MAKING BEST USE OF THE - FORD.
Page 17
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Valuable Advice on Every Phase of Ford Transport, Which Will Appeal to the Owner, Driver and Repairer.
/N THIS series of hints concerning the Ford light chassis and ton truck wherever they are employed for commercial purposes, we endeavour to deal with the subject from every view-point, so that the advice given will appeal to the owner, driver, maintenance engineer or mechanic.
We shall welcome for inclusion among the hints those which have proved of value to individual users, and will make suitable remuneration for any such information which we publish.
Readers are recommended to obtain the original "Book of the Ford," which constitutes a complete manual dealing with the Ford car, the van and the truck. 2s. 9d. post free from the offices of this journal.
209 —Refacing the Drive-shaft Bushing of the Ton Truck.
A useful tool for refacing the drive-shaft bushing of the ton truck may easily be made' in the manner illustrated, from a piece of mild steel 9 ins, long and 1* ins. diameter.
Two and a quarter inches from one end, drill a in. hole through the bar and file it out to take a cutter of 1-in. cast or high-speed tool steel. Drill another hole in from the end of the bar to meet that for the cutter and tap this Kin. Whitworth for a square-headed bolt, the tip of which should be undercut and hardened in order to prevent it mushrooming under the pressure of holding the cutter.
The length of the cutter is most important. It should be exactly 114in. ; if it be too short it will Tiot face the whole width of the bush, and if too long will foul the housing into which it enters. The cutting edges should be arranged so that the tool can be given a right-hand movement when in operation.
To use it, first reamer the bush and then drop the end of the tool into it, facing the bush until sufficient metal has been removed.
The only difference required in a tool of the same type for the 7-cwt. model is in the length of the cutter and the diameter of .the shaft, which should be 1 21-32 in. and 1 in. respectively.
210.—Improving the Ford Lubricating System.
A decided improvement in the Ford lubricating system can be brought about by fixing an auxiliary tank, with a capacity of approximately half a gallon, in some convenient place in the cab. A handoperated plunger pump with its delivery pipe led through the breather cap is placed in the tank, and a puinpful of oil given to the engine every J. or 20 miles.
211.—An Easily Made Burning-in Plant.
The cost of 'a burning-in plant is rather above the means of some repairers who are in a small way of business. Such men can fairly eas4 fit up a plant of their own.
The outfit consists of an old 7-cwt. Ford chassis with the engine and radiator mounted in the normal positions, whilst an improvised front axle may be used to trundle the outfit about as required. The rear end consists of a piece of wood, 2 ins, thick and 8 ins. or 9 ins, wide, to serve as a leg, the whole being trussed .and stayed in the mannershown in the illustration.
The petrol tank and coil box are mounted over the engine, to leave the centre of the chassis free for the cradles. The fast4iarned consist of two brackets made of 2-in, by f-in. flat iron, or steel, suitably bent.
When burning-in bearings, the Ford cylinder block is mounted in the cradles with the crankshaft uppermost. By mounting the' cylinders in this manner, with the flywheel flange to the rear, the bearings are run-in according to their normal direction of rotation ; also when new rings have been fitted the outfit is particularly useful in lapping them in.
Normally, a short coupling with a dog to catch the starting handle pin is employed between the driving engine and that to be run in, but a further improvement is the use of a long extension shaft, which can be made from an old ton-truck drive shaft, by which the completed engine may also be turned; in which (see a rear transmission (part No. 3,369) may serve as a bearing for the back end.
When an overhauled engine has been remounted in its own chassis, the running-in plant can be placed, in front of it and coupled up by fitting the short shaft in place of the starting handle. The overhauled engine may then be run-in for a sufficient period to ease the preliminary stiffness, after whichit may be switched on.
When using the short coupling, it is advisable to fit a spring device by which the dog may slip oat of engagement directly the engine Starts.
Plant of this type has been Imilt at as low a cost as 27, as most of the parts may be obtained front the scrapheap.