MORE NEW HINTS

Manawatu Times, Issue 6848, 1 March 1929, Page 4

MORE NEW HINTS

The Care of the Car Slipping Cone Clutch. A hacksaw and a little ingenuity helped a motorist to get his heavilyladen car through woods and over sandy roads, miles away from a garage, when the clutch slipped and failed to provide tho necessary pulling power. The blade of the saw was broken into pieces as long as the width of tho leather belt, and these were then driven in at equal iutervals between the clutch and the leather. The latter was thus raised, and -when engaged the clutch held firmly, remaining in good condition for a long time. The plan is an easy one, but care must be used to place the pieces of saw so as not to shear off the copper rivets. Magneto Hint. When a magneto needs attention it is advisable to place it in the hands of a firm specialising in this type of work. If, in an emergency, however, a motorist dismantles his . magneto, it should not be forgotten that the horse-shoe-sliaped magnets w r ill quickly lose their magnetism if & “keeper” —a pieco of soft iron—is not placed across the poles. The magnets, when removed, should not be knocked in any way or the residual magnetism may be destroyed. Paint Scratches. Scratches that have not penetrated completely through the paint to the undercoating, or further, can very often be smoothed out by careful and somewhat lengthy rubbing with a very fine abrasive. For this purpose one may successfully use the sediment in brass polish on a soft piece of rag the latter wrapped round a finger tip. . A bad surface scratch across a back wing, caused by contact with the front wing on another and carelessly driven car, was eliminated completely by using successively knive powder, , brass polish sediment, and powdered whiting. The latter moistened with lubricating oil, being a very fine abrasive indeed, brought back the original gloss to the treated area in a surprisingly satisfactory manner. Accelerator Guido.

One now and again hears of accidents • arising through the inadvertent depression of the accelerator pedal when it is intended to apply the brake. When the pedal comos too near the brake tho danger may often be obviated my arranging some sort of shield or shroud—perhaps of thin sheet metal, or bent iron work—which will guard tho accelerator when tho brake is applied. Often similar arangements to act as a guide to steer the foot easily and safely to the accelerator may be devised, and will make for safety. Many drivers have peculiarities personal to themselves, which make it necessary to guard the feet against straying on to th > wrong pedal. Some makers guard against this in the design. Mysterious Trouble.

After washing his car, a motorist had difficulty in starting it, and once running it would not pull well. He visited a garage and ignition, valves, and carburettor were checked without result. Finally tho muffler was removed, when the engine ran perfectly. Examination showed that a loose muffler baffle was blocking the exhaust, and probably this was due to a heavy muffle rexplosion. The owner had got some water into the distributor and this was tho cause of the starting trouble. After checking the engine for some time, a spark occurred, which ignited the charge in the muffler, blowing the baffle loose and shutting of the exhaust.