Correspondence.
Page 22
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A Disclaimer from the Thornycroft Company.
The Editor, "THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR. 't
Sir :-Statements are being circulated by malicious persons which are detrimentat to the motorcar branch of our business, and as the result of this notices have appeared in certain papers stating, amongst other things, that we intend to close down our Basingstoke works. The report that we intend to give up our Basingstoke works is incorrect, and we are making enquiries, though, up to the present, we have been unable to trace the origin of this and other mis-statements. So far from it being our intention to give up the motorcar part of our business, we have given a large amount of time and attention to it, and have standardised these cars for the coming season. Our sales are showing a good increase, and we are confident that, as the results of our new policy, our cars will have a ready sale on account of their excellence both in design and construction.
We shall be extremely obliged if you can find space fur this letter in your valuable paper, and thanking you in anticipation, remain,—‘ours faithfully, I OH N I. THORNYCROFT AND CO. LIMITED. .1 ( , 14AUGI IFLIN .
Church Wharf, Chiswick, W., December 14th, 1906.
It will be observed that the above disclaimer does not, specifically, refer to commercial motors, and we shall look forward to a statement as to the Thornvcroft intentions in that department. En.] The Choice of Gears.
The Editor, "THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR."
Sir :—I have read the article on the above subject in your last issue, and I note your reference to worm gearing. You say " the company believes in worm gearing as an .e1.11dent means of transmitting power, a statement which is upheld by Dennis Brothers, Limited, which company has, so successfully, applied this system to all its standard vehicles."
I have, repeatedly, noticed that, in the motor papers generally, the Dennis (sic) worm drive is constantly being referred to, and, for the life of me, I can't imagine why; I think I can safely say that the (Dennis ?) Worm drive wa first applied to an automobile by The Lanchester Engine Company, of Birmingham, and that it has been copied by v(Tal firms. Great credit is clue to Mr. F. W. Lanchester and to nobody else, in this matter), a man with a good head and original ideas. The.Dennis rear axle is another feature of this firm this axle was designed by me about 12 years ago, and I am informed by the Marquis De Dion that he constructed one 14 years ago. The axle was Elliot's axle (of Lake and Elliot, Braintree, Essex), and Mr. Frank Elliot was the originator of it in England. It is now used by such great constructors as Messrs. Dennis, and minor makers such as Decativille, Hotchkiss, Humber, etc.
In conclusion, I may say that I can show vou a twelveyears-old axle of this type at a few hours' notice, designed by me for Mr. Elliot.—Yours faithfully, W. 0. S PILLER. December 17th, 1906.
The Hitchon Gear.
The Editor, "THE COMMERMAt Morost."
Sir :—1 was very interested in reading Dr. Iiele-Shaw's article on the Ilitchon gear, because I have had experience with gears of a similar type and found that the rollers did not always bite when required, and, while the driver was wondering what was wrong, the rollers would suddenly engage and jump the car forward, causing far more damage than is possible with a step gear. In the last few lines Dr: Hele-Shaw says " If the car attempts to run backwards down a hill, the free wheels (b c) become fixed wheels, and—if the intermediate or high gear is in—the two shafts are locked together and no movement is possible." It would be very instructive to know what a driver must do to make the change to his first speed on a gradient of i in To, with the weight of his vehicle, say, a motorbus with full complement of passengers (about 6 tons 15 cwt.) and his gears locked, as suggested above.—Yours faithfully, MARCUS SUTTON. 2, Market Parade, East Finchley, N., December isth, 1906.