Gardner 4LW Diesel

Dave_Snelson

Dave_Snelson

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www.makeyourowngarments.com
OK learned panel, what do any of you know about this particular marine diesel. Fuel consumption? Quality build? Longevity? Anyone owned one?

Anything really?

EDIT

Jeepers!! Its a 5.6L developing only 62HP. If looked after, it must last forever!! The one I'm looking at was built in 1962
 
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Only Gardners I used to do much with is the 6LX and the 8LXCT. As whisper said they are slow revving, long stroke oil burners, Basic design, but very decent quality.
One think to watch I suppose on a boat is the alloy cranckase joined to a cast iron block.

I believe Gardners of the same range were modular, bigger engines having more cylinders, but same bore and stroke.

If you ever need to remove the crank, you need special equipment to stretch the crankcase and remove the main bearing blocks.

Incidently, the Gardner is the only stock engine I ever encountered with polished con rods.

You might have an heart attack waiting (and waiting) for the oil pressure to come up, but thats not unusual.

Other thing with Gardners is to ensure your injector feed and leakoff pipe connections are tight and inspect them regularly, or you will fill the sump with diesel and have a runaway engine on your hands.

Edit

Oh and the harmonic damper is internal and is like a friction clutch with a fibre disc. This can wear causing the engine to set harmonics internally and break the crank. Rare, but I have known it.

Another thing is if you have a leak between the pump top and camcase, DO NOT try to stop it by nipping up the hold down nuts. It will sound like a sowing machine, then very quickly crack the casting. Pay special attention to the pump rack rod too, where it connects the two banks, corrosion can get in if neglected and stick the rack open.

Used to know loads, but its 20 years plus since I last rebuilt or even set eyes on one.

The world turned, Clessie Cummins products became the favoured ones and Gardner was consigned to history.
 
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I have owned lots of the LW marine range of engines from 2's to 6's and they are beautifully engineered engines that will keep on going for ever and a day! (even when they are worn out)

Excellent fuel economy, smoke like a chimney when they start up, but should clear once warm, it should read 57psi oil pressure hot and cold, and should drop off on the gauge slowly when engine turned off.

Just make sure that it is an English built version and not a Kromhout Gardner which were made under lisence from Gardner but i dont think that a 1960's engine would be. Bits would be very difficult to get as the engine was slightly different.

If it is an LW with the proper 2UC gardner gearbox on it then the gearbox is going to be the really expensive bit to look after as the bits are very difficult to get hold of.

Cheers

I still have a 4 LW kicking about in my yard, not a marine one though
 
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Many years have passed since I had to work on a Gardner engine. A prawn trawler I was on had 3 Gardner's on board as well as separate compressors and generators.

Was originally built as a passenger ferry but the owner ran out of money so the superstructure was removed and trawling rig fitted.

She had a smallish engine midships with huge engines each side of it, the idea was she could steam on the smaller mid engine and power up the two larger ones when the nets were in use.

The one thing that impressed me was the simplicity, you could fix almost any problem with basic tools and throw all parts removed into a container and not get into trouble putting them back together. Not that we ever did a lot of work on them.

Good luck.
 
4LW

Dave,

Posters here know their Gardners. My only area of slight disagreement is parts pricing and availability. Plenty of stuff around for the 4LW and not expensive in my book. Take a look at http://www.gardnermarine.com/

Cold the engine will smoke for a living, get it under load as soon as you can and smoke will clear, treat as a fact of life. Same as the oil leaks, just live with them and use as an excuse for polishing the engine
 
Dave_Snelson said:
OK learned panel, what do any of you know about this particular marine diesel. Fuel consumption? Quality build? Longevity? Anyone owned one?

Anything really?

EDIT

Jeepers!! Its a 5.6L developing only 62HP. If looked after, it must last forever!! The one I'm looking at was built in 1962
Click to expand...

DS!
What the feck are you up to now?
You found a motor Sailer or summat!:rolleyes:

Anyway.
The 4 LW

4Cyl 'Light Weight'

56 hp usually.
Lightweight as opposed to the Heavyweights.

Light as in about a ton and a half:)

These engines can be mended--- forever.
Bits available as mentioned.

Last production run as far as I can remember was about 15 years ago.
200 were ordered for South Africa.

1LW was used for pumps and stuff.
2LW seen in lots of Marine applications.

If you are an 'engine man' these are great things to play with.
As said-- made so's they can be pulled apart and rebuilt.
 
Kawasaki said:
DS!
What the feck are you up to now?
You found a motor Sailer or summat!:rolleyes:

Anyway.
The 4 LW

4Cyl 'Light Weight'

56 hp usually.
Lightweight as opposed to the Heavyweights.

Light as in about a ton and a half:)

These engines can be mended--- forever.
Bits available as mentioned.

Last production run as far as I can remember was about 15 years ago.
200 were ordered for South Africa.

1LW was used for pumps and stuff.
2LW seen in lots of Marine applications.

If you are an 'engine man' these are great things to play with.
As said-- made so's they can be pulled apart and rebuilt.
Click to expand...

Well I wondered if you'd turn up :)

And surprisingly, you are the only one to guess that I might just be up to summat - and (tentatively!) I am. I must just go and take a poke around a Groves & Gutterage Watson 42 with two of theses likkle beauties inside it. Ex Lifeboat in original condition. Go anywhere!!
 
1LW was used for pumps and .
Click to expand...


Just a quicky to say they never produced a 1LW but they did produce a 1L2 which was predominatley used by trinity house as generating units in light houses, LW engines were in multiple of two and three cylinder versions giving you either a two cylinder, theree cylinder, four, five, six or an eight cylinder.

Regards
 
OAF said:
Just a quicky to say they never produced a 1LW but they did produce a 1L2 which was predominatley used by trinity house as generating units in light houses, LW engines were in multiple of two and three cylinder versions giving you either a two cylinder, theree cylinder, four, five, six or an eight cylinder.

Regards
Click to expand...

Correct!
Have you noticed how close the '2' is on the keyboard to the W'':rolleyes::rolleyes::)
 
There must be one somewhere...

I've been wanting a 1L2 for years and cant find one anywhere.

We keep getting power cuts at the house and I fancy a 1L2 to run a generator.
 
Cold the engine will smoke for a living, get it under load as soon as you can and smoke will clear, treat as a fact of life. Same as the oil leaks, just live with them and use as an excuse for polishing the engine
Click to expand...

Amen to that. I recollect 50 odd ERF C32s and Seddy Atkinson 400s with 8LXCTs fitted, all starting up at 6am on a frosty morning.
Needed a pair of scissors to cut a tunnel in the smoke to enable progress from one side of the yard to the other.

And people thought Volvo TD70s and 100s smoked a lot on startup. HaHa. No comparison.


sheds a tear for the halcyon days of yoof and apprenticeship.
 
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