Saving Old Seagulls

Good morning all.
I found this forum while searching for information about the Britannia Swordfish.

The motor was passed to me a couple of years ago by a friend who had cleared the shed of a deceased gentleman acquaintance.
I have been bringing old motorcycles and bicycles back to life previously, so restoring an outboard motor is all new to me.
There's the excuses declared for when I inevitably ask dumb questions.

I've no idea what to do with this engine when restored as I don't possess a vessel to clamp it to

The motor is complete apart from the original tiller arm missing.
I believe it to be a MK 1, based on the carburettor top (referenced from the user manual)
The carburettor leaked badly. Subsequent investigation revealed a stripped thread in the bottom of the carb body. 5/8 UNEF apparently (0.625 x 24tpi)
I have a lathe, so I intend to insert a newly threaded sleeve into the carb body. I sourced a 5/8 UNEF tap from Ebay.
The fuel tank is badly dented and probably leaks.
I had the engine running briefly before consigning it to the projects awaiting shelf.

Any comments would be welcomed. Any guess as to age? Any suggestions for restoring the tank?

Photos attached, hopefully

Welcome to the forum

Yes you have the later iteration of the BMB called the swordfish, produced from around 1949 approx.

Nice motor ! I have a few motors here with bashed tanks , I've often wondered if you could get them back in reasonable shape by sealing the filler cap and applying pressure with compressed air via the tap fitting . Has anyone tried it ?

cheers

Thanks for the info.
I’m dubious as to whether the compressed air idea would work satisfactorily. Surely if the pressure is high enough to deform the material, the deformation would be general rather than selective with the dents.

It is done with a water blaster.... Look it up on youtube!

This looks more like the Britannia rather than the Swordfish.

Thank you for that
It is indeed a Britannia, and not a Britannia Swordfish.

The carb repair is progressing. I've bored out the carb body to accept a threaded sleeve. The sleeve is 50% done, and will be finished when I procure a tap wrench big enough to hold the 5/8" tap.

I need to replace the throttle cable. I could have achieved this myself from my bicycle stuff, but the cable has a nipple on both ends.
Could anyone recommend a source for a ready made item?

Just soft solder a bit of copper on the end. if it is smaller than that drill a hole in some aluminium to make a mould. Heat up the aluminium hot enough to melt the solder and dip the in of the cable into it..... wait for it to cool down.

Nudge wrote:Just soft solder a bit of copper on the end. if it is smaller than that drill a hole in some aluminium to make a mould. Heat up the aluminium hot enough to melt the solder and dip the in of the cable into it..... wait for it to cool down.

Thank you for the info. Just shows that I need to get my brain into the “make it myself mode”.
Nothing to lose apart from a foot of cable

Best to tin the cable first ie dip in flux, heat and let solder impregnate through the cable and then wipe with a wet cloth. It will bond better when dipping as Nudge mentioned.