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Answers to Queries.

22nd February 1917
Page 22
Page 22, 22nd February 1917 — Answers to Queries.
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

Charges on Hiring Out a 30-cwt. Van.

[4149] (Owner)—You should under present conditions obtain Is. per mile for the hire of a 30-cwt. lorry with a minimum payment of 22 10s. daily. If the vehicle is not run as much as 50 miles a day, and it is out, say, after 6 p.m., you should obtain an extra payment of 6s. per hour. The foregoing charges are on condition that you find everything, including driver. It is dangerous to let the hirer provide a driver, as a rule, unless you know something about the man's abilities. In those circumstances, the man who hires must also pay the insurance, as the driver will then be his servant, or this must be arranged with the insurance company. For the bare hire of the machine for a month or two, the hirer providing petrol, oil, grease and driver, and also paying insurance and storage, we think you should obtain 4d. per mile with a minimum of 24 per week.

The "Best" Three-ton Chassis, and Should He Buy Near Home?

[4150] (Scotland).—There is no " best" three-ton chassis to-day, but at least half-a-dozen which are one as good as the other. The difficulty of the moment is to get delivery from any British works, unless you can obtain a certificate that the proposed services are in connection with the conveyance of munition workers. By all means buy near -home. We think you will do well to address yourself to the undermentioned Scottish makers in the first instance :— Albion Motor Car Co., Ltd., Scotstoun, Glasgow.

Halley's Industrial Motors, Ltd., Yoker, Glasgow.

Scottish Commercial Cars, Ltd., 98, Duke Street, Glasgow.

Scottish Motor Traction Co., Ltd., Edinburgh. As to prompt delivery, you might be able to secure this from the Austin Motor Co., Ltd., Northfield, Birmingham, and you might also care to write there.

Four-wheeled Tractor to Couple to Four-wheel Trailers, Lifting One Axle of a Trailer when Hauling so that Wheels are Off the Ground.

(4151] (Designer).—We are interested to have your communication with sketches. The scheme is in some respects novel, but not so in principle. This class of construction was exhaustively tested by Messrs. Thornycroft 19 years ago, and, in fact, a machine of the six-wheeled type, into which your arrangement resolves itself on combination competed in the Liverpool Trials of 1898. The combination is out 'of contiol on reversing, as you will probably realize unless it is handled by a man of great dexterity. The Knox six-wheeled tractor is already on the market, to designs which are not greatly dissimilar from yours in type. It is a fine machine, and it can be manceuvred quickly into any position by a driver who knows how to do it.

Mr. Kay will find that his ideas as regards weight are on the low side, having regard to the necessary strength and factors of safety for haulage at motorvehicle speeds, especially on bad surfaces. In commercial practice, it is usually found that in only a relatively small percentage of work can a trailer with advantage be dropped for separate loading. The development of that method of working depends upon arrangements to enable any trailer, when separated from its power unit, to be moved to an extent which is actually found to be more than is thought in advance to be likely. Your proposed combination will be legal under the Heavy Motor Car Order, provided the joint weight is not in excess of 6i tons, and provided the loaded trailer never has an axle-weight in excess of 4 tons on either axle, but we are of opinion that at the present juncture of events the military forces of the Crown will not be interested in the proposal.

Cannot Get Delivery of Steel Containers to Hold Compressed Coal.gas.

[4152] (Motor Jobmasters).—The delivery of any steel container is, of course, dependent upon the urgency of the projected work. We are afraid that you may have difficulty in obtaining either an A or a B certificate for your work (hiring-out of 8-seated and 9-seated cars at a seaside resort). You might be able to buy some riveted tanks of suitable construction second-hand by advertisement in "The Engineer" or " Engineering, ' or from C. D. Phillips, of Newport, Mon. Otherwise, we fear, the compressor may have to be kept in reserve against different times. Can you not manage yourselves to buy some boiler plate, or to adapt some ola boilers, or to arrange to rivet or weld up plates in suitable form ? The weights of the Steel Barrel Co.'s containers were stated in our articles of last year, and particularly in the issue of the 2nd November last, so we trust you had these data 'before you. ' The only alternative suggestion that we can make is that you should for the time being utilize collapsable gas-holders, charging them from the ordinary gas main. You can obtain such flexible holders in all sizes from Messrs. Andrew Barton Brothers' of Beeston, Notts. They may be unsightly, but they at least enable a certain mileage to be performed. You might be able to carry up to 200 cubic ft. on the top of an ordinary covered car, and that is sufficient for anything between 12 and 18 miles, according to the size of engine. We were more particularly writing in this journal in relation to the use of coal-gas for chars-h.-banes or large vans, on the top of which it is usually practicable to accommodate a flexible gas-holder of 400 cubic ft capacity, or to dispose rigid containers under the platform, or elsewhere, without experiencing difficulty either as to space or weight in the case of the latter class of vessel.

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People: Kay, Andrew Barton

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