Surviving Engines
The first engines offered by Anderson Automatic Engine Co. and Fairfield Engine Co. were rated at 4 HP. The horsepower was raised to 4-1/2 HP in about 1919. The earliest Fairfield engines may have had Schebler carburetors, but they switched to Holley Model K carbs very early in production.
There were very few noticeable changes to the Fairfield engine throughout the 30 years from start of production to the end of the company. There was a shift in the location of the fuel tank also likely in 1919. The fuel tanks started out being attached to the water tank, but was changed to being mounted on the engine via a special bracket. Fairfield touted use of kerosene fuel in their engines and made the fuel tank with two compartments for a time in the late teens to early twenties.
There are no known surviving production records for Fairfield engines. Over the years I have recorded some serial numbers from surviving engines, and some patterns and learnings are beginning to emerge. Before sharing these I would like to gather more numbers from surviving engines – see below for how to add your engine to the registry. Much can be learned from study of existing engines and looking for clues that might help date individual engine production year, and also determine total production numbers for Fairfield.
