102 Models.
Very Early, 1939 British Seagull advert for the 102, found by Steve Green of Australia.
Another 1939 Advert for 102, again from Steve in Australia
Model 102 line drawing
Click on the fuzzy box above for a 1946 line drawing of the 102!
My thanks to Roy Tighe for supplying this.
This is one of the only models that I did have any British Seagull sales brochures on. I have now received this from Simon Davies, who is about to undergo a major rebuild on his 102! Thank you Simon, a gap in the website filled!
Click on these two yellow pages to see the advertising leaflet for the 102!
Thanks to Terry on the Isle of Skye for these!
Which way does the seagull face?!?!? On some British Seagulls the motif is of a Seagull facing left, others right? We were trying to establish when the seagull changed direction....
This is a model 'SD' from Wartime days...
Complete with broad arrow stamp.!
Thanks to Steve in Australia again for these pics of his 'SD'.
The Navy issue 'SD' had the bronze or copper dome, clutch, bracket etc, while Army issue British Seagulls tended to be Ali and painted!
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This a slightly later 102 British Seagull... seagull facing right..
This one is Ted's from Scotland, approx 1944/45.
Note the Navy type, all bronze bracket and bent end thumbscrews.
The British Seagull above is a model ON. Pre war, 1937 to 41. An early number as well, 14! It is in Rob's collection in Holland and looks to be 100%
Note direction the British Seagull is facing! To the Right. This throws us into more confusion!
Yet another of Rob's, he was intrigued by the text on the flywheel! These tops are now a little sought after!
The extension for the mount is interesting, it appears to be a factory made part, has anyone else seen these?
Late model 102's
Over the years several owners have reported that they have model 102's that they purchased much later than the 'official' end of the model 102, about 1973.
I now have some nice photos of a 1982 British Seagull 102! The EDL was fitted with electronic ignition, an Amal 416 carburettor, the later Ali bracket, as fitted to model 90/110. My thanks to Hugo for these pics.
It seem British Seagull made lots of 'odd batches' of motors, I have heard the same of the magneto FP being sold in the 1980s, long after Magnetos were replaced with CD ignitions.
It seems a batch of CD ignition 102's were made and exported to Australia, which is how Hugo got his, however as normal British Seagull made a few extra to sell 'at the gate'. I have heard of at least three of these now in the UK! And they are still running well!
Gear box oil!
There has been a lot of debate about the right oil to use in these old 102's. I am indebted to Charles Large for his research into the matter.
First though I will quote from the operating instructions for the 102 and the 102 Plus:-
'It's so simple to replenish the gearbox, with the gun supplied, if oil gun lubrication is provided, (by this they mean the grease like nipples) or alternately by merely pouring lubricant into the box, through the slotted replenishment plug, if that system is incorporated into your model. There is no excuse for omitting to give it its ' ONCE A WEEK' attention.
Use best quality oil that will pour, not grease, from 140 weight in cold climates to 160 under warm conditions. In cold weather it is a good idea to warm the lubricant a little before pouring into the box.
Avoid grease however, and use nothing but an oil, a heavy oil.
With the oil gun lubrication, force the oil into the gearbox until all the water is squeezed out of the propeller shaft bearing, to indicate the box is full. Nevertheless, especially with a new motor, under no circumstances should the gun be used after this has taken place, as it is possible to exert an enormous hydraulic pressure inside the box when the latter is fully replenished, which is even capable of fracturing the two bolts that retain the end cap.
In the case of the clutch gearbox, when the box is full, the internal pressure may start forcing the propeller shaft and propeller gradually outwards, in the same manner as when the clutch is operated. This indicates at once that the gearbox is full, and no further lubricant should be injected, otherwise naturally, the clutch will not engage satisfactorily.'
From the above it would seem to me as the early boxes were meant to be filled to the brim! Unlike today where we only half fill them! This would mean the top bearing would be initially lubricated, however as we have all learnt to our cost, if you fill a gearbox that full, it's not too long before there is a pool of oil on the deck or floor, so using grease in the top bearing today makes sense......
It would seem also that the earliest Marstons and 102's were using a sort of runny grease, K77 or some such name. It is no longer available. The boxes on the 1950 and earlier models had grease nipples. Later ones had oil nipples, they have not got the extra bit that grease guns are able to latch onto. They were used with oil. 140 or heavier. Charles and others are of the opinion that even on the models where 140 oil is used, if they have the nipple for a top bearing, it would do no harm to use grease there and oil in the box. I agree. I would suggest something like a waterproof grease, the sort sold for water pumps or stern bearings on inboard boats.
For the early models, it is suggested a mixture of grease and heavy oil is used, with a gun, the grease must be soluble in the oil though. Experimentation I guess. In later years all the boxes had plugs and 140 grade oil of course.
Incidentally those who tell you you cannot use EP 140 should tell British Seagull that, they sold EP 140 for their British Seagulls, I still have an unopened bottle of both 90 and 140 EP oils, in proper British Seagull bottles. EP will do no harm at all as the British Seagull gearbox is water cooled and will never get hot in use, not hot enough for the additives in EP to harm the bronze bearings...
John
SOS
The 102 Gallery
This excellent example is Steve's from Australia, this model was developed in Australia and named the 'Olympic', beautifully restored. Actually it is not a British Seagull, but a very clever copy?!
This photo of Colin Bassham's 102 shows a different gearbox, with clutch drive.
This pic sent in by Ian McCloy. It is of his wartime model 102, SD. Don't recommend the engine stand though! (Only Kidding Ian!). Interestingly the engine lug and the bracket are quite different to others. (I now have one of these here.)
The Gearbox on Ian's motor, clearly showing the grease nipples for injecting the runny grease or 140 oil that we now use.
The three pics above are from Jimmy in Scotland of his Marston OJ. Charles Large now is restoring this motor., we look forward to seeing the pics of the restored engine....
One Happy owner! Thanks to Chris Bentley for these pics of his 102!
this pic shows what I believe to be a 102 AC series. Kees Jan Weigmans sent this one in, note the two bladed prop. I think the carb bowl is back to front, but it looks to be all intact.
I am indebted to Tommy Lindgren of Sweden for the rare sketches below. Yes the text is in Swedish, but you get the gist of it... thanks Tommy.
(click to enlarge)
The Early 102
This pic from Mike Jeffreys shows a very early Marston 102. Possibly 1937 motor.
More info on the 102
Suffice to say the 102 was produced from 1935 to 1973. In the mid 1970's a whole warehouse full was sold off by the Ministry of Defence, many are in use on the South and East coasts to this day.
The main identifying feature of the 102 is the domed cylinder and head, all cast in one. The engine also had external water pipes and a feature that was reintroduced with the QB range, water injected exhaust!
I have scanned some old parts lists below. These show some of the different gearboxes they had, direct drive and clutch. Sadly these old spares books have no drawings of the motor units themselves.
Click the thumb-nailed pics below to enlarge.
This 102 has the steel bracket fitted to it that many were equipped with in the WWII days. The Navy issue had a bronze bracket, so guess this was Army issue!These pictures sent to me by Ken in South Africa. A vary extensive restoration of a model 102!
Congratulations Ken a brilliant job. When you want a Flying Seagull transfer for it, I have one here for you!
John Williams.
