Drivers and Mechanics.
Page 25
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TEN SHILLINGS WEEKLY is paid for the best coinmunication received, and one penny a line of ten words for anything else published, with an allowance for photographs.
Workshop tips and smart repairs ; long and successful runs ; interesting photographs ; all are suitable subjects. We will knock your letters into shape and will prepare sketches. where necessary,before Publication. The absence of a sketch does not disqualify for a prsze. When writing, use one side of the Paper only and mention your entployer's name as a guarantee of bona fides, Neither your own nor your employer's name will be disclosed. Payment will be made immediately after publication. Address your letters to The Editor, THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR, 7-15, Rosebery
Avenue, London, E.C.
Warning the Driver.
[1185] "J.C.B." (Dartford) writes :—" Particulars of several appliances intended to be worked from the trailer, to warn the drivers of the presence of overtaking traffic, have been published from time to time. About a year ago, our foreman decided to equip drivers' mates with small metal whistles, and the idea was to use these to warn the driver when necessary.
"My own experience was, that whenever the whistle was required, the mate made a dive for his coat, which, as a rule, he would find had been left along with the driver on the van, and then, having found the jacket, it would suddenly occur to him that he had left the whistle in his Sunday clothes. "In order to avoid :this, I fitted a siren on the boiler which was calculated to scare the dead from their graves, and I ran a wire from this to the back of the wagon. This so pleased my mate, that he is now only too anxious to use it on every possible occasion, in order to observe the startled air of the drivers of overtaking vehicles."
A Letter from Sweden.
The sender of the following communication has been awarded the 10s. prize this week.
[1186] "Hans R. R." (Stockholm) writes —"I should be pleased if you would forward me fuller particulars of the driver's uniform of which you recently published a photograph on the "Drivers and Mechanics" page. I am employed by a big newspaper proprietor in this city as engineer. My duties consist in running one English-built steamer, and two petrol delivery vans—one English, the other German. I need not say which I prefer.
"One of the managers told me that they were writing for further information re these uniforms themselves, as they are thinking of organizing the men here in a similar manner,
"The roads in this district are very good. Fuel is cheap, and we are not troubled with many police restrictions and regulations. Several English machines are employed round about, and they all seem to give the greatest satisfaction. The 'C.M.' comes to hand every week, and the editorial department of this paper regards it as the authority on modern transport matters. All queries or objections under these heads are promptly settled by looking up your opinion in the back numbers.
"I often read over and translate the hints given on the "D. and M." page to the Swedish mechanics, and where my knowledge of the language fails, we help each other out by practical demonstrations on the wagons, and the liberal use of a piece of chalk on a door or wall. They also use your paper as a help to the acquisition of English, and I often come across
one of them laboriously spelling out simple words, and trying to puzzle out the descriptions under the photographs and drawings. You will be interested to know that many of the younger mechanics are great believers in English engineering methods, and everyone of them who is at all ambitious looks forward to spending a year or two in some English workshop. Many of the text books on mechanics here are translated from well-known home editions.
"It will interest you to know that I lollow your figures on steam and petrol vehicle trials closely. I have not yet obtained such good results over here."
LOar correspondent will be interested to know that an inquiry from the editor of his paper bas already been receiv,d by NVarings.—En.)
For Broken Drills.
[1187J " (IT." (Old Kent Road) writes : —" I am sending you particulars of a little workshop hint which I have found particularly useful. It often happens that the shanks of drills break in the sockets, and, although I have seen several little dodges in your pages for repairing or patching these broken shanks, I have not seen anything like the following. The sketch shows my meaning. [We have had this redrawn.—En.] The drill socket has a hole drilled through it a little way out of the centre, and the drift slot is extended a little. A pin ia driven into the hole, and this is then filed flush on both sides, and the drill is ground to fit the socket with the pin in it. This dodge will be found particularly serviceable on any size of drill up to I in."