Tires and Wheels.
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It is the purpose of the present article to submit to our readers, in conjunction with the complete report of the whole of the motor exhibits at the Liverpool Show of the R.A.S.E., a compact digest of the latest practice in regard to tires and wheels, with considerable reference to those classes of machines from which representative exhibits are on show. It will be at once realized that this is A most-comprehensive scheme, and one which will necessitate the mention of such widely-divergent types as winter wheels for tractors and pneumatic tires for the lighter classes of industrial vehicles. It has, however, been possible to secure a satisfactory bird's-eye view of modern tire-and-wbeel development by the adoption of a careful system of review.
Pneumatic Tires.
Machines which call for the fitting of pneumatic tires are not exhibited in any number at Liverpool. It is necessary, nevertheless, to give such tires passing mention. Upon the principle of the survival of the fittest, the beaded-edge cover has become the standard pattern. Practically all the chief makers of " pneumatics," whatever specialities they may embody in the nature of the tread-pattern, the proportioning of the constituent canvas and rubber, or the embodiment of special fabric, have adopted that form of cress-section which the standard cupped rim and its security bolts will accommodate. For light vans and motorcabs some form of non-skid attachment is, as a rule, necessary, upon one or more of the wheels, and this generally takes the form of a studded outer cover. A variant of this practice occurs in the case of the Parsons non-skid chains, which are attached outside the outer cover. Satisfactory non-skidding properties are also secured by the adoption of special grooving of the surface which has to make contact with the road. The efficiency of such designs diminishes, of course, as the pattern surface wears away. " Pneumatics " bearing such names as Dunlop, Michelin, Continental, Peter Union, Polack, North British. Kempshall or Palmer, are household words with users of all classes. Concurrently with the improvement in fabric and section, which has taken place in the construction of the covers arid tubes themselves, successful design has evolved several useful methods of rapidly detaching the tire or the rim. The Moseley detachable tire is kept in position by expansible rings which take the place of the lips of the ordinary rim. One of the most-satisfactory forms of removable rim is the Challiner, made by the Shrewsbury and Challiner Tyre Co., Ltd., Ardwick Green, Manchester. In this design, the removable rim is carried on a series of blocks which are fixed to the feline of the wheel. A loose flange, of special form, is used to wedge the rim and tire securely in position. This construction effectually screens the security bolts
from damage and rust, a result which is also secured by the employment of the new Crowdy enclosed security-bolt flynut. Other types of detachable rims are the Dunlop, the Yinet, the Michelin, the North British and the Segment. As available alternatives to the detachable rim, the use of a spare wheel commends itself to many users, and of these the Stepney and the Hall are examples.
Solid Rubber Tires.
Col. Crompton, presiding at the luncheon which preceded the recent Commercial Motor Users Association's parade of industrial vehicles and tractors in London, stated that, in his opinion, the amount expended annually on the maintenance of the rubber tires of all commercial-motor vehicles in the Metropolis was equivalent to the total expenditure for a twelvemonth upon the cleansing and maintenance of all the highways in London. This statement, not only should very graphically illustrate to readers in other parts of the country the remarkable extent. to which commercialmotor vehicles of all kinds are nowadays being used in the capital, but it should also serve as a noteworthy indication of the percentage of those vehicles which are shod with rubber in one forth or another. It is only the taxicab and the smaller classes of industrial vehicles upon which " pneumatics " can economically
be employed; with the exception of a few petrol and paraffin lorries and of most steam wagons and tractors, all other types of machines have solid-rubber-tired wheels. The endless band tire has, for this class of work, become the accepted standard pattern; it is only in the manners of fastening the tires to the wheelrims that important differences of design occur. Amongst the most-used patterns of solid rubber tires must be included : the Polack, which is a great favourite with all classes of users; the Peter Union, with which, amongst other huge contracts, the present one with the London General Omnibus Co. is being fulfilled; the Shrew.sbury and Challiner, of which the "Giant" and "World" patterns rank amongst the best of their kind throughout the world; the Connolly, of which an interesting special type has just been produced, particularly for use on motor fire-engines; the Dook-Swain, whose " Hercules " brand is supplied in sizes large enough for 12-ton loads; and the " Frome," a grip tire manufactured by Wallington, Weston and Co., of
St. John's Mills, Somerset, makers who are responsible for a number of other special tires and treads, which are sold under other names. Several well-known proprietary tires are made by the St. Helen's Cable and Rubber Co., Ltd., of Warrington. This last maker has been producing solid tires of the lighter descriptions for six years and is now in a
position to supply patterns suitable for the heaviest model of motor lorry. For many years, the Avon India Rubber Co., Ltd., of Melksham, Wilts., has been content to supply factors with endless and grip-type solid tires of all sizes, but extensive arrangements have recently been completed to supply Avon endless band tires, of all sizes, constructed on the latest approved principles, direct to users. A tire which has been giving great satisfaction on public-service work in Scotland is the " Faransure," manufactured by S. Stevenson and Co., Logan Street, Glasgow. We illustrate on the preceding page a de Nevers solid tire fitted, by means of the new Merchant flanges, to an all-steel wheel_ We described, in our issue for 17th March, this arrangement by which the de Never tires, which have been sold, in the past, in such numbers by J. Liversidge and Son, Ltd., of 196, Old Street, EC, may be quickly and easily removed or replaced with no further equipment than a hammer and a wrench. We, perhaps, are not strictly correct in classifying the " K.T." tire, whose peculiar studded appearance is becoming so familiar a sight on the roads, under the heading of solid tires, as it is in reality a special form of "cushion pneumatic." One of the mostremarkable features about this production, which is made by the K.T. New Pneumatic Tyre and Rubber Co., Ltd., of 52, Queen -Victoria Street, KC., is the immunity from side-slip with which it endows the vehicle to which it is fitted.
Sectional Solids and Tire Fillings.
For certain purposes, sectional solid tires have been found to he useful, e.g., for the wheels of motor fire-engines. A company which specializes in this matter is the " Dreadnought " Sectional Solid Tyre Co., Ltd., of 18, Smithfield Chambers, West Smithfield, E.C. Sectional solids are in use on the Paris motorbuses. The North British Rubber Co., Ltd.. now handles this type of wheel-tread as well as a number of special Dueasble patterns.
We should here mention the attempts, which have been made from time to time, to produce a satisfactory elastic filling for pneumatic tubes. Most of these have not stood the test of continued service; " Pfleumatic." a spongy, cellular material, however, is claimed to have great pr aspects. Removable Solid Tires.
To facilitate the fitting and removal of heavy solid tires of the wheels of commercial vehicles, where no hydraulic press is available, special arrangements have been devised by several makers. Amongst these we would draw attention to the Shrewsbury and Challiner steel wedge rim: and to the Polack distinctive system of building up a false felloe under the band tire, by means of a series of suitably-shaped hard-wood wedges.
Artillery, Steel and Wire Wheels.
By far the largest proportion of roadwheels for commercial vehicles of all sizes are of the ordinary artillery pattern. with a metal hub and wooden wedge spokes and wooden felloes. For motorcabs, lorries, public-service vehicles, steam-wagons, and, in some circumstances, for tractors, the artillery wheel fulfils all requirements; it may be adapted for use with steel, solid-rubber or pneumatic tires. The tangent arrangement of the spokes is an interesting modification of this customary design. Few makers are so well-equipped or have so excellent a reputation in the matter of artillery wheel-building of every conceivable kind as Smith, Parfrey and Co., Ltd., of Pimlico Wheel Works. Several well-known wheelwrights adopt special precautions to avoid the " working" of wooden wheels. The Liversidge radiallock arrangement of spoke and the Bauly method of building are examples. The most-important variation from standard " artillery " practice, for heavier types of wagons and for tractors, is the fitting of built-up steel-plate wheels. A maker who specializes in this direction is T. Toward and Co., Ltd., of Ouseburn, Newcastle. Cast-steel wheels are finding much favour for certain classes of use, notably for motorbuses, and the pioneer maker for such types is undoubtedly the Atlas Resilient Road Wheels, Ltd. Efforts, upon other lines, to produce all-metal wheels which shall have the maximum of strength with the minimum of weight, have resulted in the production of a welded pressed-steel design by Joseph Sankey and Sons, Ltd., BilEton. We illustrate a Sankey wheel on the previous page. But few vehicle builders are embodying pressed-steel solid-disc wheels in their designs. The wire wheel is just making its appearance for commercial-vehicle work; the new Daimler petrol-electric motorbus has 48 in. hind wheels of this pattern. Composite and Spring Wheels.
To secure a satisfactory combination of strength, rigidity, lightness and ability to withstand road shocks without breaking up, several interesting patterns of composite wheels have been produced and have won considerable praise from users. In this connection, we must mention the Leyland, the "Sentinel," and the Stagg, made by Leyland Motors, Ltd., Alley and Maclellan, Ltd., and Stagg and Robson, Ltd., respectively ; these are all clever structural combinations of metal and wood. As we go to press we are favoured with particulars of a new and interesting composite wheel which has been devised by the "ET." Tyre Co. It is of sufficient interest to necessitate, on another occasion, a fuller treatment than is now possible. Other types have been shown at various exhibitions, but are not in use to any extent at present. Of spring wheels there has been no end to the designing, but no individual pattern has, as yet, secured the confidence of users, except, perhaps, the " Lynton " which is doing good service.
Winter Wheels and Wooden Treads.
To enable vehicles, which normally run on steel tires, to keep the road under winter conditions, the following are two examples of devices which are being satisfactorily employed : the Spurrier auxiliary rubber-tread attachments for bolting to the ordinary wheel, made by Leyland Motors, Ltd. ; and the Bauly special tread, which is manufactured by H. C. Bauly, of Bow Wagon Works, London, E., and which is a combination of rubber, steel and wood. Several tractor makers fit wooden treads to the driving wheels of their machines with very-satisfactory results.
Wheels for Agricultural Tractors.
With no exceptions, agricultural tractors and similar machines call for steel wheels throughout. That they must be of as large a diameter as possible is a sine quA, non. It is not perhaps so generally realized that it is important to make provision for the alternative fixture of spikes and paddles, in order to travel over soft or slippery ground.