Bristol Zodiac

From Wikipedia "Gnome et Rhône" :
On June 6, 1905 Louis Seguin and his brother Laurent formed the Société Des Moteurs Gnome[3] (the Gnome motor company) to produce automobile engines. They soon started development of one of the first purpose-designed aircraft engines, combining several Gnome cylinders into a rotary engine. The design emerged in the spring of 1909 as the 7-cylinder rotary Gnome Omega, delivering 50 hp (37 kW) from 75 kg. More than 1,700 of these engines would be built in France, along with license-built models in Germany, Sweden, Britain, the United States and Russia. The Gnome powered Henry Farman's Farman III aircraft to take the world records for distance and endurance, as well as powering the first aircraft to break 100 km /h, and powered France to become the leading country in aviation. Léon Lemartin and Jules Védrines were two young engineers who participated in the design, development and implementation of the Omega, and in the milieu of the pioneering days of flight they both went on to become successful pilots.

All of the Gnomes were known for their unique solutions to getting fuel to the top of the piston without using piping. Early models used two valves, one in the cylinder head and a second embedded in the piston itself, counterweighted to open at the end of the stroke. Without any springs or pushrods, the valve would pop open on the downstroke, allowing fuel to be drawn into the cylinder from the crankcase area. Unfortunately it was also very difficult to service, requiring the cylinder to be disassembled. In order to improve reliability and maintenance, later models used the Monosoupape (single-valve) system instead, using a single exhaust valve at the top of the cylinder and using a series of ports to allow the fuel mixture into the cylinder when the piston dropped far enough.

As for the Boxkite:
The Boxkite was the first aircraft designed and built by the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company. It was a biplane of wire-braced wood construction based on designs by Henri Farman powered by a 50 hp (37 kW) Gnome rotary engine driving a single pusher propeller. It was one of the first aircraft types to be built in quantity, and as the machine was used by Bristol for instruction purposes at their flying schools at Larkhill and Brooklands many early aviators first flew in a Boxkite, and a number of aviation 'firsts' were achieved using it.
Bristol aircraft were to become well known for the quality of the workmanship. The first Boxkites constructed were equal-span two-bay biplanes with a single elevator carried on booms in front of the wings. Lateral control was effected by ailerons on both upper and lower wings. Behind the wings booms carried an empennage consisting of a pair of fixed horizontal stabilizers each fitted with an elevator with a pair of rudders between the trailing edges of the tailplanes. There were no fixed vertical surfaces. The wings were covered by a single layer of fabric, although the other surfaces were covered on both sides.
Power was provided by a 50 hp (37 kW) Gnome rotary engine. Most of the aircraft eventually produced had an extended upper wing and were known as the Military Version. There were also a few modified 'Racers'. Although satisfactory by the standards of the day, the Farman design was obsolescent even in 1910, and no serious development of the Boxkite was attempted
General characteristics
• Crew: 2
• Length: 38 ft 6 in (11.73 m)
• Wingspan: 46 ft 6 in (14.17 m)
• Height: 11 ft 0 in (3.61 m)
• Wing area: 517.0 ft² (48.03 m²)
• Empty weight: 900 lb (408 kg)
• Max. takeoff weight: 1150 lb (522 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Gnome rotary piston engine, 50 hp (37 kW)

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From Wikipedia "Gnome et Rhône" :
On June 6, 1905 Louis Seguin and his brother Laurent formed the Société Des Moteurs Gnome[3] (the Gnome motor company) to produce automobile engines. They soon started development of one of the first purpose-designed aircraft engines, combining several Gnome cylinders into a rotary engine. The design emerged in the spring of 1909 as the 7-cylinder rotary Gnome Omega, delivering 50 hp (37 kW) from 75 kg. More than 1,700 of these engines would be built in France, along with license-built models in Germany, Sweden, Britain, the United States and Russia. The Gnome powered Henry Farman's Farman III aircraft to take the world records for distance and endurance, as well as powering the first aircraft to break 100 km /h, and powered France to become the leading country in aviation. Léon Lemartin and Jules Védrines were two young engineers who participated in the design, development and implementation of the Omega, and in the milieu of the pioneering days of flight they both went on to become successful pilots.

All of the Gnomes were known for their unique solutions to getting fuel to the top of the piston without using piping. Early models used two valves, one in the cylinder head and a second embedded in the piston itself, counterweighted to open at the end of the stroke. Without any springs or pushrods, the valve would pop open on the downstroke, allowing fuel to be drawn into the cylinder from the crankcase area. Unfortunately it was also very difficult to service, requiring the cylinder to be disassembled. In order to improve reliability and maintenance, later models used the Monosoupape (single-valve) system instead, using a single exhaust valve at the top of the cylinder and using a series of ports to allow the fuel mixture into the cylinder when the piston dropped far enough.

As for the Boxkite:
The Boxkite was the first aircraft designed and built by the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company. It was a biplane of wire-braced wood construction based on designs by Henri Farman powered by a 50 hp (37 kW) Gnome rotary engine driving a single pusher propeller. It was one of the first aircraft types to be built in quantity, and as the machine was used by Bristol for instruction purposes at their flying schools at Larkhill and Brooklands many early aviators first flew in a Boxkite, and a number of aviation 'firsts' were achieved using it.
Bristol aircraft were to become well known for the quality of the workmanship. The first Boxkites constructed were equal-span two-bay biplanes with a single elevator carried on booms in front of the wings. Lateral control was effected by ailerons on both upper and lower wings. Behind the wings booms carried an empennage consisting of a pair of fixed horizontal stabilizers each fitted with an elevator with a pair of rudders between the trailing edges of the tailplanes. There were no fixed vertical surfaces. The wings were covered by a single layer of fabric, although the other surfaces were covered on both sides.
Power was provided by a 50 hp (37 kW) Gnome rotary engine. Most of the aircraft eventually produced had an extended upper wing and were known as the Military Version. There were also a few modified 'Racers'. Although satisfactory by the standards of the day, the Farman design was obsolescent even in 1910, and no serious development of the Boxkite was attempted
General characteristics
• Crew: 2
• Length: 38 ft 6 in (11.73 m)
• Wingspan: 46 ft 6 in (14.17 m)
• Height: 11 ft 0 in (3.61 m)
• Wing area: 517.0 ft² (48.03 m²)
• Empty weight: 900 lb (408 kg)
• Max. takeoff weight: 1150 lb (522 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 × Gnome rotary piston engine, 50 hp (37 kW)

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I work at the New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks Ct. We are presently working on what is suppose to be yr. 1910 Bristol engine V8, 50 hp, and what seems to be a two stroke engine. We know nothing else about the engine and I cannot fine anything on the web. Could you shed some light please. Thanks Fern

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