primotipo…

(D Lupton)

Andy Brown’s unique Elfin Mono Clisby V6 in the Calder paddock during the 21-23 May weekend in 1965…

Melbourne racer, restorer and Brabham expert Denis Lupton sent this photo to me yesterday- it is magnificent in its colourful detail so I thought we might finish the weekend as we started it- with a Clisby theme. I’ll pop it into the other article too, but it was too good to ‘lose’ within there, so here it is in all of its detailed glory.

Click on the link to the earlier article for the engine’s full technical details, the following occurs to me in absorbing the photograph.

https://primotipo.com/2018/10/18/clisby-douglas-spl-and-clisby-f1-1-5-litre-v6/

Isn’t it an exquisite little thang! Denis’ shot is so sharp we can easily see the beautiful finish of the cam-covers, ‘Clisby’ script and contrasting coloured retaining bolts. Three of the four Bosch-Clisby distributors are clear, as is the battery of four coils to provide lotsa spark for each of the twin-plugs per cylinder.

Blow the shot up and the intricate, beautifully fabricated, ‘Rose’-jointed throttle linkage is clear- as are the two triple-throat Clisby carburettors- boy they look yummy, so nicely made and finished. Die or sand cast?

Garrie Cooper designed the Type 100 Elfin or more colloquially the ‘Mono’ to suit the Ford pushrod and Lotus Ford twin-cam inline four-cylinder engines- I wonder if the tub of this chassis, Mk1 ‘M6548’ is different to the rest, perhaps Mono Experts Ron and James Lambert can let us know.

Either way, routing the exhausts to clear the top of the aluminium full-monocoque tub and then through the rear suspension linkages was a challenge and a test of the pipe-benders art. The nickel plated top radius rod on this side is clear as is the similarly shiny gear linkage which pops from under the fibreglass body and travels between the cam-covers to the Elfin modified VW case- Southcotts cut the gears in Adelaide if my memory of a conversation with James Lambert last weekend is correct.

The oil filter is atop the ‘box, as is the rear black roll-bar which is set to full soft at this stage of the Autumn weekend. That engine is low, the conceptual thinking of the 120 degree V6 is clear in terms of getting the masses as low down in the chassis as possible.

Wow. A visual feast.

And, if only…

Photo Credit…

Denis Lupton