OPINIONS and QUERIES The Editor invites rorres,pondence on all subjects
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connected with the use of commercial motors. Letters should be written on only one side of the paper. The right of abbreviation is reserved, and no responsibility for views expressed is accepted.
The Haulage of Sugar Beet.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[29721 Sir,—Will you kindly let me have the price per ton for sugar-beet haulage within .5, 10, 15 or 20 Miles radius of the factory, assistance in loading being given by the farmer? Also please send me The Commercial Motor Tables of Operating Costs—Yours
faithfully, • • W. E. LAWRENCE. Lincoln,
[The prices yen must charge to make a profit depend on • the size of lorry, and you give me no indication as to that. Assuming that you propose to use a five-tonner, then the following figures will apply :— The five-mile trip will be covered three times a day. That is 150 miles per week.
Only two per day will be possible over the 10-mile and 15-mile journey. That is equivalent to mileage of 200 and 300 per week respectively. It will not be possible to de two journeys of 20 miles each way every day, and you may take it that 300 miles per week will be the average.
Your cost per mile will be a shilling, but your revenue should be at least is. 4d. On that basis the charge per trip and per ton works out as follows :
5 miles 13s. 411. per trip and 2s. 8d. per tom 10 miles 26s. 8d, per trip and 5s. 4d. per ton. 15 miles 40s. Od. per trip and Ss. (Id. per ton. 20 miles 53s. 41 per trip and 10s. 8d. per ton. A copy of the Tables of Operating Costs has been sent
to you.—S.T.R.1
A Request for News of Diesel-engine Progress.
The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
12973] Sir,—Among your Opinions and Queries" I read with much interest Mr, W. H. Goddard's letter dealing with the Diesel engine of the pre-combustionchamber design.
I enclose a copy of the R.A.C. certificate of the test for which I was awarded the Dewar Trophy last year.
This vehicle is fitted with the Mercedes-Benz sixcylindered engine of precombustion-chamber design, and I mention the following features from the report in support of same: 1. Object of trial.—To obtain records of (a) general reliability, (b) fuel consumption, (c) oil consumption, (d) water consumption, (e) ease of starting.
2. Result.—Total distance covered, 6911 miles at an average speed of 17.7 m.p.h., exclusive of stops. The fuel consumption was at the rate of 13.48 m.p.g., or 156.5 gross ton-miles per galiOn and 84.7 net ton-miles. The oil consumption was at the rate of 700.5 m.p.g. The water used was 13 pints. The engine was started from cold on 10 occasions, the starter being employed after current had been passed to the heating elements ; the average inclusive time of the starts was 28 seconds. The heating elements were not used for any of the remaining 48 starts, none of which took longer than 4 seconds. The longest period between stopping and restarting was 63 minutes.
3_ GeneraL—The total time spent on repairs and adjustments was 58 minutes 50 seconds. At 205 -miles intermittent misfiring began and the fuel-injector valve of No. 3 cylinder was changed and the valve tappetv, of No. 4 cylinder adjusted. At 363 miles the brakes were adjusted and at 524 miles the valve tappets of Nos. 4 and 5 cylinders. When running at Steady speed no smoke from the exhaust was observed, but when abrupt changes of engine speed or throttle opening B28 occurred (for example, as when changing gear), there was a ..slight emission of odorous smoke.
It would be of great assistance if other contributors who are -interested will furnish their figures so that the public can judge from same the merits of the various systems.
Recently I made a test tieing oil distilled from coal by the low-temperature carbonization process, and the results were very satisfactory.
Subject to Parliament giving every possible encouragement to the question of home-produced fuel suitable for Diesel-engined vehicles, I feel certain that this would also go a long way towards solving the unemployment problem and eliminating smoke fogs.—Yours faithfully, C. B. Warm:AA:a. London, W.1.
Equipment Requited for the Garage.
Tire Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
[2974] Sir,—We operate five-new Ford motor lorries, a Morris-Commercial 30-cwt., and two others. We have previously sent all our repairs to a local garage, but are now building a new garage and 'intend to fit it up with everything necessary for the economical maintenance of our small -fleet.
'We should be very .much obliged if you could recommend what to have in the way of equipment, apart from the ordinary tools. Would you reemmuend (1) Battery charging equipment; (2) breakdown crane';' (3) pressure greasing, washing and pneumatic drill ;.(4) axle and chassis-straightening press.; (5) -vulcaniling ' equipment ; ((I) lathe; (7) type of installation for lifting engines ; (8) spray painting equipment?— Yours faithfully J, lit. BURROWS.
[We presume that you will have electric-power facilities available'. Upon this depends se much in connection with modern equipment for the garage. As you have six 30cwt. vehicles and two others, all, presumably, working on delivery services, there should be ample time during the daylight hours for charging the batteries; therefore, the installation of special dynamo equipment would, -perhaps, be rather an unnecessary expense. What would prove cheaper, no doubt, would be the use of a plant which could be coupled up to the electric mains for charging batteries when required.'
A breakdown crane might, at times, save you a considerable sum of money. You would not, of course, set aside a vehicle for carrying it permanently. We suggest that you consider a crane suitable for lifting the largest machine in your fleet, which, at the same time, could be mounted upon any of the 30-cwt. vehicles sr upon one of the other two, of which you do not give the capacity. If the two are smaller than 30 cwt., you would, of course, ignore them in this connection.
One of the most useful pieces of equipment, from your point of view, would be a combination pneumatic-power plant, which could be used for vehicle washing and drying, spray painting, tyre inflation, engine cleaning, mechanical greasing, welding, forging and brazing, the operation of pneumatic tools and pneumatic jacks. The use of a straightening press is rather an occasional matter, and we doubt whether, with 30-cwt. vehicles in the maim you will find it necessary to go to this expense. Probably a straightening tool would do all that you need.. Two essential itemswhich you mention are a vulcanizer and a lathe. With regard to lifting the engines. if your garage has suitable beams in the roof, the use of pulley blacks, which can be moved from point to point, would suffice, provided always that the of be capable of supporting the heaviest engine which you propose to use. -Failing this, a floor crane would be the best type. . If you propose to employ a small skilled staff to do almost every task in the shop, we suggest the use of the following pieces of equipment :—An engine stand, wheel trammels, a bench grinder, a hub puller, a crankshaft tool and cylinder borer or hone, stocks, taps and dies, a valveseat cutter and a selection of hand tools for woodworking for minor body repairs.—En.] Running Chevrolet Six-wheelers. • The Editor, TRE COMMERCIAL MOTOR. r29751 Sir,—Would you be kind enough to let me have a copy of your Tables of Operating Costs? I should like to know the cost of running six-wheeler Chevrolets over an average of 250 inibm per week. Some of our expenses are as follow :—Wages, £2 10s.; garage, 10s.; insurance, 120; tax, 125 and £32; petrol 13 m.p.g. and 14 m.p.g.; cost of vehicles, 1350 and
£440.—Yours faithfully, S. E. CoLms. London, W.14.
[A copy of The Commercial Motor Tables of Operating Costs has been sent to you The total operating cost of your two Chevrolets should average 9d, per mile, or £9 'Ts. tid. per week, all in. There will not be a great difference between the cost of one and the other.—S.T.R.]