OPINIONS FROM OTHERS.
Page 66
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THE SUSPENSION OF SIX-WHEELED VEHICLES.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL/MOTOR.
[2594] Sir,—I am happy to make the acquaintance (in the columns of The Commercial Motor) of Mr. R. ‘vititehead as spokesman for the technical experts of the fighting services, because the official ostrich as a rule is a silly bird. It is evident from his criticism of transverse suspensions and his failure to refute a fraction of the criticism I have hurled at longitudinally sprung vehicles thathe has never seriously studied the suspension problem. His statement that the War Department and manufacturers alike have rightly tied themselves to the use of standard units is an acknowledgment of stagnation in design, and substantiates what Mr. IL G: Wells and I have been saying in the Sunday Express and technical papers about British technical experts. .
How long has the War Office been advocating transverse springs on the front axles of six-wheelers? Why does not the manufacturer tit them? It is not a difficult ;natter. Mr. Whitehead gives the answer in his letter, "They are tied to standard units and existing designs." From what I know of the mechanical transport services of some Continental powers, British vehicles would make a poor show of speed in competition with them.
Later on, when, perhaps, it is too late, officialdom will wake up and copy improved designs as they were reluctantly compelled to copy the Renault -six-wheeler.
I make no claims for front-wheel drives. I advocate a four-wheel drive With independent wheel movement which gives a better distribution of weight than a longitudinally sprung vehicle. Could the W.D. sixwheeler equal the performance of the Latil front-wheeldrive vehicle recently described in The Commercial Motor?
I am not impressed by M. Whitehead's glowing accounts of the W.D. six-wheeler romping up hills and down dales because he does not give the speed of the vehicle. As I stated in my last letter, it is speed that kills the longitudinally sprung vehicle, and sped will be vital in-the next great war.
The photographs we see of six-wheeled vehicles in grotesque positions may be good for advertising purposes, but are not convincing to those who know. If it were Possible to . smash through the prejudice and ignorance of those in authority in Britain on this subject, and they decided to build a transversely sprung vehicle with independent wheel movement to the design of someone who knovvs what he is talking about, I am convinced it would easily surpass the performance of " the W.D. models.
Mr. Whitehead's dogmatic statement that transverse springs applied to the bogie wheels of a six-wheeler would demand a more elaborate arrangement than the longitudinal system is not correct, because the wheels ' and springs are moving in sympathy in the same plane, which makes it an easy matter to secure an absolutely rigid chassis and to counteract the driving and breaking strains on the springs without links, universal joints, torque rods, or sub-frames. _ In further support of my argument in favour of transverse springs, it is interesting to note that railway companies have adopted them. If they find them better on a fiat track, it follows they must function better on uneven surfaces.
I agree with Mr. Whitehead that the picture I dreW in my last letter was pathetic in the extreme, but it is the truth, founded on the result of personal contact with official experts and their method of doing business during the past 18 years. So far as I can see, he has brought no brilliant sunshine into the discussion to dispel my pessimistic views concerning them, and "I am c44 still convinced of the superiority of my own conception over that nurtured by the War Office."—Yours faiths fully, Courbevoie (Seine).. WILLIAM COCHRANE.
Drivers of Steam and Petrol Vehicles.
.The:, Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[2595] Sir,—Can anyone -explain why there should be such a difference in the personal appearance of drivers of steam lorries and petrol lorries? That there is a difference in build and facial expression there is little room for doubt. I do not profess to be a Sherlock Holmes, but, as an instance, when walking round the Commercial Vehicle Show at Olympia, I never experience a difficulty in picking out the steam from the petrol , drivers. The same thing happens at the annual parade of the Commercial Motor Users Association in Lincoln's Inn Fields, where the various vehicles and their drivers can be seen, and where The Commercial Motor Cup is awarded to the best-kept vehicles.
The characteristics of the steam driver seem to be that, as a rule, he is short: stout, broad of beam, and has a face which looks as if nothing has ever troubled him. On the other hand, the petrol driver often is lean and wears a worried look.
I cannot account for this, as the steam man has MS troubles and responsibilities. It may be said that they are of a different nature to those of the petrol man, but, in the case of a boiler, they are even more serious than with an internal-combustion vehicle.
It is said of blacksmiths that, as a rule, the heat from their fire makes them stout, but allowing that the heat from their boilers does this, how can we account for the happier expression and difference in build of the steam drivers?—Yours faithfully, London. . ENGINEER.
Regulations as to Brakes.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[2596] Sir,—With reference to the letter of Mr. Joseph Lisle in the issue of The Commercial Motor for March 15th, regarding the regulations as to brakes, there comes to my mind a case where certain authorities summoned a driver of a vehicle plying for hire because his two brakes operated on the same wheel. drum. The contention of the authorities was the Fame as that of Scotland Yard, namely, that because these brakes depended upon a single drum they were not Independent. The case was decided in favour of the defendant, the judge holding that his two brakes were independent 'brakes and the fact that they operated on the same drum did not affect the case.—Yours
f a i thfully; W. G. GLEDHILL. London.
Scammell Cylinder Heads : Who is the Owner ?
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[2597] Sir,—In an article on welding in your issue of March 29th you silo* a photograph of a Scammell cylinder head with worn valve seatings. Four of these heads were delivered by rail to us about 10 days ago, without any indication from whotn they were sent. As it is just possible we have to thank you for receiving them, we are wondering whether you would help us to discover the owner by mentioning the fact in your next issue. We often receive parts without the name of sender, but can usually trace them by letters sent at the same time.—Yours faithfully, C. G. ARNOLD, London. The New Welding Co.