British Anzani A & B Stock & Alky Racing Engines

[Mark75H]

Lots here on BRF about Tenney

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

I met Bill Tenney in the early 1960s when I was a growing kid, like yourself for me serving as a pitman for my neighbor who was a racer who knew him well and sought his advice concerning his Elto, Evrinrude and Johnson 1930s race engines and later on his Mercs too. To Ted Coates (my neighbor), Bill Tenney was a wealth of information and he, Ted admired. What Bill was doing with the Anzanis at the time that were really twisting peoples necks a lot with their speed.........and their sound too but Ted did not want to go there for him at the time things were fast enough and he was content to watch with a twisted neck like the rest of us.

Like Mark 75H says there is a lot of information on Bill Tenney here and his son called me earlier this winter to touch base and he indicated that with some time to do it that he could come up with pictures and stories to post here for all to enjoy in the future. Its is all nice to look forward to.

[Tim Chance]

Here is a photo of Bill Tenney driving a Neal Hydro with a Johnson SR (although I don't know those old motors that well so it might be a PR). I grew up on Lake Minnetonka and lived on West Arm, the next bay over from Crystal Bay where Bill lived.

If you notice Bill is driving with an "S" number not a "G", so this photo was taken when he lived in Dayton, Ohio. Bill gave me this photo sometime in the ealy 1960's.

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

For Bill Tenney I suppose his experience with Neal hydros brought about his recommendations for them when it came to Anzani engines. He recommended them out of familiarity in some of his literature. No wonder why. He obviously liked to drive them too.

[Smokin' Joe]

Right, Bill Tenney and Neal hydros! Would also be interesting to know something of the history of Neal.

Thanks!
Joe

Here is a photo of Bill Tenney driving a Neal Hydro with a Johnson SR (although I don't know those old motors that well so it might be a PR). I grew up on Lake Minnetonka and lived on West Arm, the next bay over from Crystal Bay where Bill lived.

If you notice Bill is driving with an "S" number not a "G", so this photo was taken when he lived in Dayton, Ohio. Bill gave me this photo sometime in the ealy 1960's.

[Tim Chance]

A couple more pictures. One is Bill Tenney racing on Lake Tetonka at Waterville, Minnesota in the 1950's. Again a Neal Hydro and Notice the "G" number. The other photo is Dick Hoppenrath in 1962 driving Bill Tenney's C Class Neal (It could be the same boat as in my earlier post as you can just make out the "S" number. The motor is not visible but there is a B Anzani clamped onto the transom.

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

You can tell there is something powerful on the back of that Neal with the kind of spray only a small 2 blade on an Anzani could throw off with the boat coming that direction at you. Those little engines seemed to throw up as much water up as a roostertial as they would throw readward as thrust when underway and they howled as they did it.

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

Quite a few years ago examining some Anzani crankcase parts I ran into a top crank end cap that was partial oillite bronze bushing and at the very top of the cap was an open ball type roller bearing unsealed from either side??? I said to myself that okay so they used a bushing lower on the crank but upper next to the flywheel keyway they used the ball bearing, someone must have removed the oil seal and never used the end cap again? Or maybe it was a sealed ball bearing from both sides and someone removed the top bearing seal to lube it? Taking the end cap right apart it turned out that there was no oil seal on either side of the caged ball bearing? They looking at it again maybe the ball bearing was forced upward and broke off the end caps main cap and seal and being broken the part was just left never to be used again?
So to with me it just sat there.

Then the other day I was examining parts from two other boxes from 2 other sources and one more of these unusual caps came out of each of the 2 boxes from 2 different supplier locations. They too had bottom oillite bronze bushings that the crank spun on and above had these both had "open" (no seals) cagged ball bearings but the difference was there was a retaining snap ring (force outward) that fit a machined grove in the top of the end cap.

Could these have possibly been run open like this with some leakage from the bushing supplying some caster oil from the air/fuel mix that leaked past the bushing under pressure supplied the lubrication these open cagged ball bearings ran on? Or did someone smear some grease or shoot some thick ooil on these open caged ball bearings before they mounted the Anzani flywheel before running the engine a given amount of time before they somehow relubricated these open caged ball bearings all over again?

Some kind of a strange setup that will soon be seen here when I photo these different kind of Anzani end caps against the more modern ones not unlike the conventional types Mercs and others would use that had bearings and seals in way we are used to seeing them. Open caged ball bearings in racing engines???

[John (Taylor) Gabrowski]

A recent information contribution on Bill Tenney and his grandfather John Eastman who worked for Bill Tenney by Bill Eastman, grandson of John Eastman. This gives readers some of the projects and inovations that were going on with Scott Attwaters and British Anzani engines in outboard racing.

As pasted from email from grandson Bill Eastman:

I have seen a few of your posts (John Taylor and other posters) on old hydros and Bill Tenney. I may know the origin of your "dimpled aluminum plate" dual motor mount. In 1958, Bill worked with Scott Attwater and prepared the Flying Scott. It mounted two three cylinder Scott motor heads on the same lower unit di Priolo used to break 100 mph. The first attempts here in Minnesota were aborted due to ground swells on the lake. They tried again in canals down south (Florida?). They beat the record on their first run but the lower unit chucked its gears during the return so no record. While waiting for repairs, Entrop ran 107 in Seattle and the effort was scrapped.

Where did I get the info? My grandfather was John Eastman. He raced with Bill Tenney before WWII and was an engine machinist during the 50's. We moved to northern Minnesota in the mid sixties. The Flying Scott's hull came with us and was kept in a carriage shed for years. Unfortunately, it did not survive. The most unique feature is the mid-boat motor location clearly visible in the photo. The motor did not turn so steering was handled by a rudder at the end of the right tail.

I think the link was in one of the bulletin board threads with your contributions. The number 40 Aquasport with Boat Sport magazine looks like one I saw years ago. On page 22, in the lower left photo, I believe you can see my grandfather's bald head and plaid shirt. I was born in December 1958 and Grandpa John passed on in 1981 so my knowledge is both old and second hand. However the article and your response helped clarify some memories. I thought the swell-limited runs were up here on Minnetonka. Apparently, this was wrong- they were on Lake Mead. However, some shakedown runs may have happened here. Because Tenney's shop was famous for engines, I "remembered" the motor first. After reading the article, I remember Grandpa saying that Tenney didn't do the motor- they did the boat and setup. Although the article suggests otherwise, Grandpa was very consistent that the Scott broke 100 in a single pass and chucked it's gears on the return. Grandpa enjoyed telling a good story but he seldom embelished.

The Flying Scott's top deck was barn red with white lettering. Everything else was varnished birch. It was extremely well made. Most of the hardware was gone- the tanks under the side hatches, the steering wheel, and the tach. Obviously there was no motor or motor mounting hardware. The right tail still had a rudder attached. The left tail had rudder hardware but no rudder- it handled better with only one. The windscreen (simpler and smaller than the one in the photos, I think) and the tach mount (vibration proof) were in the cockpit.

I lived with Grandpa John and Grandma Vivian from 1966 until I went to University so we had plenty of time to talk. Unfortunately, the only keepsakes I have are one Del Orto float bowl and Grandpa's outboard motoring 1000 hour club certificate. My uncle inherited the farm and sold it off. I don't think he kept much. He moved to Alaska years ago and I've lost touch. Grandpa knew Bill Tenney since before WWII and worked on Anzani's up to his death.

If you are interested, I can try and describe some of the work they did. For instance, Grandpa said that, when porting a motor, they sometimes broke through to the water jacket. If this happened, they peened lead shot int the opening to seal the area so they could test the motor. One of Bill's "secrets of success" was a home-built dynomometer and, as the US distributor, a healthy supply of parts. While they developed customer Anzani's, they'd end up with a small number of "golden motors." These were kept and used for Bill's personal record runs.

For BRF readers information I am going to ask Bill Eastman to do the descriptions of goings on at Bill Tenney's shop on British Anzani engines and hopefully some pictures may turn up as well also.

The "golden" British Anzani engines Bill Tenney kept for doing his own record runs are now believed to be the subject of piece for piece engine restorations now going on in 2 locations known though because of the garage/shop fire it is unknown what engines may have been destroyed. According to Tim Chance there were some Anzani engines referred to as the sisters or something of that nature that were some of Bill Tenney's favorites that were perhaps within that golden engine group.

The engine dyno referred to I saw myself in 1996 and today I believe it is still in the hands of Tom Moulder and has been used by Tom in the 1990s since Bill Tenney used it for its intended uses back in the 1960s.

More interesting information on all this is upcoming from Bill Eastman soon.

[Smokin' Joe]

That's really a nice response, thanks! Do you have photos of the Scott, or know where we could locate some to post? What did Bill Tenney do for a living, and when did he die?

So you and my youngest brother were born the year before I started NOA racing as 16 year old.

Best wishes,
Joe

A recent information contribution on Bill Tenney and his grandfather John Eastman who worked for Bill Tenney by Bill Eastman, grandson of John Eastman. This gives readers some of the projects and inovations that were going on with Scott Attwaters and British Anzani engines in outboard racing.

As pasted from email from grandson Bill Eastman:

I have seen a few of your posts (John Taylor and other posters) on old hydros and Bill Tenney. I may know the origin of your "dimpled aluminum plate" dual motor mount. In 1958, Bill worked with Scott Attwater and prepared the Flying Scott. It mounted two three cylinder Scott motor heads on the same lower unit di Priolo used to break 100 mph. The first attempts here in Minnesota were aborted due to ground swells on the lake. They tried again in canals down south (Florida?). They beat the record on their first run but the lower unit chucked its gears during the return so no record. While waiting for repairs, Entrop ran 107 in Seattle and the effort was scrapped.

Where did I get the info? My grandfather was John Eastman. He raced with Bill Tenney before WWII and was an engine machinist during the 50's. We moved to northern Minnesota in the mid sixties. The Flying Scott's hull came with us and was kept in a carriage shed for years. Unfortunately, it did not survive. The most unique feature is the mid-boat motor location clearly visible in the photo. The motor did not turn so steering was handled by a rudder at the end of the right tail.

I think the link was in one of the bulletin board threads with your contributions. The number 40 Aquasport with Boat Sport magazine looks like one I saw years ago. On page 22, in the lower left photo, I believe you can see my grandfather's bald head and plaid shirt. I was born in December 1958 and Grandpa John passed on in 1981 so my knowledge is both old and second hand. However the article and your response helped clarify some memories. I thought the swell-limited runs were up here on Minnetonka. Apparently, this was wrong- they were on Lake Mead. However, some shakedown runs may have happened here. Because Tenney's shop was famous for engines, I "remembered" the motor first. After reading the article, I remember Grandpa saying that Tenney didn't do the motor- they did the boat and setup. Although the article suggests otherwise, Grandpa was very consistent that the Scott broke 100 in a single pass and chucked it's gears on the return. Grandpa enjoyed telling a good story but he seldom embelished.

The Flying Scott's top deck was barn red with white lettering. Everything else was varnished birch. It was extremely well made. Most of the hardware was gone- the tanks under the side hatches, the steering wheel, and the tach. Obviously there was no motor or motor mounting hardware. The right tail still had a rudder attached. The left tail had rudder hardware but no rudder- it handled better with only one. The windscreen (simpler and smaller than the one in the photos, I think) and the tach mount (vibration proof) were in the cockpit.

I lived with Grandpa John and Grandma Vivian from 1966 until I went to University so we had plenty of time to talk. Unfortunately, the only keepsakes I have are one Del Orto float bowl and Grandpa's outboard motoring 1000 hour club certificate. My uncle inherited the farm and sold it off. I don't think he kept much. He moved to Alaska years ago and I've lost touch. Grandpa knew Bill Tenney since before WWII and worked on Anzani's up to his death.

If you are interested, I can try and describe some of the work they did. For instance, Grandpa said that, when porting a motor, they sometimes broke through to the water jacket. If this happened, they peened lead shot int the opening to seal the area so they could test the motor. One of Bill's "secrets of success" was a home-built dynomometer and, as the US distributor, a healthy supply of parts. While they developed customer Anzani's, they'd end up with a small number of "golden motors." These were kept and used for Bill's personal record runs.

For BRF readers information I am going to ask Bill Eastman to do the descriptions of goings on at Bill Tenney's shop on British Anzani engines and hopefully some pictures may turn up as well also.

The "golden" British Anzani engines Bill Tenney kept for doing his own record runs are now believed to be the subject of piece for piece engine restorations now going on in 2 locations known though because of the garage/shop fire it is unknown what engines may have been destroyed. According to Tim Chance there were some Anzani engines referred to as the sisters or something of that nature that were some of Bill Tenney's favorites that were perhaps within that golden engine group.

The engine dyno referred to I saw myself in 1996 and today I believe it is still in the hands of Tom Moulder and has been used by Tom in the 1990s since Bill Tenney used it for its intended uses back in the 1960s.

More interesting information on all this is upcoming from Bill Eastman soon.