A Horsebox for Four Animals.
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WHAT is claimed to be one of the largest horseboxes built for service in this country has recently been completed in the works of Eccles Motor Caravans,.,. Ltd., at Birmingham, and mounted on an A.E.C. chassis. The vehicle has been expressly built for Mr, A. P. Hammond, of Newmarket, and, we are told, is creating considerable interest in racing circles. Mr. Hammond's name will be familiar to many of our readers in connection with the design of boxes for the conveyance of valuable race-horses and, in this connection, we may mention at the outset that' the new box is built on the lines of the Hammond patent Newmarket pattern.
The RSR of a forward-drive chassis enables a particularly capacious box to be employed, and the space which is available is so extensive that four animals can be accommodated in complete comfort. The ribs of the framework of the body are of ash anel,rhe double sides are constructed of steelarmoured plywood, a form of construction which gives great strength.
The two horses which are accommodated in the rear portion of the body face the direction of travel, but the animals in the front seption face to the rear. The animals thus face each other, but they are separated by a compartment for grooms in the centre of the body, the entrance to this part being by way of a door in the side. There is a separate feeding box for each horse.
The interior: padding is in white'proofed duck canvas, below which is coco-matting, whilst the floor is covered with rubber matting. All interior woodwork alai:lye the padding in the lower portions is painted in white' enamel, 'thus providing an exceptionally clean 'and bright Interior. Electric lamps of a special pattern are employed, and they arc disposed so that there is no fear of glare in the faces of the animals.
The horses which are accommodated in the front portion are loaded and unloaded by way of a ramp On the off side, this being quite wide and having side wings formed by portions' of the body sides. The animals housed in the rear use a similar ramp located behind the rear wheel on the near side. Ramps are often unwieldy to handle, but we are told by the maker that, in this case, • they can be lifted by one man, in so far as their operation is assisted by patent spring-dear controllers.
The interior is particularly well ventilated and, apart from three suction ventilators in the roof, there are others which are one-man-.controlled along the sides and back of the body. A feature which is worthy of special notice is that ample locker and storage accommodation is provided along the running boards.