THE USE OF INGENUITY.
Page 58
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Practical Experiences Recounted by Our Driver and Mechanic Readers.
MANY who are familiar with the Garrett undertype steam wagon, and, for that matter, vehicles of the same type coming from other factories, find that a large amount of steam is blown off during periods when the vehicle is standing. " Q.T.," of Lane End, suggests a quickly operated type of damper to overcome this trouble, and this -week's prize of 15s. is awarded to him for the idea.
The principle of a damper is, of course, well known, but the necessity for climbing up and down the cab for . fixing and removing the ordinary type is done away . with, according to " G.T.'s " plan.
The damper itself is made to fit into the top of the chimney, inside the circle of the extension piece.. On the damper is an arm which is bolted in turn to a 4-in. diameter -vertical rod ; attachment is effected on a portion of the rod which is turned down to 4-in. diameter and screwed, a nut being used
to hold the parts together. At the lower end of the rod is a handle, also mounted on a turned-down and screwed portion. .
Serving as a bearing for the rod is a tube having an internal diameter of 4 in, and supported by two brackets clipped round the chimney. Between the lower end of the tube, and the handle is a light coil spring, which holds the damper down in the desired position.
To operate the damper, the (levee has to push the vertical rod upwards against the, spring and then turn the handle until the damper moves into or out of position. The idea of lifting the rod is, of course, to allow the damper to clear the chimney extension piece, into which it fits when in working position. A rest is provided to support the damper when out of action.
FAN driving pulleys with split bosses
are found in many cases, and an example quoted by "H.S.," of Wrexham, is that on the Peerless lorry. On this vehicle the pulley is located on the starting dog by a small setscrew passing through the boss into a recess in the sleeve.* in some cases the position of the recess causes the driving pulley to be slightly out of line with
the pulley on the faa. When this occurs the pulley strains the screw, becomes slack on the key, and in time the boss often splits.
When this has occurred "11,5," cuts through the boss at the keyway and at a point exactly opposite. He next makes a couple of U clamps by means of which two adjacent spokes are drawn. together at opposite points of the boss, thus gripping the starting dog tightly. The clamps are made from fin, round steel with threaded ends, which are closed by means of a plate in. wide and 4 in. thick ; lock
nuts are provided. Each clamp. has
to be bent to a fairly gentle curve in order to fit round the boss of the pulley.
When the clamps have been made, the., pulley is mounted in position, the clamps are fitted loosely and the nuts
screwed on finger tight ; the pulley is moved backwards and forwards until accurate belt alignment is secured, and the clamping nuts are theft tightened up with a spanner. A BROKEN exhaust pipe is cer
tainly not an everyday occurrence, but in the event of al.fracture there are two important points to be considered ; first, the question of excessive noise arises, and, secondly, there is the risk of fire. A temporary repair which overcomes both these is suggested by " W.C.," of Frampton-onSevern.
Li his own case he procured a strip of asbestos millboard, two hose clips and a piece of sheet-metal. First he cut out the raillboard, making it into is strip 8 ins. Mug and of a width such that it would fit tightly round the pipe without the ends overlapping. In order to make it pliable for fitting purposes the millboard was soaked in water before being wrapped round the fractured part. The sheet-metal was cut and fixed over the asbestos, but in this case the ends overlapped. Two water clips were finally put into position and tightened up, thus keeping the whole assembly in its proper place, and the repair held good for several days until a spare pipe was obtained.
TWO useful ideas are submitted by
" W.J.H.," of London, E.C.1. The first deals with saving time and labour when ,using drilling jigs which necessitate constant tightening or loosening of their clamping screws. It is not always convenient to keep a spanner at hand, and the ordinary hexagon head offers little grip to the fingers, particularly when they are greasy. In these circumstances, "Will" drills holes in the head of each screw which has to be manipulated, taps them out and fits. screwed pins, converting them into a type of butterfly nut which
affords an easy grip withont tools. • Another tip concerns old lengths of belting, which, states " should not be thrown away as they can he converted into useful tool racks. The strips may either be nailed to the edge of a shelf—such tools as chisels, pliers and spanners being kept in the slots betwen the nails—or the belt may have slots cut in it so that the shanks of spanners can be passed through the loops.
pERSISTENT overheating may he due to various mechanical causes, on the other hand it may be due to the poor draught caused by the fan. in the latter case the suggestion of " D.ItIcG.," of Benbecula, may -be • applicable. A shield is made from sheet metal and soldered or rivetedto the upper and lower radiator tanks. The strips being joined to form a rectangular tunnel ; in some eases it is preferable to taper the shield from the radiator towards the cylinder block.
This fitting forms a tunnel which confines the fan and causes the air to flow more rapidly through the radiator, thus conducting away more heat and reducing,•the tendency to boil. Points which need watching in making this shield are rigidity and proper clear.minces. If . the sheet metal be .ins.ufli • ciently supported it may drum and ,set up rattle.