TRANSPORT TIPS FOR TRADESMEN.
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Particularly Addressed to Those Who are Replacing Horsed Vehicles by Motors, or Contemplating So Doing.
. N OWADAYS, an electric lighting and starting
outfit is rightly regarded as a component part of the chassis of a private motorcar and not as an extra fitted only in response to a specific demand by the customer. This stage, however, has not been reached in respect of the e commercial vehicle and, so far as the engine starter is concerned,' it is questionable whether this fitting will come to be generally. incorporated in standard models unless someone can devise a verycheap, but at the same time very powerful, electrical or mechanical starting apparatus.
Some Extras : Are They Worth While ?
Electric lighting is, ofcourse, quite common, though by no means, universal, on commercial vehicles. It may still be legitimately regarded as an extra, and considered as suCh. In the same category may be placed instruments in the nature of mileometers and speedometers and recording instruments combining the functions of the two just mentioned and also providing a complete log of every, journey made. We may also consider under the heading of " extras ' apparatus having the effect of altering the efficiency of the engine cooling system. and so making it adjustable by hand, or automatically, in order that it may be adequate but not excessive at all seasons of the year.
Electrical Equipment.
The subject of electrical equipment has been deaU with fairly recently in these notes. Electric lighting has the advantage of cleanliness and freedom from smell. Also, it saves a certain amounted running time, as it is only the work of an instant to,turn on the lights. In addition, it opens up considerable possibilities in the way of illuminated advertisements on vehicles which, during the winter•nionthe, i do a fair amount of their work n towns after dark.
The fitting of an electric engine • starter cannot be so easily justified. It certainly saves manual labour, so tending to increase the useful working capacity of the driver. Alternatively, it saves fuel, which would otherwise be wasted by keeping an engine running at stopping-places so as to save the trouble of starting it up again. If it has already Theen decided to use electric lighting outside and inside the van, then the addition of the engine starter is worth considering, if the work involves a large number of ' fairly short stops aggregating a large percentage of standing time during the day. If the standing time is negligible, except at the terminal points where the vehicles are under supervision, the extra cost of the starter is not justified.
Recording Instruments.
An ordinary mileometer, merely recording the distance covered, is, in the writer's opinion, practically an essential if the motor user wishes to keep accurate track of the performance of his vehicles. By entering• up the mileage covered each day, we can observe any fluctuations in fuel consumption. These may indicate the need for adjustments which, if made, will result in considerable economies. Also, if we have an accurate record of the distance covered and have noted the times of departure and arrival and the number of deliveries made, it is easy to work out the average time taken per delivery, and it is essential to know this if the work of the vans is to be organized to the best advantage.
A, speedometer is useful for enabling the driver D32
to conform with the law, either invariably, or whereever the risk of not doing so is likely to be too big to be worth while.
The most instructive instrument of all is, of course, that which indicates on a chart the speed at the moment, the distance covered during the day, and, incidentally, the number and duration of all stops on the road. The real trouble with instruments of this kind is that drivers are suspicious of them. With such an instrument supervising him, the driver cannot stop. five minutes for a drink or waste a little time in conversation with a friend without being, so to speak, reported to his employer. If he is working on a well-known round, the instrument will, in effect, tell the traffic manager exactly, where the drivers are inclined to stop for refreshment. The information given 'by a recording instrument iscertainly useful, provided that it can be relied upon, but experience shows that it is next to impossible to ensure that an instrument will keep an accurate record if it is not the driver's wish that it should do so.
it is seldom impossible for a mechanically-minded man to fake things so that records will be rendered inaccurate without much fear of the driver being detected. In the last emergency, a driver can generally manage to dispose elan instrument that is objectionable to him by engineering some slight accident which puts it out of gear. Of course, if the driver is himself one of the owners of the concern which runs the vehicle, it will be in his interests to keep the most accurate records possible, and then an instrument of the kind under discussion may be well worth buying, and may, perhaps, be periodically transferred from one vehicle to another, to enable useful comparisons to be made.
Changing the Efficiency of the Cooling System.
There are some very ingenious devices, based upon scientific principles, for varying the effectiveness of the cooling system of a motor vehicle. These depend on the operation of a valve which is so constructed as to respond rapidly to changes of teme
perature, with the consequence that, when the temperature reaches a certain point, the valve moves so
as to admit of freer circulation of water, in consequence of which the temperature rises no further. The radiator must, of course, be absolutely adequate for heavy work in the hottest possible weather. In this system there is no need for any manual adjustments to maintain both adequate cooling and good efficiency, whether the weather be hot or cold. The apparatus is, however, rather delicate, and something more crude and more simple would generally • be preferred for use on a commercial vehicle. One plan is to design the cooling system so that a part of the water can, when desired, be, so to speak, short-circuited. Another very simple plan is to take off the fan belt when the weather is 'cold and to depend upon the radiator.
Such devicesedo *et, however; came strictly within
• our present subject, but this certainly includes simple fittings which cover over a part of the radiator so as to reduce the effective coaling area during the winter. Such a fitting may take the form merely of a plate, but better facility for adinsttrent is provided if it is on the lines of a Venetian blind, the slats of which can be turned so as to admit the' air more or less freely to the front of the radiator. If the cooling system is very effective and never permits any boiling, even in the hottest weather, the use of such a device may be well justified in winter as a means of economizing fuel.