So I have some questions about a Fairmont speeder. Here is the video I made https://youtu.be/NWlhmwE6eFA I am also wondering what kind of gas it uses. And if there's any kind of alternator or will we just run out the 6 volt lantern battery we are using when running it?

With an RO-C engine, I'm guessing this is an M14-series car. These engines run on a mix of 2-cycle oil and gasoline. Do not run on straight gas! See this article on fuel:

https://www.narcoa.org/info/how_to/reformulatedgasoline.pdf

Here is a link to a manual for this type of car.

https://manualzz.com/doc/22731082/service-instructions-and-parts-list-m14-series-h

Generators were an option on these cars, mostly to run accessories. But the basic ignition only requires a battery and a spark coil.

I hope this helps!

The Martin County Historical Society https://fairmont.org/mchs/rwmotors.htm has all of the Fairmont records. If you know the number of your car they can provide a copy of it's birth certificate.

Couple things about fuel:

As far as I know, MTBE has been completely phased out in all states in favor of ethanol. MTBE is persistent in the environment and contaminates ground water.

Ethanol can also be a concern if your fuel system has rubber or synthetic components that are not compatible.

All automotive gasoline in Ohio has ethanol all year round - up to 10% if I recall. In our motor cars, we use what we call “ag gas” which has no ethanol. Around here, it’s sold primarily for agricultural machinery and landscapers/blow & mow guys use it, too. It’s more expensive and hard to find in some areas but it doesn’t eat up your equipment. I’ve had to rebuild the carbs in a couple weed whackers because of ethanol - they were supposed to be compatible but not necessarily to 10% or higher ethanol.

So once started the battery is no longer needed? Also I saw people selling new and improved coils for speeders for around $100, while ours works what about useing a dirt cheap ebay high voltage generator like seen here https://youtu.be/xISAQZSWU0I

Once started, you still need the battery to run the coil, but the coil uses very little battery power, so you can run a long time on the lantern battery. Any use of horn or lights will run the battery down pretty fast without an auxiliary generator.

If you are on Facebook, look up the railroad motorcar groups. They will help and maybe someone close to you that can lend a hand..

You do have an M-14.

I do not know what that hook would be for on the bottom of the engine cover.

The ROC engine uses a 16:1 mix of two cycle oil.

Agreed on limiting fuel with ethanol but I have been using fuel with limited ethanol for 20 years on an ROC with no impact that I have seen.

I would NOT use that high voltage device you linked from Youtube. I would stick with the existing wooden coil (if you have one). The things are near bulletproof. The newer device being offered to speeder owners is great too.

If the engine has oil cups for the throttle or bearings, start filling them now to get the engine lubed prior to its first start. A shot of oil or two in the spark plug hole is also helpful.

And watch when cranking. It will break your hand if the engine fires and you don't pull the crank out immediately.

For those too young to know the technique, make sure the crank handle is held with the thumb and all fingers on the same side instead of between thumb and fingers.

Some other items;

1) Without an alternator or generator this can run on the original 6 volts. You can use 12 volts too. Can start it directly from a battery and coil.

2) The timer as set in the video with start the car in the forward direction. Crank the starter handle clockwise. Need one and a half to two turns open (anticlockwise) on the mixture screw. Once the car starts to run, more the timer handle forward of center.

3) To choke the engine lift directly up on the mixture screw and turn the starter crank a few times with the ignition OFF.

4) To start the car in reverse, engine runs in reverse to move in reverse, move the time toward the front of the car, crank the starter handle in reverse. Once it starts move the timer to the rear of center.

It has already been run and was fixed up by a member who owns his own speeder but wasen't around. And the tank was almost bone dry. I will leave the mechanical stuff up to that guy. As for cranking I wonder if I could rig up a cordless drill to do that.

These cars are great fun. If you’re the sort of person who likes manual transmissions! Manual choke, manual fuel mix, manual transmission ignition timing. The engine runs equally well forward as backward, and that’s how you reverse the car. The competent person can use the energy from the last dying revolution to fire the engine in the other direction! In fact many such people only crank in the most comfortable direction and then do this trick to reverse it.

It’s a pilot’s airplane :)

I am told some older RO-C engines actually want 11:1 premix. I note these tend to have 3 gallon tanks. The 16:1 cars tend to have 4.25 gallon tanks. See how that works?

Don't use a cordless drill. More trouble than it is worth. Doubt it would work anyway. Follow the instructions in the manual. When all is correct, a half turn with the crank handle will start the engine. Always works for me. I have a S2 which is a two cycle engine like yours. Just a bit larger.

Visit the NARCOA site. Wealth of info.

Dale Grice

If you have enough track, you can also push start it--but it takes a little practice! You do need a good spark coil; older ones can have bad capacitors. Find a Model T person to check/set your spark coil for best performance.

Well now we have a coolent leak.

So we all had a blast running the speeder last Sunday but now more questions arise. Is steam comming out the radiator normal or the indicative of a problem? Also how worried should I be about kick back from the crank I hear you're supposed to crank it a certain way so you don't get injured.