Hudson Invader Engine (AKA Hall-Scott)

I just bought a complete old Hudson Invader engine. It is a SOHC, hemispherical headed, 998 cubic inline six. They were a Hall-Scott design that was used in WWII marine applications. Has anybody had any experience with one these engines.

 

You need to post this over at cl***iccar.com on the Hudson forum:

http://cl***iccar.com/index.php?option=com_jfusion&Itemid=62&jfile=forumdisplay.php&f=13

There is knowledge there on these. Also, the national Hudson-Es***-Terraplane Owners Club at www.hudsonclub.org

HAMB Hudson group: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/group.php?groupid=109

Cool engine, BTW. There are a few of these engines in the Club.

 

Patrick thanks for the tips, signed up for the HAMB Hudson group.

 

One of our very own members owns the Hall-Scott company.

https://hallscottengines.com

 

Cool, I did a Google search and had ran across that website, didn't know he was a fellow HAMB'er.

 

Now that you have it, what do you do with a 998 cube Hudson that originally powered a WWII landing craft?

 

WOW! Great looking engine ...............hmmm....will it fit in my Buick??

Ray

 

Damn good question.
I have not decided yet. I think it would be cool in a vintage wooden hulled boat or one of my old trucks. I just like some of these old historical engines. The Hall Scott's - Hudson Invaders were some the best engines made in their time.

 

There was heavy hauling outfit here in Spokane running Hall Scotts in all his trucks up into the late '80's. Hauling everything from Grand Coulee Dam turbines to steam locomotives. He loved those motors. I'd find some old Pete or KW twin screw and build me one hell of a traditional sleeper cab rig.

 

When I was in the Navy back in the '60's the Naval Air Station at Quonset Point, Rhode Island had a boat house at the end of the runway to resque planes that ditched on the approach to the runway. The crash boats had four of those big Hall-Scott engines and could respond very quickly. If memory serves me right they had a 600 gallon gas tank that was good for about an hour.

 

That thing is really cool

 

For those who may be curious, I found a web page discussing the engines.

Hudson Invader Engines

From that web page:

3000 pounds each? Okay, maybe not a good engine for a Model A track roadster, but it might be the right sort of powerplant for something like the monster rods built by the Blastolene Brothers.

 

I would build a HA/GR **XL size. If that wouldnt be fun then i dont know what would be. Big , loud, vintage and unusual all wrapped up in one package. Forget Jet cars and such. I would gladly pay the see and hear that run!
Don

 

bunch trying to get infor get one started on a military board.

Here is some info from that thread

Hudson Invaders were license built Hall-Scott. Hudson cast its name into the exhaust manuifold and other places.There are very few differences. The last Invader left Hudson in late 44, and they produced about 4000. If you are intersted a GREAT book is "Hall-Scott: The Untold story of a Great American Engine Maker" by Francis H. Bradford and Ric Dias.If you can find one it would be an excellent refernce book. It covers the complete history of the company. Start to finish. The M26 Dragon Wagon also used a Hall-Scott and this is also covered well in the book. If you want, I can probably put you in touch with Ric.

http://s725.photobucket.com/albums/ww252/MIMTHS/Hudson Invader/

http://www.g503.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=77&t=135584

 

Well I'd love to see this engine in a Buick, LOL.

Hey, Locomotive Breath,
You have a great engine there, lots of history, don't think it will work in a truck, unless of course you work out a cooling system for it, they pumped water in and then out, and they run hot, real hot, but that water jacket exhaust helps !
A friend of mine has one sitting in a ALF, 1927 fire truck ch***is, his is a 168 RH and working out a system with the trans & gearbox is also another deal.
They were built by Hall-Scott then the engine and rights for it were sold to Hudson out of (Detroit I think). Between Hall-Scott & Hudson they were thousands of these built and very few left.
If you want to put up some photos of it on the Hallscottengines.com web site, email me at the following,
spike1956@sbcglobal.net
I'm glad that another one was saved, look on the engine plate to see if it's a 168 or 169, that will tell you which way it turns the blades.
If you need a complete manual for it, let me know, we sell copies, cheap.
Spike
323-600-5630

 

Perhaps you could wrap something like this around it, although this one was powered by a Hall Scott 4 cyl aero engine the had a 5 1/4 bore X 7 stoke.

 

Plym 46,
Good info,
Ric who wrote the book is a partner of ours for the Hall-Scott Engine Museum we are putting together.
If you want to get a copy of the book, go to the SAE web site, they sell them there.
That "Dragon Wagon" used a model 440, from the 400 series, same series that were used in early commercial trucks, fire trucks. Great engine series. We have 4 of these and I love this engine.

 

Complete engine & transmission including heat exchanger - Hudson Invader - Right hand rotation 250-275 HP 6 Cyl - 997.8 CU - Weight 1950 lb.-

 

I had occasion to drive one of those Dragon Wagons, Big chain drive tank retriever that was shipped to us by mistake back in the 70s, I think it's up in the Fort Lewis Musieum now.

 

Turbocharge it and build a Bonneville streamliner. Heavy ******* isn't it?

 

Thanks for all the tips. I just finalized (other than picking them up) a deal on two Hall-Scott 400's which I believe to be the "stroker" 1091 cubic inch versions. One of them is still in a truck and the other is a stationary engine that other than the oil pan appears to be just like the truck engine. The truck engine will run and the stationary engine turns over so it may not be too bad. Both of them were run on Propane. I'm guessing without all of the marine equipment they will weigh somewhere around 2K as plym 46 posted but I will confirm on the scales once I get them home in a few weeks.

I've been looking for one these engines for awhile without any success and now have found four and bought three in less than a week. I will post some good pictures for those interested once I get them all home.

If anyone is seriously interested in the other Hall Scott truck engine please PM me. It is a project engine located near Reno, NV and priced reasonably.

 

I think it would be a real kick to build something like this:

Complete with the chain drive rear and straight exhausts.

 

The Big Scotts for over the road trucks were of the 400 series and 1091 cubic inchs, pushing 375 to, I've heard storys of 400 horses, there wasn't anything that would run with them in their day ***mins just had the H motors,180 horse and 200's, they;ll p*** everything except a gas station, many of them were set up on propane and a lot of them worked for propane outfits so they ran a line to the truck tank and always made it to the yard or back to the plant, manifolds would run white hot, and many of them ran the west coast as loggers and highway rigs.

 

It definitely needs to be in something where it can be seen, detailed out, valve cover polished, etc.

 

Imagine that in a Bonneville car, like Curbspeed said!

 

Not to derail this thread but........what ever happened with the Tank Engine in the Mustang?
T.

 

I find it interesting that Ford, Hudson, and Packard all had experience/exposure to sophisticated Engine designs (Ford GAA, Hudson Invader, and Packard built R-R Merlins as well as the P.T. Boat V-12s) during WW II but reverted to form as soon as the war was over with their antiquated L Head designs. Ford actually designed the GAA and I believe Packarddid the same with the boat engines. All were OHC or OHV-concepts which didn't show up their respective product lines for many years if at all.

 

It's sitting inside my shop. I just bought another 1K worth of parts for it and worked on it this past weekend. If I'd quit buying H-S and Hudson engines I might have time to actually finish it.

It seems to me that with the current national economy there are a lot of rare engines and related items that were "not for sale" a few years ago which can be reasonably purchased right now.

 

QFT! It'd be a shame to hide this engine in the bowels of some machine where nobody'd see it.

Beautiful engine.

-Bill

 

Look at THIS car!!! It already HAS the Invader engine in it!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Othe...ewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item4ceebb1a84