Very early 2 stroke motor 1900-20s ???

A blind cylinder, more likely 1920's. See that little slot on the side of the cylinder? That's were a manifold would bolt on and the carb onto the manifold.

The Amal carb (either 275 or 276) which is postwar is currently bolted onto the exhaust manifold.

That's a big flywheel and out-rigged quite a way so its probably a stationary engine - a pump or similar.

Think it might be Villiers.

That’s not the same engine.

Close but no cigar!

jalsteve said:

That’s not the same engine.

Close but no cigar!

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Not quite, same design. I haven't seen many Villers but the fins on the head of Jruff's are smaller than any I remember. Would a Villers not likely have a casting mark?

Don't know if you read this on Wiki, it list some of the bike companies that used their engines.-- "In September 1922 Villiers announced the details of their new 1923 engine range,[9] which included 147 cc, 250 cc and 343 cc engines. These engines featured a radial finned cylinder head, with both the inlet and exhaust port being at the front of the engine, and they all had the Villiers flywheel-magneto. While the 147 cc relied on petrol-oil mixture for crankshaft lubrication, the two larger engines used a separate oil feed system. The new 250 cc engine produced 25 per cent more power than the older 269 cc engine."

Early Villiers = The Villiers Story

The were many manufacturers in the early days, 100's just in the UK. Then there were French, Spanish, German, US and others. Some cast a monogram onto the cases some did not. If you look at a set of Norton, Triumph etc crankcases they are bare with no cast on manufactures name. Those companies that supplied engines to others usually cast their name onto the cases eg Villiers but Villiers started off making complete bikes!

Rover, New Hudson, Villiers, James all made their own 2 stroke motors in the teen's and 1920's. Identifying this engine will be a case of book and internet searches.

Still think its likely a stationary engine but in the early days those magnificent men fitted anything into anything.

2 sprockets of different sizes, one to turn the blades and another to make it go forward

TrialsRider said:

2 sprockets of different sizes, one to turn the blades and another to make it go forward

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one to drive the mag, one to drive the wheels or something else

The fact that the bike has primary drive / rear wheel drive sprocket moves the bike out of the Edwardian period and into the 20's.

Con rods drilled - Quite a few bikes had rods drilled in period. Harley JD had drilled rods, certainly the one I rebuilt did, I had an Ariel 540 cc side valve from 1926 and the rod was drilled and that was definitely not a race bike.

As mentioned I believe its a Levis Butterfield engine.

https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Butterfield_Brothers

I guess the next question is - now that you kinda sorta know what it's for....what do you do with it now? Can't be that many people restoring Levis motorcycles, and I'm not even sure where you would get a rolling chassis to make a bike.

so....custom board track racer maybe?

As much as I like British Motorcycles, that engine always struck me as an odd way to arrange 4 cylinders on an air cooled engine. Some folks love them, but I'd rather have an old Panther... preferably with a sidehack.

An old idea reworked several times, think Turner designed the original 500ohc engine which suffered from an attack of the accountants and was redesigned into the 4G version around 1938, this later engine hung around for quite a few years until the alloy engines turned up (2 and 4 pipers). The early motors 4G are very soft tuned and don’t sufer the same heat problems as the late alloy engines - they work quite well. Parts are hard though.

M100 and M120 Panther you can keep. They weigh an absolute tonne, have got a complete M120 front end here and it weighs almost as much as an Ariel Square 4 engine. Sorry but panthers are best used as an anchors.

wasn't there a guy remaking panthers recently? Someone in the UK? Or am I thinking of the Scot flying squirrel?