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FORD VAN POINTERS.

15th August 1918, Page 18
15th August 1918
Page 18
Page 18, 15th August 1918 — FORD VAN POINTERS.
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

By R. T. Nicholson (Author of "The Book of the Ford ").

THE DIFFICULTY that occurred in connection with the obtaining of parts for replacement has largely been overcome by the enterprise of British manufacturers, and our columns have contained, and do contain, ample information concerning their supply.

17.—Spares.

The Ford Co. themselves, owing to import restricl lions' cannot now always supply American parts from stock, the result being that many of the more essential spares are now manufactured in this country. Quite a considerable " home industry " has, in fact, slaking up. I have heard excellent accounts of these British-made spares. John Bull has the reputation of being unadaptable, but the way in which he has set to work and done things for himself during the war has been remarkable. It promises well for the allBritish light van " after the war."

18.—What to Carry on the Road.

.D.a not lumber yourself up with -a lot of useless " truck" in the way. of tools and spares. The following outfit will cover all ordinary needs The standard tool kit, including oilcan, jack and pump, plus cutting pliers, a half-round file, a short screwdriver, and, possibly, a third tyre• . lever.

A yard or so of copper wire. (Iron wire is better than nothing, if copper.is not procurable.) Oil funnel. A cheap tin one is good enough. Spare unit.

Two tested sparking plugs. Spare electric light bulb, if you drive by night. Spare wheel.

19 --Spare Wheel.

Rave your standard wheels converted so as to be detachable, and carry a fifth spare wheel, suitably mounted. The conversion sets advertised in this paper are excellent value, and wholly reliable. For a Ford van, I regard them as indispensable. There is no time on the road, or in the street, for a commercial driver to get tubes out and in, let alone to repair punctures. The time taken in replacing a wheel need not be more than five minutes. Repairing a puncture may take any time from 15 minutes to halfan-hour, according to circumstances ; and even replaeement of a punctured tube by a sound one means Long delay. On the road, too, you are hustled, and want to get the job done and the van on its way again. So you hurry and bungle, you push thetube in all anyhow, and risk—and probably get—a pinch, and a burst in consequence ; you almost certainly under-inflate. Avoid all these risks and worries, by carrying a spare wheel, with its tyre already blown up to proper pressure,' of which I will say more later. I warn you : you must keep all the sliding parts of these detachable wheels well greased—the parts that slide when a wheel is coming off or going on. It You do not, you will find detachability a. doubtful proposition. Without "grease, the wheel sticks and refuses to 'budge when it should. The parts that need grease are the hub and the long bolts that carry the nuts. Even if you never have the wheels off for replacements, take them off once a month and grease up.. . If a detachable wheel does stick, loosen the ruffs slightly—for a turn or two only—and run the van

• slowly for a few Yards. That will generally loosen the wheel enough to make it budge when you pull on it. Keep an eye on the studs, and see that they are tight up to their ,work in the ordinary way.

20.—Air Pressure.

I believe in keeping tyres hard—as hard as the makers S-wrouldhnve. them, and that is a lot harder than you think. If you want to be sure about your air pressure (and you ought-to be), you must have a pressure gauge. They are quite cheap, and every shilling you spend on one will save you more than as many pounds. The proper pressure for the Ford back -tyres is '60-65 lb. to the sq. in., 50-55 lb. being right for the front tyres. You will never Have your pressure up to these figures unless you use a pressure

gauge. • •

And test your tyres with the gauge every now and again, even if they feel hard enough. 'Do not trust them to retain pressure for ever. True, any sound tyre will " stand up " for a long time, but "standing up"' 'does notnecessarily meanretaining -pressure. There is 'slight leakage going on, all th& time frem the best of tubes. Driving on under-inflated -tyres cracks the walls and spells early ruination.

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