".
It lives in my office by the way!
See you on the river
Bruce
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Thought you might like a few pics of a cutaway model I have. Produced by the Villiers apprentices about 1970.
Pics by courtesy of Classic Boat Magazine.
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December 1st 2005.
The website is back to normal thank goodness. I am starting to add the info piled up on my desk! It will take the rest of the year and then some! We still have no search facility, but that will be back, one way or another..
More new products, Long Range tank straps and 102 tank straps in S/S, £5.00 each. I am hoping to have a S/S Seagull spanner, especially made for SOS! Details soon...
John, SOS
31st October 2005
The Website is back to full function again, or very nearly.
I have new items for sale.
Stainless steel thumbscrews, with captive cup washers and at £13.00, cheaper than the Seagull
ones that bend and have the problem with the washers falling off!
More items in the pipeline.
Still offering to buy broken Seagulls, if local....
Oil for callers, 1 litre £5.00 (sadly post is £5.00 too!)
Loads of pics to go on, plus a very rare leaflet, soon!
John, SOS
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I hope by the end of October to have full editing and archives back on line. Sorry about the stagnation,
beyond my control. I will sing out on the Home page when I start loading the new stuff!
I understand they are getting there.......
John
October 28th 2005.
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May 2005.
I have just added a batch of pictures to the Nostalgia pages, all old adverts, some from the
Second World War period!. Thanks to Steve in Australia for these. I have another series of
pages to place on there as well, Tim Wilkes has kindly sent me in a 1939 advertising leaflet,
more of a magazine really, many pages of photos, information and tech details about Seagull,
from the days when they were in Hamworthy, Poole. I hope to have it on the site ASAP.
John
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April 19th .
I have to report the sad death of my brother in law and friend,
my webmaster, Barry Sturrock. Aged just 55 he discovered he had
Prostate Cancer just 2 years ago. Sadly it had already spread to his bones
and lungs, so he knew his days were numbered. Barry has tried to
teach me and others, all he knew, to ensure the sites,
(he was a key figure in our Eventide Owners Group web site too.) would
continue. He is sadly missed.
John
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March 2005.
Martyn Sandbrook has sent in pics of a new con rod cap he has made from bronze.
It is hoped this will cure the problem with his inboard 160. The 160 is the same
engine power unit as the 170 and 125. Photos below.
I think you will agree the new one is a bit
beefier than the old.!! Martyn is a little concerned about engine balance,
he may have to drill the flywheel to counter that. We will see.
John.
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The following was left on the guest page, but having heard about this
from Tony himself, I thought it deserved a mention here. this little
Featherweight is about to go halfway round the world by the sounds of it!
John SOS
From: ozzytony
Date: 07 Feb 2005
Time: 23:39:59 -0000
Hi one and all, I was up Johns way recently and bought a few bits from him.
I am a novice to this seagull lark and I am hooked Line and sinker. A friend
and I came via the canals from Bristol to London Greenwhich it took us eight
days in an inflatable and 40 feather weight. Same ancient plug the whole way
and never missed a beat. In one day we ran it for 15 hours straight. John told
me that we should have actually changed the oil in the gear box every 10 hours.
Would have been o.k but we only had a bottle opener for a tool kit. Did it tough,
just turned the boat over and slept under it at night-no mod cons-too much to
tell but there is a web sited called http://www.awol.org.uk under "the eagle has
landed" with pictures that tell a 1000 words Happy travels will keep you all
posted on the next trip.
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Yuletide Greetings To All!
We have ditched the old Guest book and archived it. You will be able to open it to read it soon, or
indeed you will be able to search for any subject on all the 'guest page' pages!
You are free to enter anything on these pages re Seagull, but no advertising your business etc.
Unlike other sites you do not have to register or join to use the full guest page, it is a free and
open source of information and exchange for Seagull Owners. Hope you continue to use what has
become the largest free archive of Seagull information in the world. Thanks a lot to you, the owners!
John
Dec 24th 2004
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Mystery Motor
Can you help Alan Wills with this unidentified Outboard. I thought it might be an Anzani, or maybe an
Evinrude, what do the experts think?
If you can help Alan his phone No. is 01803 405270, eves are best, many thanks.
John (Sept 2004)
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The answer to the mystery picture with odd serial Number?????
on the Photo Page.
They did not make electronic igns in 1973! Someone, in 1983, has put too many 'M's on this one!
Guess he had been double letter stamping for 10 years, and could not get out of the habit....
I wonder how many people have ever noticed in the intervening years?
Charles Palfreeman won the prize!
John
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News from Magnus in Sweden.
the Classic 5, the 90/110, the QB's etc.
All the talk about water that could actually be sucked in because of a small drain pipe might not be like that at all. You know the silencer tube
fixing screw, a small hex one. It goes right in to the exhaust flange on the side and out in the exhaust port. Right through! The casting is not
solid at that location, and if your fixing screw isn't long enough when tightened, water will be drained out there as well with a high pressure.
I connected a shower hose to the water delivery tube to check the flow coming out from the new made drain tube to see how it looked.
I was quiet amazed when I saw this jet of water coming from the exhaust port!! I thought the cylinder was cracked or something.
So it is obvious that a part of the water jacket is there too! I shall also mention that this was of course found on my classic 5 engine
cylinder and I have no idea of what other castings might be. I will check all my other motors with a silencer fixing screw, or at least
buying me a longer screw so it covers all the way in and stopping water from coming out in the port.
I think the answer is to put a bit a bit of sealant on the threads too. Thanks Magnus
John
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Now here is something different!
Mike Mayhew has sent me details of these baby Seagull model kits he makes.
you can buy them from him, tele. 01275 546772 for about £15 plus post.
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I am indebted to Quentin Shaw for sending this in. As you know half of all
Seagulls were exported. This written in pigeon English, it was the sort of thing that schoolboys
read about in the 'Boys Own Paper'!
Quentin has added the translation too! An extract.
Tok bilong moto ol i kolim SEAGULL (sigal)
Information about the outboard motor they call Seagull
Wanpela kain moto i stap, nem bilong en SEAGULL. Em i no save bagarap
There is a motor called Seagull, which doesn’t breakdown
tumas. Ol man i save laikim dispela
too often. Everyone likes this
moto na kolim nem bilong en planti taim, olsem na long
motor and use the name often, so often that in the
Solomon Ailan ol i save kolim sigal long olgeta moto.
Solomon Islands they call any outboard a "Seagull".
Ol papa bilong SEAGULL faktori i save tok: Dispela moto i winim olgeta
The bossed of the Seagull factory say that the Seagull is superior to all
arapela moto long olgeta hap graun. Dispela em i gris tok bilong ol. Tasol
other motors because of these feature. This is their boastful speech. But this much
wanpela samting em I tru: Ol i kamapim dispela kain moto long 35 yia i go
is true: they designed this motor 35 years ago
pinis, na long nameltaim i kam inap nau i no gat wanpela save I kamap
and since then they haven’t had to make any modifications
winim dispela SEAGULL long ol i mas senisim wanpela samting bilong
to this design.
dispela moto.
R.A.Lachall, quoted in "Save na mekim" published by Melanesian
Council of Churches 1982
Now that puts it very succinctly I thought!
John.
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Stolen Seagulls! Information from Richard Farmer, he has had two Seagulls
stolen from the Fenland area of UK. The first a WS286F9 with Ali weld
repairs to bracket and prop. the second a 40 model, no number, but it is
without a skeg! Richard would love to see them back, and the culprits
arrested. Have you been offered a pair of Seagulls?
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Rob sent these pics in of the conversion he did to his Century. I
had mentioned that
I had done one but Rob has made a better job, and even photographed the work too. The idea is one that Seagull
were working on just before they closed, to inject some of the jacket water into the exhaust to quieten it. It works.
Be careful drilling and tapping into the block though!
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Breaking News. April 2003.
As of now there are no further supplies of the Villiers conversions for 25:1 running. We will have to check every
scrapped carb from now on to see if we can find any of those No. 2 needles. Sorry to disappoint some. But do not
despair, go to the 'FAQ' page for more information.
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102 Brackets?
What sort of Brackets are these?? It has been suggested by Roy Tighe who sent the pics, that these are from
WWII engines and are side lift mounts? Anyone throw any light on it?
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Repair of Tanks
The end result
These pics from Bob Abernathy, show how he repaired his dented tank. He cut off the ends, removed all dents
then re-fixed ends by adding a thin strip of brass and soldering back into place, nice job.
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Seagull Side Mount
Here we have a nearly complete kit to mount your Seagull on the side of your boat. The part that is missing is an
eye fitting that the brass pin located in on the side if the boat. The stresses on it must have been fun!
Now
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Seagull Mounts? These two pics are of a deck or locker fitting that was sold as a storage fitting.
Have you seen one before? In an old leaflet it was described as a security fitting. Presumably to stop your
Seagull rolling around in the locker or bilges! One end will take a 40 the other a Century. Clever.
Rota-gull!
This device was manufactured in the late 60's and 70's as an attempt to make your Seagull into a reversing engine.
Bit heath Robinson in design, but I can remember seeing them in use, does anyone still use one I wonder? I have
one complete and another with a small casting missing. They fastened to a Seagull bracket. Not made by Seagull
and I doubt they approved of it either! (Only made to fit the 40 series.)
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I am indebted to Matias for the following pictures and helping to throw some light on the 'Spanish Seagull'.
These are in fact 4 photos of a Spanish 'Montesa' outboard, It has a Motoplat ign and a Dellorto carb, though
the cover is missing. There are or were obvious similarities with the Seagull, look at the prop drive, so some exchange
of parts must have taken place between Montesa and British Seagull, does anyone know more?
I have just been sent, October 2003, some pictures of John Creighton's Montesa. As soon as I can get the pics
resent in a format I can use, (Jpg) I will show them. The best one shows a model where the crankcase is split
vertically! Though the rest is based on Seagull, this is totally different, Why?
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Spanish Seagull?
These three pics were sent by Lutz in Germany. They are of a Spanish Seagull?
It looks just like a Featherweight, but with different Carb, tank and ignition.
Have just heard of another of these turning up in NZ. Has anyone else come
across these and if so can you throw any light on their manufacture?
January 29th 2003. I have started a 'For Sale' page. First item,
a Marston, 1931/2!
I will be adding other engines for sale on the 'Items for sale' page, as and when they are available.
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News from Sweden, and I am indebted to Tommy Lidgren for his information here, a host of old leaflets, in Swedish!
Apart from some
useful info on the 102, here is a curio,
Century models fitted as standard
with fuel pumps and remote tanks!
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New Tank Sticker.
At last I have figured out how to get the scanner to work, so here is a pic of the new tank top sticker.
It is a vinyl self adhesive affair and costs £5.50 plus postage. Post Script, 2007, new waterslide transfers now sold, £10.00
Of course the sneaky ones out there will be scanning it and making your own, if you do have a bash at the
other ones that were used if you can find a good sample and scan it off a tank, there are some that would
love to have the really old logos!
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Gearbox conversion found for Century 4hp models.
I will post a pic later, this is so unusual, never seen the like, but a purpose made addition to the
front of the gearbox. The cap is removed and this device added, the actuating rod passing down
the side of the tubes from a new, non Seagull, lever attached to the top of the drive leg. There is
a lever on the side of the additional part.
Has anyone else seen one of these, or can throw any light on it? Both Peter, the owner, and I
would both love to know more.
Hello All, thanks for your patience, I have been out of action for a bit, I have had the surgery, which seems to have fixed my ongoing back problem. Fingers crossed! Back to normal parts service now!
John, SOS
To E-mail SOS john@saving-old-sea
