Will it START? 8 Cylinder Diesel Gardner 8LXB Crane Truck Engine sitting for YEARS! 

In the 60's I did my apprenticeship as a truck mechanic working on those engines. I did, at that time, work and live near the Gardner factory in Patricroft, Eccles Manchester. When we needed parts we just went along to the factory to get them. Great engines.

I've got a mate with a 6LX in a 40 foot tug, 33 inch four bladed prop running through a twin disc gearbox. Cruising revs are pitched at 780rpm. It's dry stacked and makes the most incredible bark under a bit of load. Cheers Bruce

Served my apprenticeship at Gardners good old days.

I have worked on Diesel engines for 53 years , From Rustons to Caterpillars, to Detroits & Cummins & Lots of the UK Engines. These Old Gardeners were the finest Diesel engines you could get in their day, so well engineered, Unfortunately they got left behind in a time warp, where as the likes of Volve , Caterpillar , Scania were producing Big Horse power. But As a Plodder there is None finer than a Gardener Engine, so reliable & ran forever.

My great uncle built a 65' launch and installed two of these same engines. Absolute pleasure to hear them purr. Rolls Royce of the marine motor world is spot on.

Nice video Bruce, the 8 LXB Gardner was one of England's finest engines ever.

I could tinker with that kind of stuff all day, thanks for sharing 🐾✌️🇺🇸

So smooth....and the smile when it got running....many years ago my mate was involved in a boat building project where, in the big workshop stood two massive old 6 cylinder Gardners from some or other marine project. They both ran, blew beautiful smoke rings and were magnificent. I moved away and about 10 years later met up with the same mate who told me the Gardners had been sold for scrap metal....I have spent a disproportionate amount of time since then worrying about what will happen to the surviving examples on earth and what I can do save them. Its crazy, but they are magnificent. Thanks for the video...

What I liked most about Gardner engines and the ones I worked in the 70's on fishing boats was the ability to prime and check the fuel injectors.

One of the best engines ever built. Durable and ultra reliable.

When I saw Gardner mentioned I knew he would have no problems !

Gardner really produced some incredibly high quality Engines such a shame they didn't move with the times they are still sadly missed.

Hi , an old friend of mine had one of these running a breaking down saw in his saw mill hear Edenhope in Victoria never missed a beat in 30 years

It's good to see an old school tradesman that knows what he is about, we got taught to do everything in the 70's, they new blokes just plug in the analyser and get the fault code, I have got a real soft spot for these old engines, love your videos Bruce

As I have posted previously, I fished in Tasmania for many years on many different boats with a lot of different motors , in my opinion there was not a marine engine that.could hold a candle to the Gardner for reliability and economy, that included motors from the 4lw right up to the magnificent 8L3B, I swear by them , what a great shame they are no longer made , cheers from Tasmania

As a teen and living close to the water I used to look at all the old boats .One day i met the owner of a wooden yacht very old i thought well I was young we got to be friends and i helped him to refurbish and restore this old yacht .the one thing he couldn't figure out was the engine .Yes it was a Gardner .Well being a teen i had a love for motors and boats so i spent many hours looking up every thing i could find on that motor then went to work going step by step thru the whole thing like you do . then came the day to start it up for the first time in 10 years .and like yours i turned the key hit the start button .She fired off on the first revolution it was amazing to just sit and listen to that engine .The owner Jerry and i were the hit of that marina .and i had about the best summer a young man could have that year .

The mighty Gardner. What more can you say.

Years ago I had a ride in a rail motor up in Qld. Sat in the cab and and the sweet sound of the Gardner diesel was so smooth and something I’ll never forget.

Great engines build in those years. Simple and build to last forever 💪💪

Gardener engines were all hand built, each engine was assembled by one person. They were popular in the UK in trucks up until late 70s-mid 80s. They did produce one 8 cylinder turbocharged engine but it lacked reliability, something that Gardener had been legendary for. They were left behind by Cummins and truck manufacturers own engines. Properly maintained they were capable of phenomenol mileages and good fuel consumption.

I worked on these engines in the ERF trucks we had a fleet of them

Those Gardner diesels can reach 40% thermal efficiency, pretty astonishing for the time!

Superb British engineering, really enjoying the videos.

As soon as his “Lucky Hat” came out it started Purring like a Kitten! Great video, Lovely Engine!

Amazing, you made that "will it start" look easy Bruce and the grin on your face though when it started!

I converted my Scammell Explorer to a 6LXB engine. I remember the lovely sound and the priming levers on each cylinder. She needed a good prime in winter to fire up then she would SMOKE like a forest fire until wrmed up - a chracteristic of all Gardners BEAUTIFUL engines and a beaut to drive with a crash gearbox! My old wagon was FLAT OUT at 30 MPH maybe 40 downhill with the wind behind her!😂🤣😅🤣 These engines are STILL in use in boats today my engine was already about 40 years old! Reliable, slow revving but they got you there!

Got one of these lumps at my work in the uk.she runs a treat

I worked on Gardner engines a long time ago for many years, the engines on these when they are stopped go into the full throttle position, when started the governor moves the throttle position to make it tick over, the governor rack bar will want some lubrication on it, it’s accessed by the 4 x 0 BA screws on the side of the pump/governor

I used to be one of the technicians at a haulage firm in Liverpool England, we ran a mixed fleet but we had Leyland buffalo, and Atki Borderer units, all day cabs, fitted with straight eight Gardner 240. I could always pick out which truck it was as they pulled into the yard, each had it's own unique sound. An absolute doddle to work on. In fact I still have some Gardner special tools in the garage somewhere.

A trawler I worked on, had one of these beasts in it. Originally it was turbocharged, but the owner removed that. The amount of torque they have is astonishing.

i sometimes run a boat with a pair of those in it, absolutely beautiful machines!

When us brits USED to make the BEST 👌 how times have changed!!thanks 4 vid love your channel 😊

I used to work on underground locomotives fitted with Gardner engines. They were fitted with inlet and exhaust flame proofing devices.

In the forties, fifties and sixties nearly two fifths of all heavy good vehicles on British roads had either a Gardener 180 (straight six ) or a 240 (straight eight) mainly in Atkinsons, and ERF's etc, I will always remember the gloriously lazy sounding slow revving noise these motors used to make, under load you could almost hear each individual cylinder firing since flat out revs was around 1100 to 1400 revs but they would happily pull hard down at around 700 revs fully loaded, they were universally known in the trade as bosses motors, chugging along for ever more seemingly unburstable no frills or fancies just a totally reliable engine. if they had a downside (if you can call it one) it was that they could be absolute pigs to start on a really cold, freezing winters morning blowing huge clouds of white smoke out for about ten minutes after starting, but once running they would just carry on, never being turned off all day long, without a murmur. they ran so cold drivers used to have to completely cover the grill up in winter just so they would warm up and stay warm, I reckon you could run one with no coolant in it and it would still never get hot.

Hi Bruce, my Dad used to say Gardener engines were the best. I asked him why and he said, 'Son when you are on a boat in the middle of the ocean, you want a reliable, easy to maintain engine and a Gardener of any configuration is just that'. 'And not only that, he said , they are supremely well balanced with hardly any vibration and economical to(very handy with a Boat). There are a lot of more powerful faster engines,but the Gardener is the way better engine for smoothness, economy and most of all reliability'.

We ran a 240 8lxb, I remember the tickover was really low and wasn't a stable speed, The torque was brilliant but the biggest thing with them in UK trucks was getting them to build up any heat, the poor driver's were dressed for the arctic. However they were a very well built engine. I seem to remember that the problems started when they were bought out by Hawker Sidley.

A crane company called Smith of Rodley used them too I’ve got a 6LW with hand clutch and gearbox out of one

Had one in a 400 series seddon Atkinson back in the 80s in a day cab trunking up and down the UK .

I love the sound of these engines, the 6 cylinder version ended up in a lot of double decker buses in my town, Brilliant old things.

I used to have a 42 ft. fan tail salmon troller with a 5 cylinder Gardner. Those injector levers are also used to lock out cylinders while running to slow the engine down even lower than the idle setting. It was very useful in the fishboat for Tyee salmon as they like a very slow troll. I could lock out right down to 1 cylinder on that engine. I couldn't believe how slow that engine could run. The perfect trolling rpm. was 60 rpm. on 1 cylinder and do it all day.

Enjoyed this bro it made for great viewing. Engine sounds a real honey. Safe travels. Ken.

gardner engines were used in the fruit trucks between shepparton an melbourne, the story was they had the same speed uphill and downhill but never failed.

The Term “bulletproof “ was invented for Gardner 6 and 8 s remember the 8LXB in the late 70s in Foden,Atkinson Seddon trucks.They always delivered good MPG

Yes as a kid in NZ a lot of these engines were about. Lovely to see it start and run. Thanks

I love your videos. The sound of those pistons sent a chill down my spine. Most of my working days were on small automotive diesels but you gotta love these giants. Cheere from Canada North

Absolutely a beautiful sounding engine, thank you so very much for sharing, i love watch old engines coming back to life. Hello from the U.S., down here in Florida

The factory used to be three or four miles from where I live and my grandfather used to work there,good old engine the Gardner.

Str8 8 Gardner, fishing boats will want it. I know a kiwi fisherman that runs Gardners....😊

Oil is often clean if it's been sitting for a while because the water and sludge drop to the bottom. So the dipstick is good but not authoritative. Need to drop a sample out of the sump drain

Hi there I was an apprentice clock engineer I served some time here at the patricroft works in eccles ncr they manufactured everything on site massive machine shops and test beds they also had a foundry where we often spent time on cold days happy memories

It was worth watching just to hear it run. Sounds great.

Great video Bruce and a lovely sounding engine (even without an exhaust!). The 6LX was in probably in half the trucks here in the UK at one time. Still occasionally see one earning its keep on a travelling Fair generator, they were renowned for being fuel efficient and long lasting.

Would love to get one of these in a truck, Travancore Transport in Melbourne had a couple of White Road Commanders specially built with 8LXB engines for semi work after International bought out Atkinson and refused to fit Gardeners.

You gotta love those Old Analog Diesels.... Simple, Reliable......

hi Bruce, greetings from England, Gardner engines were Top of the Pops just like AEC engines were, the 8xlb was also fitted to British Railways small shunting engines and had one oil bath air-cleaner per cylinder.some of these locos have been preserved.

I remember in the late 70s here in the uk. The fairground had something roughly like this. It ran the main generator that supplied the rides with power 👍. That gardner sounded awesome bruce when you sprung it into submission 😉.

Good engineering.

Lovely sound when you got it running Bruce. Love the sound of those big old diesels running. Bob.

Wonderful Bruce what a great engine thanks for sharing 🦘

G'Day Bruce . Always a pleasure watching you start these old machines mate ! That one was really easy one , did'nt fight you too much ! I look forward to the next one . Scott 🌵

I had a 5lw in a boat still miss the old girl.

Gardner, the Rolls Royce engine of the fishing fleet. Beautiful.

Had a 5lw in a hired boat for a few months. It used 40 gallons a week doing 10 hours a day fishing

good job Bruce , I remember doing some electrical work on one of those engines about 35 years ago , it was set up in the bush to run a small sawmill in West Gippsland .

G,day Bruce thank you for doing the video on this great Gardner straight 8 rare beast

Bruce this is heritage stuff... lovely!

thanks for all your amazing videos !

She's a sweet old lady.. lovely sounding machine! ❤

a real nice engine.

The hat made the difference!

Too good man have fine knowledge of engineering..

Once again a good result good on you

Got one of those in my boat, definitely a great engine.

There can't be many straight 8 Diesel manufacturers around nowadays ? My uncle used to drive an AEC which had a gardner in it and he was all praise for it . I know that Schluter had a straight 8 in their tractors .

My mate from Tottenham NSW just watched your video and he said "BLH Lima" and some "Kohring King" cranes had the Gardener in them back in the 1960's and 1970's, he worked a "BLH Lima" with a dredge bucket on it in the early 1970's, it was lashed to a barge and worked in and around Sydney Harbour.

pure magic

Woohoo 🥳 She’s a runner! The old girl sounds great Bruce 👍. Another great video 😊

Runs so sweetly

Thank you for sharing this beautiful piece of machinery

Just discovered your channel and Iam really enjoying the content and your way of approaching the old equipment recovery. Keep them coming and Thanks

Great work and nice video, God bless you and your friends!!... best regards from Santiago of Chile, SouthAmerica!!

Great video. But you didn’t tell us what you were using clean the cables. Inquiring minds need to know. Gday.

Good job excellent engines nz

Very cool engine!!! Thanks!

Hello Bruce, I really like your presentations, they are really interesting and your efforts top notch! I am a Gardner lover and had a 3LW marine engine with 2UC gearbox and 3:1 reduction in my traditional narrowboat in the UK cruising with my mate Jeff Millward and his wife San, who came over from Victoria Australia to do the UK canals in the early nineties. when they returned to Victoria he bought a number of engines including a Gardner 6lw that he was intending to put in a boat. Sadly cancer took San in the early Millennium and Jeff bought and sold stationary engines and gensets and built up quite a collection of classic mainly Brit motorcycles. He was a great hand on Fixer who sadly succumbed to Lupus in 2017 and I lost a great buddy. Take care.

Hi Bruce, I think Col would’ve been happy to see it run!

That’s a fantastic engine Bruce Someone needs to build a big rat rod with this engine in it with 8 zoomie pipes out the side 👍👍👍

Use his chest hair as the mic’s wind sock 😂

Just shows what a difference wearing a hat makes.

Immortal engine’s

Oh Bruce what a sweet old engine. I can imagine a turbo on the exhaust to produce so much power she would twist that long crank in two.

Those old Gardners powered all those London city buses in the 60s & 70s. Damn reliable and strong motors. Super popular in huge fishing boats over in Asia and all over the world

I worked on these engines, serviced one with over 100 thousand hour lodged in it's maintenance records. Slow revving built to last.

BUILT TO LAST..... nowadays BUILT TO KEEP THE DEALERSHIP [run by manufacturer] RICH

Great job Sir

Just found your channel and im really digging it! Keep it up..woukd live to see you start some old aus lorries

You’re a busy man Bruce, enjoying the videos mate 👍🏾

They put the straight 8s in the sentinel diesel hydraulic train mainly used on the surface in coal mines and steelworks etc. I’m sure they had the turbo 8s in them I can’t remember now it was 20+years ago😢

A gardner would start after 50yrs

These engines are so quiet in a marine application