The Lister diesel

[Wansworth]

We had dropped anchour off teignmouth to wait the tide later the pilot sent message he was coming.We uncovered the Lister in preparation to hauling up the anchour.It would not start .We turned it and turn it.Then the skipper turned up with his an of easy start,oil can and hammer.Hedosed envey or ofi e witheasy start ,and oil and we wound and wound.Then he stated with the hammer bashing bits,it still wouldn’t start.The pilot joined in winding in the anchour as we lay about the deck exhausted……..we made the tide just and had an engineer come and look at the Lister after he managed to stop skating around the deck on all the oil

 

[Amlov]

Well that explains the mystery of Donald Crowhurst’s disappearance - he’s alive and well and living in Galicia.

Just Lord Lucan left to track down.

 

[Wansworth]

No

Well that explains the mystery of Donald Crowhurst’s disappearance - he’s alive and well and living in Galicia.

Just Lord Lucan left to track down.

he lives down the road

 

[johnalison]

My only experience of a Lister diesel was in circa 1972 when Des Sleightholme organised a ‘Skippers’s weekend’ in Salcombe. At one point we were in a launch with a Lister diesel which needed to be started. Someone turned the engine over with the starting handle and after a leisurely delay someone else was instructed to close the decompression levers. The engine just started to purr away, and I was most impressed. I have a feeling that this won’t make you feel better.

 

[Wansworth]

My only experience of a Lister diesel was in circa 1972 when Des Sleightholme organised a ‘Skippers’s weekend’ in Salcombe. At one point we were in a launch with a Lister diesel which needed to be started. Someone turned the engine over with the starting handle and after a leisurely delay someone else was instructed to close the decompression levers. The engine just started to purr away, and I was most impressed. I have a feeling that this won’t make you feel better.

There again one dark night anchoured off Whistable it started and the handle disappeared into the night……to almost immediately descend to the deak

 

[38mess]

I have never heard a lister 'purr' but we used to have a lister 3 wheeled truck in our yard and it would go surprisingly fast if we took the throttle stop out

 

[Wansworth]

I have never heard a lister 'purr' but we used to have a lister 3 wheeled truck in our yard and it would go surprisingly fast if we took the throttle stop out

There’s a video of two Indian boys mimicking aLister sounds 100%

 

[Beneteau381]

My only experience of a Lister diesel was in circa 1972 when Des Sleightholme organised a ‘Skippers’s weekend’ in Salcombe. At one point we were in a launch with a Lister diesel which needed to be started. Someone turned the engine over with the starting handle and after a leisurely delay someone else was instructed to close the decompression levers. The engine just started to purr away, and I was most impressed. I have a feeling that this won’t make you feel better.

The story by the op, I dont recognise the scenario, yours I do. They are/were such hard beasts to swing over to start that they had to start easily and they did.
Detroit Diesels with hydraulic starters? Hmm, yes to that scenario BUT only after they had worked lovelessly and with oil like blackstrap for many years pumping a tailings swamp in the boondocks.

 

[Supertramp]

I recall hand starting our reluctant Volvo MD11 with decompression levers while heeled and pitching. The handle flying around the cabin once or twice, it could kick like a motorbike and the massive relief when it fired, followed by a rush to the cockpit over the spinning flywheel to slow the throttle.

It certainly didn't "purr"!

No wonder that we did everything under sail if we could.

 

[fisherman]

Some mates spent an hour or more hand cranking a 44hp lister. They were fit young chaps, had to be, it went in the end.

 

[johnalison]

Hand starting an RCA Dolphin was entertaining when on the move. You had to take the starting cord a couple of times round the centrifugal clutch plate at the rear of the engine to attach it and then lead it forward over the engine before giving it a yank. Luckily, it wasn’t much to pull against and started readily.