found a british seagull!

[Kajun37]

last week i was riding along in pensacola,florida and i passed a antique shop..instead of stopping, i just called information and got their phone number..so i call the shop and ask.."do you have any antique outboards?" and the guy tells me .."yes we sure do..its a 1902 pelican, and its in great condition"...so here i am thinking i just won the lottery by finding an ultra rare outboard..i turn around and head back to the shop...run inside and the guy says..."i have to dig it out"....so i wait around and he yells "i found it"...so i go back there and he pulls out this old outboard...i then see the seagull lettering on the tank...oh well its not a 1902 outboard lol but this seagull must be very old and its in excellent condition...so i ask the guy...what do you want for it.. and he says "$200"...i tell him $150 and he accepts..i'm thinking i just pulled off the best deal in history and trying not to crack the biggest chit eating grin possible ....all the way home i'm thinking this must be a really old motor..since i didnt know very much about seagulls except seeing a few pictures of them...

i get home and find the serial and come online and look it up...FP 314A8.....well turns out it isnt very old at all....what i can gather its a 1968 forty plus.....i was hoping for something a bit older since 1968 was the year i was born lol but it wasnt to be....BUT i still had this cool lil motor and started reading more about them...and liked it even more after finding out its simple to work on and built like a little tank!! saturday and sunday i spent all day cleaning it up..today i decided to try to start it..started up after a few pulls!...prob would of started on the first pull if i had gave it alil gas instead of turning the throttle the opposite way......ran fine but i have a water circulation problem...water was coming out the tell tale intermittantly and the block got kinda hot so i shut down....gonna have to troubleshoot it....any seagull owners here??


heres some pics of it...


Before....

After...2 days... a case of bud light and some sore fingers....

 

[ntrsandman]

Re: found a british seagull!

Thats a sweet little motor. Checked out the BS site. Looks like parts are still available. May need to get them from britain. However, you will likely have the only seagull on the lake! Have fun with it! What did you use besides beer to clean it. It looks great!

 

[steelespike]

Re: found a british seagull!

Be sure the motor is well imersed in water.I it uses a centrifugal pump and won't self prime.Be sure intake port is clear.

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: found a british seagull!

Very good advice...it needs to be on the boat so the forward motion will prime the water pump. Don't run it too long in a barrell or it will overheat. Nice find.

Be sure the motor is well imersed in water.I it uses a centrifugal pump and won't self prime.Be sure intake port is clear.

 

[SuperNova]

Re: found a british seagull!

I have three of them in storage. All 3 hp. I remember when I was a kid at my grandfathers house on the Chesapeake Bay, I had a 12' green fiberglass Sear's rowboat we used to use the Seagull on. It was a great motor and I never remember having difficulty starting it even when I was 8 or so. 'Course trying to fill that tank with the boat in the water from a jerry can was a royal pain.
--
Stan

 

[Bigprairie1]

Re: found a british seagull!

Great find Kajun. Nice photos too of the restored/clean-up version.
We used to run one of those all the time when we were kids. Pretty simple little motors.
We have them all over the place up here due to a lot of left-over British ex-pats still living in SW B.C. They must have brought them over with them. I see them all the time listed up here on Craigslist, etc and still even on the odd boat.
Never thought to get one....except perhaps for nostalgia.
Now, I'll start to keep a closer eye out tho'...and I'll let you know if I see any r4eal steals or parts.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: found a british seagull!

Great and very reliable little motors. Stromg as an ox !!! sip fuel and with minimal maintenance will run forever. I am English and know several people that still run them. Not speedsters by any means but will push a heavy boat all day without complaint. Nice find. Enjoy it.

 

[fishon71]

Re: found a british seagull!

Nice looking motor you did well. I have all the parts you need and copies of user and parts manuals.

Lots of times these need to be preasure back flushed to get the crud out of the cooling chambers. Also only run it in a tank with the prop off so it can get all the water. Do not put it too deep in water either else it will not run right.

Contact me at java705@verizon.net for all your Seagull needs. I have a shed full of motors and used parts.

 

[davemaxi1970]

Re: found a british seagull!

I was given a 1953 seagull 40 plus 4hp as it was a non runner and was going to be thrown out . 20 minutes later and a new plug lead and clean up it was running great. as for the water problem it will run in a barrel but will only punp water steadily at higher revs and not idle. your engine is in great condition. If you want more info join the "Saving old seagulls forum" These engines are rare in the U.S. but in the U.K. they lurk in many a garage as they will outlive their owners.

 

[Bokmorg]

Re: found a british seagull!

I have an old Seagull. Do not know the age. How do I determine? Does it have any value? It is not nearly as nice as yours is now.

And how the heck do I put in a picture?

 

[F_R]

Re: found a british seagull!

Everything has value to somebody.

Like anything else, you need some more information to find the year. Here is an interesting website: http://www.saving-old-seagulls.co.uk/

To post a picture, click on "Go Advanced" when posting, then click on "Manage Attachments", and follow the prompts

 

[Ross J]

Re: found a british seagull!

Ah, the British Seagull outboard motor. When we were young and my father (shipwright) made clinker dinghys we had a fleet of the seagull motors. I still have a collection plus workshop manuals. It is a labour of love to either restore or just to own one of these beasties. There is a nostalgic touch and anybody thats slung a seagul over their shoulder and carted it to the boat, will understand. The smell, he oily air on start up, the sound of it running, and, the slow methodical thudding of one pushing the boat about the harbour. We've used them to push barges, tow boats, rescue others, as auxilliary motors, and on yauchts.
They can be packed away for long periods and yet still start up as if they were used the day before.
Also there's the advantage of running on different fuels depending where in the world you are. With the addition of an extra head gasket they'll run on pure kerosene.