FORD VAN POINTERS.
Page 36
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By R. T. Nicholson (Author of "The Book of the Ford").
DESPITE a generous allocation of space in last week's issue, I was unable therein to cover all the points that I wished to refer to in regard to the one-ton truck. .I dealt with starting and the use of the slow speed in starting, with picking up of the high speed and with speed questions generally.
470 (contd.)—The Ford Ton Truck—Braking.
Now we come to a point where the van driver is apt to go badly wrong when he is promoted to the driving of a truck. The truck bra-king is entirely different—or should be.
In the first place, the rear brakes of the truck are provided as service brakes, the foot brake, acting on the transmission, being provided only for occasional use.
I have had a great many letters from truck users in regard to the trouble they have had with their footbrake linings. I believe that it would be found that the drivers had, in nearly all cases, graduated as van drivers, and had used the same methods of braking the truck as they had learnt on the van. All wrong I Look at the rear brakes of the truck. Their friction drum is of 12-in. diameter, as against the 8 ins, of the van brakes. In other ways, the dimensions are altogether more generous on the truck brakes. Those brakes are meant for regular use. Therefore, in descending long hills, keep the rear brakes as hard on as will be necessary to limit your speed to the required extent. You can still use the foot brake for an occasional touch when the truck threatens to get out of hand. Further, you can still use the slow-speed and the reverse as brakes. In using the slow-speed in this way, remember once more to get a good grip a? it ; don't have anything like "slither " between lining and drum. . As to the use of the reverse as brake on the truck, I must again give the caution that I have previously given in these pointers and elsewhere. The reverse must, not seize: there must be " slither " between lining and drum. Otherwise, you will certainly smash something—most likely the reverse drum. In • using the reverse as brake, therefore, "be aisy " with pedal pressure, particularly when you first shove the pedal down. You positively must not jam the pedal on hard enough for the band to hold the drum. I know that truck drivers have ,got into trouble through over-vigorous use of the reverse as a brake : I know that they have " chawed things up " ; but I suspect that they were all drivers who had formed their habits on the van.
The Slow-speed Once More.
If you let the slow-speed lining slip regularly in starting, hill-climbing, or braking, you will certainly wear it : you will also burn it. You will then fend that you will get horrible chattering when starting on slow-speed. This is due to the gripping surface of the lining—the surface that engages the drum —getting hard and glazed, instead of soft and pliant as it should be. No amount of humouring will get the chatter out of a burnt band.
Use of the Foot Brake.
Keep the foot brake for occasional use on hills, and for the necessary slowing touch that is required in traffic driving. Do not make it a " service ' brake.
Braking by Switching Off.
You can get good braking effect if you switch off your ignition and close your throttle. I am' not in c40 love with this idea, but it certainly achieves the purpose in view. What happens, then, is that engine friction helps to stop the momentum of the truck. It is necessary to close the throttle ; otherwise, when you next switch on, you will get a bad bang in your silencer, owing to after-ignition there of the explosive " gas " that has passed away from the cylinders, through the exhaust pipe, unignited.
I say I am not in love With this method, because it results in a lot of engine oil being sucked up past the piston rings into the cylinder head, and that fouls the plugs and makes a lot of carbon, by getting burnt -when you switch on again.
Of course, it is altogether different when you have an extra-air fitment on your inlet manifold. You then get an air compression brakia, and no suction on your engine oil to foul your things up. You can run downhill against extra-air compression, with ignition switched off, without causing any ill-results. On the other hand, the effect is good, inasmuch as the engine is cooled and scavenged by the in-draught of pure air.
Loading.
The Ford truck is a 1-ton truck. Got that ? If you use it as a 2-ton truck, you do so at your own risk—or at its owner's risk ifthe owner does not happen to be you.
Never overload ; it is not fair.
And stow your load properly. True, the back axle of the truck is sturdier than that of the van, and will carry bigger weights. Indeed, it is better to stow too far aft on the truck than too far forward, because the front axle of the truck is still slim. But do not do either. Distribute the load so that it bears reasonably evenly on your floor space. If you have to carry some goods which are unduly heavy, stow them as near the middle as possible— middle, I mean, both endways and sideways
A Few Additional Points.
Brake wear.—Itemember that it is an easy matter to replaCe the rear brake bands, involving only the removal of the wheels, extraction of the worn parts, and insertion of the new ones. On the other hand, replacement of the band linings is a big and costly job.
Lighting and ignition.—These are " old-style "j that is to say, current for lighting and ignition on the truck is drawn wholly from the magneto. If you race your engine on either high or slow speed with the lamps alight you will find your bulbs burn out very quickly. Use of your dimmer switch when you are running on slow speed will prolong their lives considerably, the dimmer absorbing the excessive voltage generated at high engine speeds.
Tail light.---This, being an oil-lamp, is very apt to jolt out and get you into trouble with the police. Oil and wick must be kept clean and fresh. A teaspoonful of petrol in the container—not more—will help to prevent the jolting out; but I recommend an electric tail lamp, as advised in recent Pointers. Failing that, I recommend a small acetylene lamp, fed by a special generator. True, carbide is beastly stuff to handle, but I would rather handle it than run the risk of being " handled " by the police. Acetylene will not jolt out, though carbide can get, exhausted so that the lamp will go out ; but it is your fault if it does. A motorcycle outfit is quite suitable for rear light use, and can be easily rigged up by a handy man.