Sabb Motor
Sabb Motor is a Norwegian maker of small marine diesel engines, mostly single-cylinder or twin-cylinder units. The firm was established as Damsgaard Motorfabrikk by two brothers, Alf and Håkon Søyland in 1925.[1] The firm started building engines to meet the demand of fishermen who wanted simple, robust and reliable power for their boats. (The word 'Sabb' means toughness and reliability).
History
[edit]The brothers' cottage industry began by creating a 3HP hot-bulb engine. This was followed by a larger 7HP version which tended to suffer broken crankshafts, but the firm was able to solve the problem and re-launch their engines under the name Ny-Sabb (New Sabb). By 1975, Sabb Motor was producing 3,200 engines a year between 8 and 30 bhp. Facing market competition, the firm concentrated on providing 30bhp engines for ship’s lifeboats, a decision which increased worldwide demand.[2] The UK's distributor of Sabb engines is Sleeman & Hawken Ltd. More recently, Sabb have established a link with Mitsubishi.
In 2006 Sabb Motor AS was bought by Frydenbø Industri and renamed Frydenbø Sabb Motor AS.[3]
Sabb engines
[edit]Sabb engines are rugged and simple; for example, some have "splash lubrication" which requires no oil pump nor filter. (Splash lubrication is an antique system whereby "spades" on the big-end caps dip into the oil sump and splash the lubricant upwards; clearly it is a system that can work only on very low-revving engines, otherwise the sump oil would become a frothy mousse).[4]
Sabb engines include Types H, G, GA, 2H, 2G, & 2J.[5]
External links
[edit]- Narrow boat "Bullfinch" with a running Sabb 2G engine
References
[edit]- ^ "A brief Sabb history" (PDF). Sleeman and Hawken. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ Note: These lifeboat engines mostly had an easy life, never having been run except during routine maintenance. As a result, one may today purchase vintage ex-lifeboat engines that are virtually "as new".
- ^ "History: 1996 – 2006 Expansion". Frydenbo. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ "Maintenance Tips" (PDF). Sleeman and Hawken. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ "Identifying Sabb engines and gearboxes" (PDF). Sleeman and Hawken. Retrieved 28 June 2020.