Another Mechanical Horse
Page 40
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A 30-cwt. Quickly Separable Tractor-trailer Outfit With a New Road-wheel Layout
,Q0ME weeks ago we fore6-1 shadowed the arrival of further makes of the type of vehicle that, has come to be known as the mechanical horse. The fourth of the breed is now announced. It is _ one of the new products of Straussler Mechanization, Ltd., 70, Pall. Mall, London, S.W.1, another of which —at the opposite end of the scale— is described elsewhere in this issue. , In this case, a novel arrangement of the wheels is employed. At the front, the two steering road wheels are mounted to give a track equal to that of the trailing wheels; at about the paint of articulation, the two driving wheels are arranged close together, and the two trailing wheels • are placed in orthodox manner.
Although rated for SO-cwt. loads, the Straussler mechanical horse, we are informed, can safely carry 2 tons, whilst its unladen weight is 254 cwt. It is powered. wi,th a Ford engine of either 10 h.p. or 8 h.p. and incorporates a number of other well-known proprietary units. Its price is £275.
The chassis of the tractive unit is of unusual and ingenious construction, the design enabling the whole driving assembly—engine, gearbox, propellershaft, axle and rear wheels to be detached complete.
This assembly incorporates a subframe, rigidly attached to the short driving axle at its rear, accommodating the power unit, etc., and terminating at its forward end in a spherical fitting, which normally works in a socket in the main frame.
As the last-named, on which the turntable, etc., is mounted, is attached to the rear axle by springs, the power unit is, in effect, a part of the sprung portion of the machine, although it is rigidly connected with the unsprung back axle. It should be noted that, in the transmission line, flexible couplings are incorporated.
With regard to the front portion of the vehicle, the main frame is bent completely around, the curved portion extending well forward of the axle to support the front of the Cab, It carries at the centre of this forward extension a ball anchorage for a pair of radius rods, combined to form a V. and diverging rearwards, the ends being attached to the front axle. This triangulated structure, in conjunction with a transverse spring, gives excellent steering and stability .