Mark66A

Another picture from a back seat. This one taken by Peter. Mark in in passenger seat. What car and who is the driver????

Ned, Your photo of the ID plate on the side of the engine lists a License # and an engine #. The engine # was issued by Stearns as a record of the engine built for that particular car model (in your case "C"). The license # was issued by "The Knight American Patent Company" to "The F.B. Stearns Company". The license number is particular to the engine in your car, and was important as a record of the engines produced under the patent license contract. Any manufacturer building Knight engines built them under license and had to pay The Knight American Patent Company an amount for each engine built. The amount of the payment varied by contract and by volume. I have a copy of a contract (safely stored in my piles-aka files) that started out at $100 for each engine built. I think a more average amount would have been in the $60 range. I have a collection of ID tags taken from junked engines by Art Aseltine. All the License numbers are different. The number you should use to register the car is the Chassis number. Your car appears to have been previously owned by (initials only) E.G.G. and was listed in the WOKR roster from 1980 through 2013.

Great thread, we are all learning a lot! Ned's car chassis number and engine number are the same which is correct for that year. Later they differed. The photo I posted that is similar to Neds car came from a leather bound dealer album. I has a variety of body styles for the 1924-25 model years for the "B" (Big Four) 4 cyl and the "C" 6 cyl. The photo I posted was the fanciest of the bunch. Others show the same door handles as Ned's car and no cowl lights. Three door handle styles are shown in that album. To date, I have not seen two Stearns cars of the same model and year that were identical. They had running changes all the time. As an example my H-8-90 is different from one side to the other. Right side spare tire side mount bracket is cast iron, left side is cast bronze. Peter and I found difference in the pin-stripe from one side to the other. These cars were hand built, with different people on each side of the car, doing their job their way with their talent and interpretation. That's OK, can't see both sides at once anyway. Steve, the six cylinder engines from the 1925 thru 1928 -models C, S, D & F are very similar but not identical. One example: Water cover castings differ. Perhaps Ned can measure the diameter of his pipe for a comparison to yours.

Thank you AJ for re-sizing this image so it can be posted.

When I searched my archive for a photo of a 1925 Stearns-Knight sedan, I located some magazine ads for Stearns in 1925. One caught my attention because of our earlier discussion on L.A. outlets. The ad, for Houdaille shocks in the "Touring Topics" publication, featured a letter from a Stearns Distributor by the name of "Lynn C. Buxton" located at Figueroa at Seventeenth Los Angeles. The Houdaille-Pacific Company located at 1616 South Hill Street in L.A. listed these brands as using their shocks as standard equipment: Pierce-Arrow, Lincoln, Mercer, McFarlan, Cunningham, Stearns, Cadillac Busses and Stewart Busses. In large type at the bottom of the ad was their name spelled out as it was to be pronounced: HOO DYE. The scanned file is too large to post here.

The chassis number plate appears to indicate a model "C" . They were introduced in Oct of 1924 and dropped in Aug of 1926 - followed by the Model "S" Your serial # makes it a 1925 model as you were told. The "C" carried a 6 cyl motor 3 1/4 bore by 5" stroke for 248.86 cubic inches. The wheelbase for all body styles was 121". Appears to be a nice solid car. It is listed in the Willys Overland Knight Registry. You say it is not stuck, so, prior to attempting a start, fill cylinders with light oil and turn over by hand to clean out the grime. Drop & clean out the pan, check the oil pump & refill with light oil. If you can, remove the distributor (carefully note position of rotor), pull out the shaft below it and make a long shaft to bypass the eccentric gear, and shape the end to fit the oil pump. Attach a drill, drop the shaft onto the pump and use the drill to circulate oil. You should be able to register oil pressure. Circulating the oil will clean some gunk out of the system. Drain the oil, put in fresh 30W, replace the distributor and shaft and attempt to start it. Should work well. There are timing marks on the flywheel, and an access window from the front side. Your manual should help you. Join the Willys Overland Knight Club (WOKR) which will provide you great support. Good Luck!! Mark Young, past president W.O.K.R.

Correct fan belt for a Stearns H/J 8-90.

Another ad for Stearns Knight from J.W. Leavitt in March, 1929 issue of "Motor Land".

It may be coincidental, but - John N. Willys bought the F.B. Stearns Company in 1926 (?) but did not merge the Willys Overland and the F. B. Stearns Companies. He also owned the Falcon Knight company. The Falcon Knight subsequently became the Willys Knight model 56 (a Willys-Overland product). Given that, it would make sense that the J.W. Leavitt & Company had dealerships for Falcon-Knight (a small car) and the Stearns Knight (a large car). Legend has it that when J.N. Willys went to Poland as the US ambassador, he brought a Stearns-Knight limo with him.

To the best of my knowledge, The Stearns Motor company, maker of marine and industrial engines (I believe located near Grand Rapids, MI) was not associated with the F.B. Stearns Company of Cleveland. I have not yet found a link between the companies.

When Art Aseltine passed away, he donated his patterns and files to the Willys Overland Kinght Registry. WOKR dues are very reasonable, and you have access to their library and patterns (www.wokr.org). Stearns used the same basic water pump for several model cars in the 20's, all with the same impeller. WOKR has the pattern. I bought a load of parts - mostly used, but good - from Art's estate to save them from the scrap yard. Contact me before you go the expense of having something made. I'd prefer to not have my kids haul this stuff to the scrap heap in a few years when I'm gone. Also I have a list of suppliers who have made stuff for the Stearns cars in the past, and have either a pattern or supplies.

After F.B. Stearns resigned from his company due to illness (in about 1917) he began developing diesel engines and eventually sold his patents and designs to the U.S. Navy. During that quest he had an 86 foot yacht built in 1922 by Luders Marine Construction in Connecticut. The yacht had diesel engines and a diesel generator. He named the yacht "Ginger-Dot" after his daughters Virginia and Dorothy. He used it frequently including winter trips to Florida. He eventually sold it to have a larger one built. His connection to boats was through his wife Mabelle Wilson Stearns. The Wilson family owned the Wilson Steamship Lines on the Great Lakes. Interestingly a color ad for the 1927 Stearns Knight G Cabriolet featured a drawing of the yacht. Also the yacht still exists and is undergoing a very long and arduous restoration in England. See www.ginger-dot.com. The car ad is below. An article from "Yachting" publication in October 1922 is to the right.

OK, I attempted to count them. There are way more people than 6 who understand this engine - at least 20. As far as the number living who have worked on them - at least 10, maybe even 12. And, I'm not counting owners or museums who own but don't run them or work on them. Yes this engine is unique. Only 8 cyl sleeve valve built in America. Only sleeve valve engine that I know of with dual eccentrics (cams to you poppet valve folks). My best count is that 20 engines remain. The engines were built in '27,'28 and '29 for model G,H and J. Five engines are currently within a 5 mile radius of me. I also have enough parts to build another engine, maybe two if a few needed parts could be made.

OK one more. Here is a treasure found on the reverse side of the wiring harness terminal block cover. This cover is on the driver side of the car. An identical cover on the passenger side covers the fuses for seven circuits. The text provided instructions for sleeve valve timing.

Sleeves and rods installed, cylinder block on its way down. This should be enough pictures for Mr. Minnie. .

Sleeves, pistons and rods ready to be installed.

Crankcase with crankshaft, and being put in car. Red"paint" is glyptol

Piston rods and sleeve rods fresh from new babbit.

Some basic "guts" of the motor. Several posts to upload pictures. Crankcase here just back from babbit. Zoom in to see the fantastic pattern work including oil reservoirs over each eccentric bearing.

Whew, I was afraid you wanted a picture of me! To answer AJ, the car in the newspaper clipping is likely a 1929 model M - too small for an H or J. In August of 1958 "Pete" Wills Watkins, Jr attempted to start a newsletter dedicated to sleeve valve cars. In the first (likely only) issue he described his '29 Stearns-Knight J including engine#, serial# and mileage. His information identified the car I am working on, however the odometer now has an additional 776 miles registered. The person who owns the car verified that he bought it from Pete Watkins in 1968. As to it's L.A. origins, located on the door post was an oil change plate from Collins-Lusby, Inc. Distributor of Stearns-Knight Motor Cars located at 1616 S. Figueroa St. Los Angeles, CA. Interestingly Peter Woyen and I had previously purchased a parts car sedan J-8-90 that had originated from L.A. (now a touring reconfigured by Al Giddings). In the debris of that car we found an oil change plate from Collins-Lusby as well. Here they are.

OK, I'll explain. 9 mains for crankshaft (total 15 5/32 in length). 9 mains for passenger side eccentric. 8 mains for driver side eccentric. 8 Piston rod bearings. 16 sleeve rod bearings. 1 accessory drive shaft bearing. 1 chain tightener bearing. Lenght of lever needed to initially turn over assembled engine -6 feet and still not easy. No pictures. Just use your imagination.

Goal: Get it running before Christmas. Done. A 1929 7 passenger Stearns-Knight H-8-90 roared to life on 12/24/20 for the first time since about 1970. Roar is probably the wrong word. Whisper may be more appropriate. It is quite and smooooth. 52 (yes 52) new babbit bearings in the crankcase are doing their job. Bought new in LA, probably at the same dealership as the Brunn.

Hmmm. Wondering what I should do with my spare - plain - flat caps. They do make good paper weights!

Cowl measurement hood edge to windshield 18 1/2" on both an H and a J. I noticed Mr. Cookie's car has a diamond dash decal. in 28 and 29 Stearns used two different decal designs. A large one on the dash and smaller ones on the wood trim below the door windows. I have not figured out why. Both decals are used on the H and J cars. I at first thought J had the diamond and H had the wings. I did a small survey of the cars and I was wrong. Also it is not dependent on the year or body style. Perhaps just something to confuse us 90+ years later. Also those with an oil filter, and not the rectifier had a Tillotson decal on the filter. Here are photos. I had them all reproduced as water transfer decals. (none left). AJ is right on where the measurement is for driver space. Unfortunate that we are now larger and attempting to fit in these older cars.