Photo by Larry Caldwell
The nearly completed engine that Bob Finlay has been working on for the past eight months.
What started as an advanced automobile engine in the late 1940s has led to a new project for Bob Finlay of Emporia.
For the last six months or so, Finlay, who founded BPE Manufacturing, has been hard at work building a 3/10 scale model of the Crosley engine. The engine was used during World War II in refrigeration units and in generators. After the war, it was adapted for use in the Crosley automobile.
“But the cars were uglier than sin,” Finlay said, “and they didn’t sell very good. They were subject to pranksters because four or five guys could pick one up and set it somewhere.”
The Crosley engine was made of aluminum, an advanced engineering feat for the time. “It was a four-cylinder, overhead cam engine with an aluminum intake manifold, aluminum crankcase and an aluminum block,” Finlay said.
The aluminum construction allowed for a lighter engine. “Nobody used aluminum blocks,” he said. “You could pick up the engine and transmission and move it.”
The overhead cam design also was an advance for its time.
“Nobody had overhead cams,” Finlay said. “Those didn’t come out until overhead valves came out in the ’50s.”
The Crosley engine was too small to give much horsepower, however. Finlay said it didn’t produce more than 26 horsepower, not enough to push the cars much faster than 60 miles per hour.
The idea for Finlay’s miniature reproduction came last year, when Finlay attended a trade show in Toledo, Ohio, with Glendo employees. While there, he saw displays of miniature models of V-8s and other engines.
“I saw that and I said, ‘These old men up here, they’ve got way too much time on their hands,’” Finlay said. “Then I came home and decided I’d try it.”
Photo by Larry Caldwell
The Crosley engine that Bob Finlay rebuilt.
Earlier, Finlay had bought two Crosley engines in Aliceville. He adapted one of them to a small garden tractor and used the spare engine to take measurements for his miniature model.
First, he took the engine’s measurements and drew it up on the computer.
“That was as hard as anything, I guess,” he said. “Half the work was scaling it.”
He then used a C&C milling machine and a lathe to machine all the parts, down to the tiny carburetors. He made the thimble-sized distributor cap with a plastic-injection mold. The only parts on the engine Finlay didn’t make himself are the miniscule spark plugs.
“It’s got pistons and piston rings, all of them made from scratch,” he said. “The rings were made out of cast iron bar and the crankshaft made out of cast iron. It’s got a camshaft that the lobes have been heat-treated, and lifters and little tiny valves are in it.”
To complete the engine, all Finlay has left to do is the ignition system.
“It’s pretty authentic,” he said. “And it’s nearly done.”
The miniature itself is about 4 inches long, and not as tall as a soda pop can. When finished, Finlay hopes it will be fully operational. In April, he will take the miniature Crosley to the 20th Annual Model Engineering Exposition in Toledo.
Photo by Larry Caldwell
Bob Finlay has put the rebuilt Crosley engine into a riding lawn mower.
In addition to his other hobbies, the engine has taken up quite a bit of Finlay’s time. He also enjoys engraving hobo nickels and making custom knives.
“I get tired of one thing and move on to something else,” Finlay said. “That’s the thing. If you do too much, it stops being fun and starts to be a job.”
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Posted by dougmarshall (anonymous) on March 18, 2009 at 3:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
What a gem of a man he his. Talent, work ethic and the desire to do things right. If you haven't seen his "hobby work", you should. Bob, you should open a museum!
Posted by madpoet (anonymous) on March 18, 2009 at 3:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)
How cool! I hope he has lots of fun at the next Expo.
Posted by nutsaboutools (anonymous) on March 18, 2009 at 4:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Bravo Bob! I think you're on to something. Good luck & have fun (I'm jealous) at the Expo!!
Posted by crosley19 (anonymous) on March 21, 2009 at 7:42 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Nice workmanship, but your information is wrong. The original Crosley Cobra (copper brazed) engine block was made out of 125 pieces of stamped sheet metal that was press fit, crimped, and brazed in a 60' oven. The WW II engines produced up to 35 hp. The miltary liked them because they were light, and could run low grade gas without causing knock, that is because the tin block would disapate the cylinder heat instantly into the water jackets, due to the thin cylinder walls. The military used a alchol based anti-freeze, when the engines were put into cars after the war, the civilian anti-freeze was salt based, and it ate out the blocks. In 1949 Crosley switched to a cast iron block.
The Crosley cars sold very well, until the rumors of the engine blocks rusting out, As far as not having enough horse power, A stock Crosley can run 70 mph. In 1949 a Crosley Hotshot won the first Sebring race, beating out a Ferrari.
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