Many years ago, when visiting Brisbane, I would always use the cross-river ferry. These vessels had the engine up front, alongside the pilot, where it was open to view, and I used to love looking at it and listening to its regular ker-thump, ker-thump beat.

My interest in internal combustion engines grew and I started collecting examples of different types. One day, while attending an antique engine display in Brisbane, I heard a sound which seemed so familiar and I had to investigate. I finally tracked down its source – a Kelvin J2 2 cylinder diesel engine from a ferry. 

I had an interesting conversation with its owner and was excited to find ou