TRANSPORT TIPS FOR TRADESMEN.
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Particularly Addressed to Those Who are Replacing Horsed Vehicles by Motors, or Contemplating So Doing.
MANY USERS of motor vehicles very properly wish to keep a record of the mileage covered. It is only by booking mileage figures and noting the average load carried on each journey that the performance of a. vehicle can really be accurately estimated, or a. proper comparison
made between the performances of various vehicles in the sane fleet. Such comparisons are howevsr, useful as a mea,ne, of comparing the efficiency of drivers and the 'efficiency of different makes and types of machine.'
Value of Mileage Records.
Mileage records are also valuable as an indication of whether the fuel is being economically used. It will sometimes be found that the original performance of the vehicle in miles per gallon is not being maintained, and this indicates the need for an examination and adjustment of the carburetter, or, possibly, for attention ofome other kind.' Similarly, the mileage; record allows us to estimate whether an excessive amount of lubricant is being used or whether, on the other hand, the working parts are being starved of lubricant and a, risk of trouble thereby incurred: Again, the record of mileage, taken in conjunction with the records of the times of starting and arriving, shows the average speed attained arid tells the owner fairly clearly whether the driver of the vehicle is wasting time. There are, therefore, very many reasons for fitting a mileage recorder on any commercial vehicle. A epeedometer may also be useful to tell the driver whether he is running the risk of trouble with the law by indulging in excessive speeds..
The only trouble, provided that the instrument is well made on sound principles, is that it acts as a kind of inspector supervising the driver's -work. Consequently, if the driver dislikes such supervision he is very much inclined to put the mileage recorder out of action if he can find any excuse for so doing. Consequently, an instrument should be selected which is eo situated that it is practically impossible for it to be damaged by any excusable accident. The method of driving the recorder should be such that its transmission is completely enclosed, so that the driver cannot disconnect it and connect it again in the course of the day and cannot, in fact, tamper with its working in any way without the fact of his having done so becoming quickly apparent.. These last comments apply with even more force to those recorders which actually draw out a chart showing mileage, speed and the. duration of stops. The greater the capabilities of the instrument as a, supervisor of the driver's work, the more important is it that the driver shall have no power of making the instrument show false records.
The Motor Solves Stabling Problem.
The problem of finding good stable acc6mmodation in towns is one that is likely to become more and more difficult. Many proprietors of businesses, which have to be located where land is very expensive and rents very high, are apt to find this a serious matter if they still continue to use horsed vehicles. It has not, perhaps, occurred to you that the abandonment of these horsed vehicles in favour of motors offers an easy solution of this problem and, possibly, leaves available, for extension of premises, land which must be otherwise retained for the accommodation of horses and vans.
The horse must necessarily be housed near the place at which his work starts. The further he is away, the more of his energy is dissipated in getting to his
c56 starting point, and getting back to the stables when his useful day's work is over. The hurge has only a limited stockof energy, and one cannot afford to waste it in this way. Moreover, his speed is ,comparatively low, a,nd anything like a long journey .between the business premises and stable would, therefore, mean a serious waste of time. The motor, on the other hand, has a stock of energy unlimited so long as its fuel is obtainable. If the garage is five miles from the business premises, this simply means that 20 minutes or so must be taken up morning and evenbaz in travelling from the one to the -other. To a 'certain extent, this is a waste of 'time, because it means that the driver is either working longer hours, or else his useful working day is somewhat curtailed. The cost involved on this account can be fairly accurately estimated without difficulty. 4gainst it, one is able to set the fact that the garage accommodation can probably be much more cheaply obtained somewhere well away from the business centre, •
Moreover, where land is 'cheaper, the garage can be well laid out without exorbitant cost being inVolved. The proper maintenance of the vehicles can thus be more easily arranged and, probably, the drivers and the garage hands can obtain accommodation for themselves near the point at which they start and leave their work 'without having to pay fancy prices for it.
There•are plenty of instances in which these points have not been properly realized by motor owners, and, in 'all probability, there are still more instances in which it has not occurred to prospective -owners that it may be an economical plan, when purchasing motorvans, to give up the old stables altogether, using the land for more remunerative purposes and buying or building a suitable garage a mile or so out where land is readily available at a reasonable price.
Reasons for the Differential and for a Locking Gear.
One of the methods sometimes proposed for cheapening the costs of the lighter class of commercial vehicle is to dispense with the differential gear. . Without going into technical details, it may be explained that the function of this gear, generally placed on the centre of the back axle, is to enable the engine to apply its power to both. the rear wheels and yet to permit one wheel to move 'faster than the other, without sliding or scraping taking place. Of course, when a vehicle turns a corner, the outer wheel has to move over a bigger distance than the inner one, and this is where -the differential is of assistance. On the other hand, if one wheel is on a greasy surface and the other on a good one, the differential may, for the monient, be a disadvantage, because the wheel in the unfavourable. situation spins round easily and for the time being no power worth mentioning is transmitted through the othex: one.
When a. vehicle gets badly ditched it is an advantage to be able to lock the differential, making it for the time inoperative, and a device for this purpose is sometimes fitted on steam wagons and tractor's and other heavy vehicles. For the ordinary light van any such device is unnecessary, as the probability of needing to use it is remote. In any design in which a' differential gear is not used, there should beesome other device which will, at least, allow one -wheel to over-run the other. This can be managed by means of a ratchet. It is, however. generally agreed that a differential is well worth' having on any fourwheeled vehicle.