A User' s Veterans.
Page 15
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
A 12-year-old 6 h.p. Daimler Still in the Service of a Well-known Brush Maker.
While • passing down Rosebery Avenue the other day, the attention of a member of our editorial staff was drawn to an old-fashioned Daimler which was being employed as a van, and which was noticeable for its apparent power and easy running_ The sides of the van bore a striking trademark, which made known the fact that the vehicle was owned by the Star Brush Co., Ltd., of Eden Grove, Holloway, N. Thinking it might prove instructive to hear more of this old stager, we took steps to secure an interview with its owner.
Did Converted Pleasure Cars which give Satisfaction.
On arrival at Eden Grove, cur man was informed by the manager of the Star Brush Co., Ltd., that the veteran which had attracted his attention was the doyen of three, arid that its exact age was lost in the mists of antiquity. Its present owners purchased the machine in Scotland early in 1900, and excepting that a new carburetter and one or two bolts, piston rings, etc., and other light fittings have been supplied, the engine has been practically untouched by the rude hands of the man anxious to reconstruct. All the three vans owned by the Star Brush Co., Ltd., are Daimlers, and the records set up speak volumes for the workmanship and design. The two oldest machines are fitted with 61 h.p. single-cylinder engines, and the final drive is by chains. The large wheels with their solid tires furnish evidence of the desirability of increased zliameters. The tire mileages, in
the case of this old machine, are quite satisfactory to the owners, and the class of body-work permits the use of big wheels. The largest van of the fleet, which is capable of taking a useful load of 18 cwt., is a converted 14 h.p. four-cylinder Daimler touring car, of which the chassis frame has been lengthened in order to enable a commercial body to be fitted.
Star People rea liz e Advertisement Value.
Speaking to the manager of the Star Brush Co., Ltd., we were informed that he is exceptionally well pleased with the results of motorvan delivery. The vans have been
proved over a period of years to be an extremely useful and businessbringing advertisement, and since horses were discarded by this enterprising company it has been possible to approach the small out-ofthe-way and village trader, and to supply him with " small orders," which, however little the actual cash value individually may be, make up quite a large aggregate sum in the course of twelve months.
The delivery area has been considerably extended, and packing costs have also been cut down largely. Quite a large business is now being conducted over the telephone, and the orders are sent direct from the office to the various departments, and the goods are at once taken out and delivered by the vans.
Each does 200 Miles a Week.
It may interest our readers to know that each of these old vehicles records a• weekly mileage of nearly 200 miles. As the Star Brush Co., Ltd., runs its own engineering department, the vans are inspected and overhauled by skilled mechanics at regular periods. The drivers are merely untrained youths taken from the factory, and they are not allowed to interfere with any of the mechanical equipment whilst the vans are out on the road.
As our readers are aware, we are no advocates of the use of converted pleasure-car chassis for industrial purposes, but in the case quoted above the makers' reputation and the evidence of successful operation render it instructive to record what are undoubtedly praiseworthy performances. These should pave the way for newer types before long.