Someone offered me a seagull WL494l , not sure about the last letter , it happend over the phone, but I can't seame to identifie it correctly, can anyone, is it worth buying, if it is in good condition. I would like better to buy the smallest one, which one is that, and can I get hold of one?
Don't know about your WL - I have no record of such a code.
The smallest, well that would be a 'Little Model 40' introduced in 1949. This is the absolutely cutest little motor. Square head like the later models, Villiers carburettor, a small transom bracket, and a tiny little gearbox. Perhaps the best bit is the tiny cylindrical petrol tank - like a miniature version of hat fitted to the 102. A longer range version was available that was oval, canted by 45 degrees. Its larger brother was dubbed the 'Super Forty Plus ' a little while later This was the 'FV' and F'VP'
These are quite scarce. They were not produced for long. Although a super little motor well received by the customers, the design was improved over the next few years with the 'LS' - a modified FVP, and the motor became the 'Forty Minus', with a slightly larger 'Forty Plus' also in the range.
These were designated 'SJM' and SJP'
The 'Forty Minus' became the 'Featherweight a few years later when the Wipac ignitions were introduced in 1967.
So the little model forty is absolutely the smallest by a few grams and a few millimetres, and it's a complicated beast to work on, for a lot of reasons to do with the original water jacket and gasket design.
But the Forty Minus is almost as small, parts are easy to come by, and there are lots of them about.
I would like better to buy the smallest one, which one is that, and can I get hold of one?