The M.S. diesels were made by one of the earliest (if not the earliest) and longest-lasting model shops in England, the Model Shop (Newcastle), which was established in 1924 and survived until 2005, finally closing after 81 years in business. During the late 1940's, they marketed two successive diesel models of significantly different designs. The first model of late 1947 had a displacement of 2.41 cc, while the second design dating from early 1948 had a displacement of 1.24 cc. They were made in very small numbers indeed, hence being rarer today than a mixture of hens teeth and rocking horse droppings!

The larger and far rarer 2.41 cc model featured compression adjustment by the rotation of an eccentrically-bored main bearing bushing. This actually worked very well in operation. The 1.24 cc engine was basically a conventional sideport model apart from the fact that its intake was located at the front of the crankcase, facing directly into the airstream. Equally unusually, the fuel tank was a wrap-around design which fitted over the main bearing housing. Both engines featured square cylinder heads, giving them a highly individualistic appearance. Both models ran very well by the standards of their day.

The engines were manufactured by the proprieter of the shop, Charlie Lutman, at a separate factory on the Team Valley Trading Estate in Gateshead, near Newcastle upon Tyne. They also made pneumatic wheels, fuel tanks, pilots, balsa wood kits and a whole range of other goodies.

A brief article about the M.S. engines may be found on the late Ron Chernich's now-frozen "Model Engine News" (MEN) website. This article was written by Ken Croft, who made a superb replica of the 1.24 cc model. It is Ken's replica which is illustrated here. Les Stone and Graham Podd also made superb replicas of that model. The illustrated 2.41 cc model is an original. Good luck finding either an original or a replica of either of these mega-rare engines!!

A far more detailed article about the M.S. diesels, including bench tests of both models, appears elsewhere on this website.

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