THE GARNER AGRICULTURAL TRACTOR.
Page 8
Page 9
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
A British Modification of an American Agrimotor, Suited to British Conditions.
THE GARNER AGRICULTURAL tractor is the outcome of a definite effort on the pert of Mr. Henry Garner, managing director of -Messrs. Henry Garner, Ltd., of Moseley Motor :Works, Birmingham, to produce .a machine which shall be entirely suitable to English 'conditions and requirements, and be capable of being manufactured in the States and landed in this country at a price which should seem reasonable to the farmer.
The agents of the company in the States were istructed two years ago to getinto touch with the manufacturers of the best types of agricultural machinery, and last Junea special representative was sent to America so that the machine which had been picked out as most neai-ly approximating to the requirements could .be brought absolutely into line and made a marketable commodity here. .
Some of the manufacturers Of American agricultural machinery had set out as their ideal a rough and crude e,onstruction at a low price, gears and other parts being left exposed with the idea that defects would become more readily obvious, and that, constant attention would ensure that the need for renew.als should not be overlooked. The new line of thought in the States that was brought about by the introduction of English ideas entailed the enclosing of these parts and the making of a more • highly-developed engineering job that would give continued life and uSe without so heavy a cost for upkeep. The American idea, -again, favoured 'a tractor fitted only for ploughing, but the English idea favours a general-purpose machine so that, when ploughing is finished, the machine can be used for road Work, belt work, and other farming operations, and be kept busy practically the whole year. In the opinion of Messrs. Garner, no less than t30 per cent, of the value of a tractor to a fanner is its suitability for hauling loads about his farm and betiveen farm and market and railway station. Hence they have set to work to design their machine that it should fit in with the ideal of being practicable for all purposes. The wet spring of -1917 brought out most thoroughly the fact that on very wet lands tractors of light weight are far preferable to heavy machines, and the contention that' tractive effortis dependent upon
• weight of the driving wheels is now regarded as a fallacy. Another factor that tells against the heavy machine is lack of skill on the part of the driver, resulting in the relinquishment by these men of their work on account of the strenuous conditions, the operating of the machine being placed beyond their capacity virtually by their own ignorance. Again, the heavy machine is not suitable for women, and the British fanner has to face the fact that women's labour will need to be employed very largely.
With regard to depreciation, it was Considered that, in view of the uncertainty of the life of a "trctortaking ploughing as the unit of work, 'very few tractors would be likely to exceed a life of 500 acres per machine, excepfat a big expense for rebuilding 'and replacement—a fair charge for 'dePreciation was set down at about 7s. 6d. Per acre of work done. Taking all these facts into consideration, Messrs. Garner decided that the best course was to collaborats with a leading American manufacturer to produce the correct article, which should be of light weight, small in size, easy to handle and drive, and constructed of the best material, thoroughly well machined, and all parts en:closed, the vehicle being partly sprung .and. 'suitable for road haulage. In examining the first of .the type now at Birmingham, and bearillg in mind thc, fact that later deliverns will include certain. new features, we must say that we are of the opinion that Messrs. Garner have closely approximated their vehicle to the needs of this cointry.• .
The tractor is. 10 ft. long by. 5 ft. 414, ins, wide, and its grea,teSt height is. 4 ft. 3 ins., the weight being -28 cwt., two-thirds of which is on the rear axle, the remaining One-third-being:oh the frOnt axle. The unit construction includes engine, the .clutch mechanism, gearbox and back axle. The engine • is four-cylindered, 4/ in.bore by WI in. stroke-,.capable of running at .1200 to 1400 r.p.rn:,. and giving 30 bap. at 900 r. p.m, The fuel .employed is paraffin, the engine havingbeen designed for that fuel. The cylinder head is detachable, and the base chamber is very readily removable, so that cleaning and examination are simplified to the fullest extent. The details of the design of the.power plant are 'excellent, but need not be entered into here'. An expanding type clutch is employed, with hard -Todd blocks operated by hand lever. The withdrawal raeehAnism' of course, requires lubrication, but the clutch itself does not, and it is very readily adjusted by the driver. The gearbox gives three forward speeds, At 900 r.p.m. the lowest gives .1,6 miles per hour (the reverse being practically the same) the second speed gives 2.7 miles per hour, whilst the same), speed (suitable' for cultivation; harrowing and similar operations, and for road work) gives 5.9 miles per hour. The drawbar pull is as .follows : On top gear, 1000.lb. ; on the seco.nd. gear, 2190 lb. ; on low gear, 3620 lb. • on reverse.gear, 3860 lb. The gear changes Are.maje in the usual manner. .
The -final drive to the rear axle is through a high-: grade worm gear, the .worm being of high quality nickel steel provided with large roller .bearings and ball thrusts, and the worm wheel is made of a speci
ally-treated hard bronze. The differential is very strong, and is capable of transmitting 60It.p. The back axle and rear .wheels are mounted on roller and ball bearings completely enclosed, and every moving parr runs in an oil bath. The front axle is mounted in an unusual manner, being mounted on a central pivot, the load between the frame and axle being carried by a cross srriug so that a double:
movement is obtained, gine being the relief of the load by the vertical play of -the springs, and the other the prevention of the -twistingstrains to the body of the tractor by the abilityof the front axle to oscillate round the central pivot.' By thesemeans a perfect three-point suspension is obtained.
The necessary traction for the driving wheels on land is throne" readily-detachable iron spuds, but Special form of vacuum rubber tyre will be offered, whilst giving largely increased .tractive effort for road work, will not require to be removed during land operations.: Should. it.be necessary on very wet land to use spuds, they can be attached in a very few minutes without the use of nuts or bolts.
The price of this tractor at the company's Birmingham works is £320, and as a very large stock of spare parts is carried, continuity of service is ensured, the guarantee hy'the company to their clients being that they maintain never less than the equivalent of 10 per cent, of the value of all tractors in service in the sparepart stores. The Garner agricultural tractor is open for inspection at the Birmingham works, and can be seen at work on a deruenstra,tion farm. .