Opinions from Others.
Page 17
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The Editor invites correspondence on all subjects connected with tii.. use of commercial 1)1910YS. Letters should be on
one site of the paper only, and type-written by preference. The right of aovreviation is reserved, and no responsibility for the views expressed is accepted. In tkt case of experiences, names of to.e,us or localities may be withheld.
Winter Wheels.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[1,460] Sir,—My attention has been drawn to the letter, in your issue of the 23rd November, from C. in M. Gosselin "[No. 1,456.— End, in which the writer ably puts forward the view of the user with regard to winter wheels.
I must, however, dissent from his view, when he states that the weight of the type of winter wheels to which he refers should not have been a bar to their use. The law requires wagons when registered to be of a certain weight and manufacturers are quite cognisant of this. In my opinion they should not place upon the market a wheel which, on account of its weight, renders any user liable to prosecution. Apart from this there is the question of the load, and this would necessarily have to be restricted, in order to come within the legal allowance ; this consideration might make a very considerable difference to the profit-earning capacity over any length of time. Your correspondent may suggest that half a loaf is better than none, as steel-tired machines would probably be placed out of the running for a portion of the winter, but that does not affect my point, which is that makers of any particular wheel should take every precaution in the manufacture of such wheels to ensure their not coining under the ban of the road authorities for non-compliance with legal requirements.
1 quite agree that Bauly wheels were a very good effort to overcome the difficulty of winter transport. T believe that the objection urged against them with respect to the steel channels could have been overcome by grooving the outside rims, unless there be l,33Ple reason which makes this impracticable.
One thing is very certain, and that is that motorwagon owners in future will require strict guarantees with any winter wheels, which they may decide to try, both as to their wearing capacity and also as to their compliance with the Act.—Yours faithfully, "WINTER TRANSPORT."
That Trailer Tram. Its Menace to Users.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[1,4611 Sir,—Many thanks to you for the interesting digest of that bulky Blue Book, "The Annual Report of the London Traffic Branch of the Board of Trade." I am a Londoner, and during the past few years have been closely associated with several branches of commercial-motor-vehicle operation—on the financial side, that is. I think this bulky official Report is most fascinating reading for most of us who cannot nowadays fail to take an interest in the absorbing problems of London traffic, and what is to become of it if the existing congestion goes on increasing at the present rate ? I could not have waded through the Report itself, but I appreciated the abridged version. I note, particularly, that the reporters—as I see you call them, in this new Blue Book, seem purposely to have avoided any direct reference to the possibilities of trailer tramcars. They go for the trolleybus proposition, but the trailer tram is discreetly avoided as a subject of comment. Now, I think this rather regrettable. Much analytical genius is shown by the staff who are responsible for this Report in the careful summing-up which they present, and in the impartial conclusions which they draw with regard to the various forms of motor and other traffic in the Metropolis.
This trailer tram bogey at one time looked like putting the last nail in the coffin of the ordinary road user in the Metropolis. It is true that the L.C.C., I believe, has been forced to abandon the idea of the trailer, but I should like to have seen this Report, from an independent standpoint, finally hammering it home that trailers must never be allowed.
Just one more word, and that is as to my astonishment—and I think it probable that it will be shared by others—at the nature and the density of the traffic over the various Thames bridges. That London Bridge should be forced to take a back seat in both these matters is, to my mind, the most remarkable and unlooked-for result.—Youni faithfully, "CARRY-ON.' Frognal, Finchley.
Fire-engine Tests and Pressure at the Hydrant.
The Editor, THE CommERCIAL MOTOR.
[1,462] Sir,I have been somewhat confused, during the past 12 months, by the steady increase of reported pressures and heights of jets at successive fire-engine tests. The climax, to my mind, was reached in your report of the tests at Birkenhead on a recent occasion, although I do not for one moment suggest that the reported figures are other than strictly accurate. The " unseen foundation" of some of these high pressures and jets of water, however, is not always made sufficiently clear, and I want to know what cheek there is, at such times, and not only at Birkenhead, upon the pressure at the intake of the turbine ? quite follow that one function of the turbine pump, in which it clearly excels the reciprocating pump, is capa• city to receive water at a considerable pressure, and to augment that pressure by its impellore. At the same time, unless future reports contain a, clear statement of the intake pressures, the value of ascertained resultant pressures is vitiated. The same criticism can be levelled against any preceding tests, of which there have been many .other than those from a deep lift. Seeing that hydrant pressures commonly vary between 20 lb. and 60 lb. on the sq. in., the appositeness of my criticism must be admitted.---Yours faithfully,
R. J. Wremems.
(Mr report of the Birkenhead tests specifically mentioned the fact that the supply to the turbine was from the main, but we were unable to ascertain, the pressure. We have, however, reason to conclude that
701 the height...m.1mnd n 5 lb. en the ;fr. ht,—E9.]