The VEGA engines were a series of individually-constructed barstock four-stroke glow-plug engines constructed between 1986 and 1994 by the master craftsman John Harbone of Birmingham, England. Both single and twin-cylinder models were produced in displaceents ranging from .25 up to 1.8 cuin. No CNC machinery was used in their creation - they were all hand-crafted by John to a superb standard in his basement using a couple of lathes, a small milling machine and a couple of grinders.

These engines were unique among model four-stroke engines in that they used side-valves (as opposed to OHV) to control their four-stroke operating cycles. As a result, they were somewhat down on power by comparison with OHV four-strokes from other makers.  However, maximum performance had never been one of John Harbone's design objectives - rather, he was seeking to create a range of engines for sport or scale flying that would be both quiet and reliable. In this, he succeeded completely. 

When ill-health forced John to suspend his own production in around 1994, he sold the designs and name rights on to another party. This individual produced a number of further examples using CNC technology, but they were quickly found to exhibit a number of serious quality issues along with some unauthorized modifications. Consequently, they were withdrawn rather quickly, but not before a number of them were sold. They can be distinguished from the Harbone originals by having serial numbers above 100, which John's engines never did.

A detailed article about the VEGA engines appears elsewhere on this website.