Coppersmiths Repairs for Commercial Motors.
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Mr. J. H. Rand all's Specialised Work. The Repair of Cellular Radiators.
It is only in engineers' repairing nd in manufacturing shops of coniderable dimensions that the coppermith, the tinsmith, the pattern-maker, le coach-builder and other specialists nd a definite place in the works rganisation. The small concern, as a ale, unless it undertakes work of a ighly-specialised nature, has not suffilent custom to warrant the constant mploynlent of highly-paid craftsmen tch as those mentioned above. Braz soldering, plating and other partiAar operations are more often than ot carried out in small shops by a tter who is not a very rigid Trades 7nionit, or by one of those invaluable andymen who, although they have :!ver received any particular training, in always turn their hands to a bit of nithing, brazing-, joining, or other of
e multitudinous operations, which nnot strictly be classified as part of e routine duties of the ordinary shop ter or machinist.
In a well-organised, small, repair op, and, indeed, more often than not, larger concerns as well, occasions e not wanting when repairs of such a ture have to be effected that, in their se, the soundest policy to pursue is call in the aid of an outside expert or ecialist. Especially is this the case th coppersmiths' and tinsmiths' reirs, and it is invariably to the adyan?,-e of an establishment, which has upkeep and the care of Motor tides of all descriptions as its rticular objective, to keep closely in :eh with some outside shop that will dertake the rebuilding of almost ielessly-damaged radiators, the reTing of badly-crushed extincteurs, i of aprons and oil lamps which have 7Orrie bent and torn out of recognin. it is a joy to discover a shop ich will cheerfully undertake the 'air of lamas and many other sheettal details, which have suffered wks to fheir systems, as the result collisions or carelessness.
Messrs. J. II. Randall and Company, of Green Street Works, Paddington Green, W., announce themselves as tin, troll and zinc-plate workers, and as makers of every description of sheetmetal work for motor vehicles. This, it is true, correctly describes a large portion of their business, but it is as a shop to which the most extreme cases of damage to radiators, lamps and mud wings may be sent that Randall's owe the satisfactory increase in their business, which has dated from the advent of the London motorbus. Mr. Randall, the principal partner in the enterprise which bears his name, originally established a small but remunerative business for the repair and plating The success of this firm has been due primarily to the central position of the shops, but no less can it be traced to the thorough manner in which unique opportunities have been seized for the expansion Of business in new directions. Some few years ago, it will be remembered, the pleasure-car manufacturer was confronted by a demand for chassis fitted with Roi de Beiges and tulip bodies. This class of work had its origin in France, and English coach tin ild ers a ill nit t edly a et m se rvative body of eraftsinen—were either not able or not willing to produce these hammered-metal, bucket seats. Mr. Randall, however, at the request of one of the principal London carriage-builders, set to work and produced tulip and koi de Belges, hammered, aluminium sears and curved metal panels, and the workmanship compared so favourably with the cross-channel productions that a great volume of orders flowed in. All pioneers, it must be agreed, do not reap the reward a Iheir perception, but the prices, which have been mentioned to our represent:dive in confidence as having been obtained for those first Roi de Beiges seats, must have gone far to lay a satisfactory financial foundation for the present remunerative connection. Aluminium seats and curved metal panels are still made at Randall's works, but the prices are now " cut," and pressed work has ousted the hand-worked productions. We reproduce, on this page, a photograph of one of the shops which is kept exclusively employed on metal coach-work, rind on mud wings and oil trays. With the arrival of the motorbus in London, the repair of radiators opened up a new field, and one of which the subjects of the present article were not slow to avail themselves. The cellular or honeycomb radiator, which was by far the most-favoured type in the early days of motorbus development, was efficient and satisfactory so far as certain types were concerned, but, in a case of damage from collision, or of apaarently-incurable leakiness, the efforts of the garage staff were either of no avail, or were confined, at best, to the administration of generous doles of solder to the offending portion. Until quite recently, many of the cellular radiators, which were to be seen on London motorbus:4's, were nearly all solder and brass patches, hut the gilledtube variety is steadily ousting them, and, with the exception perhaps of the Milnes-Daimler type, the honeycomb class of cooler seems likely to disappear from employment on commercial motor vehicles. The rebuilding of crushed or strained honeycomb coolers is an undertaking which requires considerable technical skill, and it can only be satisfactorily effected by workmen who are wholly conversant with repairs of this nature. During a. visit to Randall's works recently, a representative of this journal was afforded an opportunity of watching the various stages of repairs which were being effected to radiators of all descriptions_ In a honeycomb cooler, when only a few leaky places have to be made good, and when these are at some distance from the edge, and when it is not desired to remove a large portion of the radiator, an additional liner is inserted into each faulty tube. This new tube, as shown in the sketch which we reproduce, consists of a piece similar to those of which the radiator is constructed, with the exception that each side is made slightly concave; this further operation reduces the overall sectional dimensions sufficiently to allow it just to be inserted in the original tube. The ends of the new liners are carefully tinned to a depth of about half-an-inch, and, after they are inserted, they are slightly opened by means of a drift, and the closed edges of the two tubes are carefully soldered. The point at which weaknesses most frequently develop, in a cellular radiator, is at the junction of the sheet-metal case and of the outside rows of tubes. The tubes very often split. It is difficult, at any time, to make a joint against the edges of a series of separately-spaced tubes, but, where the outer row is damaged in any way, it is Randall's practice completely Lo remove this line of tubes, and to substitute for it a spacing strip ;I-inch deep and A-inch wide, and so to dispose the parts that the brass case is securely held to this strip, which in its turn makes a good joint with the next row of tubes. The whole joint is carefully brought up flush with solder, and is covered with a plain cover strip. When a number of tubes in a block is damaged, the faulty portion is cut out bodily, and a new carefully-built-up section is inserted in its place. The original spacing wires between the tubes are in this case dispensed with, and lengths of thin flat metal are inserted in their places. It is interesting to note that a 3o-h.p. Milnes-Daimler honeycomb radiator is built up of approximately 8,000 tubes, and that both the original and the replacement tubes are of to-t,000ths of an inch brass stuff. In some early types, the metal was only 4-1,rxxnhs thick, but this was found to split badly under the severe conditions of contraction and expansion which pertain to the service of a radiator. The experience of Messrs. J. H. Randall and Company points to the following fact*: that the most satisfactory radiator for commercial motor-vehicle work is that composed of vertical gilled tubes, with their ends sweated into brass plates, and of cast top and bottom headers secured by bolts; that the cellular type is efficient, but is liable to get choked with dirt and grease; and that this latter is expensive to repair. A number of new small cab radiators, which were going through the shops to the order of the London United Motorcab Company, Limited, at the time of our representative's visit, were being built up with short gilled tubes, and punched brass top and bottom plates. The plates are punched, rather than drilled, in order that the metal round the holes may be drawn down, and so may form a pocket round each end of each kiln!, into which the solder will run. The outer casing for cab radiators is made of 20-gauge sheet brass, and is soldered to the top and bottom tube plates after the tubes are all assembled, For motorbus work, as a rule, heavy sheet brass is employed for the tube plates, as it is harder than the castings which are sometimes specified. A considerable portion of the staff at Paddington Green is kept busy on the manufacture of new engine bonnets, and the repair of old ones, and the recent ruling of the Carriage Office authorities of Scotland Yard, with regard to the provision of oil trays beneath all licensed public motor vehicles, brought in very large orders for these awkwardly-shaped arrangements. Lead-coated mild-steel sheet is employed for these aprons and oil trays, and in some cases for bonnets, but these latter are more often made front 2o-gauge blued steel, on account of its more finished appearance. A large number of mud wings is also turned out, during the course of the year, and these are Made from blued steel. As an illustration of the thoroughness with which Randall's do their work, we may instance a hot-water test bench, which has been installed in order that the water-tightness of repaired radiators may be thoroughly assured. It was found that the usual cold-water test did not, on some occasions, disclose the existence of a weak spot, but that the expansion due to the use of water at about the same temperature as might be looked for in practice invariably resulted in Lii detection of all doubtful joints. Our representative was shown chemical tire extincteur, of the usui two-gallon type, which is now bein made throughout at the works in larg numbers to orders for the Londe General Omnibus Company, and otht important buyers. The appliance is of particularly-substantial design, and ti workmanship seems to be all that cote be desired. We are given to unde stand that the price at which these ne extincteurs are sold is leading to a vet large demand. The body of the rese voir is constructed of 19-gauge coppe and this is lap welded, riveted, a] soldered flush at the joint. T bottom piece is convex, with a 1-in flange, which fits against a swag beading in the main body ; this arrang ment permits a body of solder to act mulate round the joint, and so to lo the bottom to the main casing. That business is prospering is e denced by the facts that a consideral piece of land, which adjoins t existing three-floored building, I recently been purchased, and that pla are all well in hand for the erection additional premises on a large sea A number of new lathes and ott machine tools are already being livered, as it is intended to underta a considerable deal of brass finishi in the future. A large stock of misc laneous small fittings and of bars a sheet metal of all kinds is alrea carried, and it is intended gradually extend this side of the business occasion offers. Mr. J. H. Randall is a confirrr optimist as to the future of the co mercial vehicle, and, to such a pit does he carry this belief, that he is in wise anxious to cultivate the pleasu car side of his trade; he is satisfied ti the heavier branch will provide nit than enough work for him and oth, in the future. It is good to meet c UI such a temperament, and, if FE successful experience is any critern Messrs. J. H. Randall and Compa will have more than enough radiatl to repair ia the future.