The World's Greatest Diesel

Here you go Diesel Duck, a lightweight version of the Fairbanks Morse, 120hp and perfect for your next Duck

8 tons of ballast would work perfectly in my next boat but I wouldn't get over 7 knots - perhaps you could get 8! Engines like this should run forever, and at 5 grand how could you go wrong????

That weighs as much as my boat.
What's ideal about that?

Just think how well ballasted your Willard would be - haha. Of course you would only have about 4 inches of freeboard!

Fine piece of machinery, I remember from my Navy days operating and doing maintenance on a Fairbanks Morse 12 cylinder emergency diesel generator, 6 cylinders on top and 6 on the bottom, no telling how much it weighed.

"Built in 1940 and parts are available." VOLVO could take a lesson from those people, instead of their "we no longer support this product" response to owners of VOLVO engines.

I like the "120 hp at 450 rpms"! 450?!? The blue twins won't even idle that slow!

450rpm .... Who cares? Does it push the boat .. that is the question.

I worked in a mining camp/town in western Alaska that had a 6 cylinder FM much like the subject of this thread. We had hydro at the time so never heard it run. Was backup then (1959).

At another mine I worked in on Bristol Bay we had an Enterprise 16 X 20 8 cyl that ran at 327rpm. It started w compressed air and you knew it was running (had started) when the chief engineer shut off the air valve and the engine continued at 40-50rpm. We had a 24hr preheat drill. 300 gallon dry sump lube oil system. The Enterprise was a fairly new engine at the time.
Also in the same powerhouse was a pair of old locomotive engines comparable in power to the Enterprise and a DD 8-268A. With the blower in front .. not on the side of the engine. My father once had a 100' wood boat that had the same engine.

Product support? Fairbanks Morse has been out of business for decades.

Slightly larger:

makobuilders said:

Here you go Diesel Duck, a lightweight version of the Fairbanks Morse, 120hp and perfect for your next Duck

8 tons of ballast would work perfectly in my next boat but I wouldn't get over 7 knots - perhaps you could get 8! Engines like this should run forever, and at 5 grand how could you go wrong????

Click to expand...

Now that's what I call "BIG Iron!" Thanks for posting it mb.

Is that an opposed piston engine like the larger FM'S? Parts used to be available from Hatch and Kirk in Seattle.

Back when I worked in gas compressor stations I watched mechanics hone cylinders of a CooperBessemer with there back against the other side and a peice of sandpaper in there hands. 45 degree cross hatch pattern. Interesting.

Anyone know the specific fuel consumption of one of these monsters?

If your trying to take a nap while the first mate is running the boat, instead of counting sheep you can count the engines revolutions.

markpierce said:

Product support? Fairbanks Morse has been out of business for decades.

Click to expand...

Somebody should tell them they are not in business

Marine Diesel Engines | Fairbanks Morse Engine

Its been a few years but before I left Fairbanks still provided support for the Emergency Diesels at our nuke plant. 3000 KW.