OUR EYE-WIT N GERMANY.
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rITJR OBSERVATIONS in' Germany were mainly V confined to Berlin and its precincts, but it is almost always possible to judge the condition of affairs in a country by those prevailing hi its principal city.
Berlin, as has almost always been the case, is still gay, but in a manner subdued by lack of ready cash, and on all sides one hears reports of bankruptcies in various branches of industry; trade, in. fact, is in a very precarious condition. One of the biggest electrical works in the world has just discharged 2,000 of its employees. Many firms are keeping men on their pay-roll more out of sympathy, or in order to avoid possible trouble, than because they are needed.
Prices in general, with.the Rentenmark at approximately 20 to the sterling, are high, so much so, in fact, that those prevailing are, in the main, higher than for corresponding articles in England. The days of cheap exports are practically over, and there is but little fear of a general influx of German private cars or commercial vehicles into the British market, " although those of first quality may have some opportunity, for German design has shown much improvement during the past few years. As an example of this progress, we may refer to the new N.A.G. lowlevel covered-top-deck buses which have been placed on the streets of Berlin in considerable numbers by_ the Aboag Co., which corresponds to 'our London General Omnibus Co.
We had several journeys in these vehicles and found them fast, well sprung and quite free from irritating rattle. The covered tops, however, proved somewhat draughty, except towards the front. To obtain headroom on the top deck a portion of the floor at one side is sunk, this portion projecting below the general level of the roof of the lower compartment, but, being immediately above the seats, does not cause inconvenience. Another feature of these vehicles is that for warmth they can, when required, be lined to about half the height of-the windows with thick baize having hook-andeye-type fasteners. .
032 The traffic of Berlin forms an interesting comparison between that of London and Paris. What first strikes a visitor is the enormous number of taxicabs, which is out of all proportion to all other conveyances. Amongst them we noted not a few of the battery-electric type, closely resembling the petrol machine; and with a separate driving motor to each rear wheel. So far as could be judged, the proportion of taxicabs to private cars was something like three or ,four to one. The other vehicles were mostly buses or horse conveyances, with a meagre sprinkling of lorries. The lighter types of goods vehicles were mainly of the'touring-car class fitted with van bodies; there was also a number of Phanomobiles, each with a four-cylinder aircooled engine set above the single steering wheel at the front. Other three-wheeled vehicles resembling these were each equipped with an electric motor above the front wheel, in lieu of the petrol engine. At the time of our visit the weather conditions were rigorous, and the streets were covered with
frozen snow, with the result that we noted quite light -vans suffering from wheelspin to such an extent that they had to be pushed off when starting on the level.
The German police are becoming most efficient in their control of traffic, and the trouble which was experienced when traffic control was first instituted has apparently been overcome. In some of the busiest centres there are traffic-control towers, built on the American principle and some 30 ft. to 40 ft. high. These are equipped with red and bite lamps, operated by _ the controller within the tower.
The Germans have a dole system for their unem ployed, but at best the wage level is low, and the condi
tion of the workers in the motor factories is not such as would be tolerated in this country. A first-class fitter-mechanic in Berlin earns about 50s. a week, and for this he works considerably. harder and for longer hours than a man in similar work in this conntry. On the whole, however, they look a fairly contented crowd, as we noted during a three-hour tour of one
of the largest works—that of the Nalionalen AutomobilGesellschaft—which, in normal times, employs 5,000 men and a staff of 600, but now has a total pay-roll of approximately 2,800. It is at these works that the new Berlin omnibuses and the N.A.G. touring cars are produc'ed, and we shall refer in a subsequent article to points observed during this visit.
During hundreds of conversations with German business men, we found that practically all were anxious to resume more cordial business relationships with the British. There appears to be little or no enmity,. most of them frankly admitting that the war was a grave error (although they might riot have been of the same opinion had Germany won). In our issue of last week we dealt with certain aspects of the Berlin Show so far as commercial vehicles were concerned, but so much of interest was to be found that we shall now deal in further detail with the most unusual. We shall not treat with them in any particular order, but as they appear in our original notes.
One of the features of the Show was the single-deck bus, and of this a striking example was the 30-seater Komnick, with a separate door to the driver's compartment and a polished satin walnut roof with six ceiling lights, ventilation being afforded by frameless drop windows. This comparatively large vehicle was equipped with Continental cord tyres of 38 ins. by 7 ins. dimensions.
A Komnick tractor was also on view. This has traction-engine-type spoked wheels, those at the rear having 1,400 ram. by 140 mm. Peter Union tyres, a winding drum and steel rope being provided inside the rear wheel. The power unit is a four-cylindered monobloc with detachable head and overhead valves, four-point suspended, but with the rear bolt-s having compression springs. The radiator is of the detachable unit type, in this case having its blocks arranged vertically. Two cross-springs are employed for the front axle, which is centrally pivoted upon them, Ackerman steering being c33
provided. The tractor is thoclelled on Fordson lines as regards its gearbox and rear axle, but embodies a channel-steel frame.
The low-built Komnick chassis presents several interesting features. The frame is arched over the axle and the springs are underslung all round, those at the _Deck working in slides instead of being shackled. In The engine there is an overhead camshaft, this being driven by helical gears at its centre from a vertical shaft. It is of interest to note that this make of wagon wOn first prize in the recent Russian Reliability Trials.
One of the few municipal vehicles seen was a cesspool emptier of the vacuum type. The tank in this vehicle, however, is arranged horizontally and provided with a mechanically operated screw tipping gear.
Several interesting bodies were to be found on the M.A.N. exhibits. One, arranged for the transport of cloth in bulk, had padded sides and doors lined with cloth, whilst in another body, arranged for carrying beer in cases, doors were provided all round.
A good example of German bodybuilding, so far as buses are concerned, was also shown on a M.A.N. vehicle. This was a 22-seater saloon type, with longitudinal seats for four over the wheel arches, an offset gangway with back-to-back single seats at one side and back-to-back seats in pairs at the other, the equipment including drim windows and sliding curtains.
Apart from the Daag chassis described in our previous article, there was a 3-4-tonner with internal-cone leather clutch, two laminated-steel universal joints on the clutch shaft, and similar joints on the forward portion of the propeller shaft, the end portion being carried in a torque tube leading to a vertical split axle centre of east-aluminium or similar light alloy, trumpet tubes making up the rest of the axle casing. A conspicuous point on this chassis was the gaitered springs.
Overhead valves appear to be one of the leading characteristics of German engine design, and these were employed in the vehicle in question, the valves being actuated by rockers and long tappets, whilst the geartype oil pump is driven by skew gears from the rear of the camshaft.
We noted on several chassis, including the N.A.G., that the air pump for tyre inflation is driven off the starter ring on the flywheel; in some cases by rocking the pump until its gear meshes with that of the flywheel, in other cases by sliding an intermediate pinion into mesh.
• Whilst on the subject of starter rings, it may be of Interest to mention the use of phosphor-bronze pinions on practically all the Bosch starters; these, apparently, avoid damaging the toothed rings on the flywheels as they are thrust into mesh, 034 On the Henschel bus there is an engine brake with one lever control, "which, in operating, first closes the inlet valves and then applies the brake gradually by slowly closing the outlet valves, so that the compression
effect is increased as required. The device is, we believe, of the sliding camshaft type. Hand and foot brakes are, of course,provided hi addition, and a neat fitting on the near-side step is a cabinet with three trays of tools, for which depressions are formed in the wood.,
The Henschel vehicles are made at a very large locomotive works, and the builders mine their own coal and iron ore and produce their own chrome-nickel steel.
One of the vehicles was equipped with a three-way hydraulic tipping gear, having a single cylinder with a telescopic ram formed in something like four sections.
In the 5-ton model there is a double-reduction spur and bevel axle.
Several neat ambulances are to be found ; one, by Luchterlancl and Freitag, on a Protos chassis, was well equipped with an enclosed cab, frosted-glass windows, and two stretchers with small wheels carried on channel bearers; a wash-hand basin and cupboard for bandages completed the outfit.
A peculiar point in the construction of the majority of trailers is the small cab projecting forward for the accommodation of the brakesman. One such was built for the carrying of milk-churns in two tiers, drop sides permitting easy loading and unloading of the churns.
Gebrieder Andersen are the makers of trailers suitable for making up into road trains. Each is equipped with four-wheel steering actuated by the tie-bars, and the wheels on every axle are braked from the towing vehicle, the shoes being internal-expanding: Steering is of the Ackerman type, and a train of three or four vehicles can turn a 90-degree corner from a road 13 ft. wide te another of the same width.
F. G. Dittman A.G. have a special unloading trailer built on the Moller principle. In this trailer the outer portion of the floor is hinged in four divisions, which can drop to an angle of 45 degrees down false sides; they are controlled by catches on bars running along the sides, the upper, or false, floor hinges up in two sections against triangulated supports on the tailboard and the front of the body, and it is only when the trailer is loaded with this carried out that it can be unloaded through the drop bottoms.
One of the two Mannesman Mulag six-wheelers is a saloon bus with riveted steel bodywork by StahlKarosseria Waggon Fabrik A.G.; the vehicle somewhat resembles an armoured car.
A most complicated tipping gear is that built by Kaiser, of Cassel. This has a take-off gear on the top of the gearbox, leading first to a bevel reduction and thence through a triple reduction to a cross-shaft operating bevel gearing at each side. Each set of bevel gears rotates a nut and withdraws into a socket a screw, which pulls a link-chain attached to a sector on a shaft carrying lifting arms. At the top of these arms are rollers working against the body.
Au interesting municipal vehicle by the smile maker is a water-tank wagon, which has a compartment at the rear for the second man, who controls the sprayers.
An example of German 1-tonner design was to be found in the Opel, which, incidentally, is equipped with front-wheel brakes. This chassis has a long torque tube surrounding the propeller shaft, and leading to a spherical bearing on a cross-shaft behind the unit-constructed engine and gearbox. The torque tube is in two parts bolted together, and the final drive is by overhead worm. The rear springing, to the British designer, appears inadequate. It is effected by two quarter-elliptic springs mounted in a cross-member and each 16 ins. long.
A battery-electric vehicle of exceptional interest is the Hansa-Lloyd. In this the drive is carried forward from one motor through a tube to a bevel jackshaft at the front; chains from this take the drive backwards to the front wheels. The difficulty of steering such a vehicle is overcome, in this case, by using a turntable for the whole of the driving unit, this being rotated by a chain passing round it and operated by a steering sprocket at the front. The frame is dropped behind the turntable, as is done with' a tractor-trailer. This vehicle can turn completely round in a circle of 19 ft. 6 ins. diameter.
In the express model Hansa-Lloyd the radiator shutters can be closed and opened from the driver's seat. There are brakes on all four wheels, these being servo-operated through the medium of a special type of cone clutch.
A feature of the bus-body design is that the rearmost seats can be lifted in pairs against the back of the body to allow room for luggage. The vehicle is of the lowloading type, the height to the top of the frame being 53 centimetres.
The same makers supply an electric industrial truck to carry 30 cwt., and it is notable that ten of these have just been sent to New York. It is priced at 075. The driver stands at the front and faces forward, and an automatic brake is operated by the spring footrest. A similar truck on pneumatic tyres to 'carry 15 cwt. is priced at £155. This has one motor at the rear.
Compressed-air-operated brakes were found on a 10ton Daimler, these being provided for all four wheels. The air is stored in two large cylinders. over 5 ft. long, Carried between the side-members. Front-brake eylin ders are mounted on the brake covers and connected to the tubes on the chassis via flexible metallic piping, For the rear brakes the cylinders operate belleranks , these are also hand-operated through cables. One of the points in connection with these brakes, which are brought into action by a pedal, is that, although the pedal is pushed right down, the brakes are applied by degrees, and to bring them on fully several depressions of the pedal are required.
A vehicle closely resembling the Scamraell in some respects is the CEkonom tractor-lorry. The tractor portion is chain-driven, whilst the trailer has small front wheels to take the load when disconnected. Cantilever springs set at an angle and pointing down at the rear take the weight of the tractor, whilst the front of the trailer is connected direct to the axle of the tractor through the medium of its front wheels, and is in turn supported at the front by its own springs. Tliis vehicle carries 8,400 bottles of beer.