17 hp Fairbanks-Morse Z, unidentified 2-stroke and Ironwood engine drawings

54/1/1: Did Fairbanks-Morse ever make a 17 hp Z?

Reader Cristy Miller, Nappanee, Indiana, has come into possession of a very interesting 17 hp Fairbanks-Morse Z, and he’s hoping to learn more about it as it’s not an engine Fairbanks-Morse ever cataloged, nor does it appear in any available literature. Cristy purchased the engine from a man who inherited from his father, who had recently passed away. According to Cristy, the man and his father had collected a number of engines over the years, including this 17 hp Z. “The gentleman I bought it from said the year was right around 1920,” Cristy says.

A little more looking uncovered the serial number 689137 stamped at the rear of the cylinder. That number dates the engine to 1927. Cristy doesn’t have much information on the engine, other than being told that prior to the seller’s ownership it ran a sawmill for years until the babbitt