Car with dynastart - ID Please

Hi Folks,

Thanks to all for previous help on the Egyptian American. We at the Surrey Vintage Vehicle Society (United Kingdom) have an active car identification Help Page on our website (currently http://www.svvs.org/help19.shtml.) Attached is a film scan of a car which appears to have some sort of a ‘dynastart’. Somebody is sure to recognise it quickly? Any help would be much appreciated.

Kind regards,

Vintman (UK)

www.svvs.org

Any ideas on which US cars made cars with visible dynastarts??

Vintman

I know of no cars that came with Eveready starters as standard equipment. They may have been offered as a factory installed option on some makes but were for sure dealer installed and aftermarket. Images are from catalog and show installation on a Kline, Overland and group of others that are 2 Maxwells, Corbin, 2 Stearns, Franklin, and Rambler. I believe your picture shows a circa 1911 small Stearns. When using one of these your car had to be in good tune and start right off or you were going to have to get out and rewind the spring!

Hi LadenB,

Wow, what fantastic info ! I was not aware of this device. Looking at the leaflet and the photos it seems that the cross piece above the unit is part of the unit and that on some cars the two angled support struts below the unit were necessary. Both are present on my photo. I have investigated your thought of it being Stearns and it does indeed seem as if it is a cca 1912 Stearns 5 Passenger Tourer. Many thanks indeed.

What I don’t fully understand is, how does the starter work? Presumably it is not a dynamo?

Kind Regards

Vintman (UK)

www.svvs.org

Remember that this is the pre-electric days. This starter is all mechanical. It has inside a VERY heavy duty spring that turns over the engine when the foot pedal is depressed. After the engine is running, you release the pedal and the spring is rewound. There was supplied a hand crank to rewind the spring in case the engine did not start. Very expensive to purchase and soon made obsolete by of all things an electric motor!! Carbide gas starting systems and compressed air systems also had a quite short popularity time span. I have seen a couple of the Eveready units but not installed, probably removed during car restoration.

Many Thanks LadenB. It must have been a really very hefty spring because I have difficulty in turning over my shooting brake, and I have a very much larger turning radius with my arm !

Many thanks and regards

Vintman (UK)

www.svvs.org