MOTOR-CYCLING

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21868, 2 August 1934, Page 16

MOTOR-CYCLING

WAIT EM AT A CLUB TRIAL INEXPERIENCE OF RIDERS A total of 13 riders started in the annual reliability trial conducted by the Waitemata Motor-cycle Club last Sunday. Owing to the fact that some of the riders had little experience of previous trials and were unfamiliar with the course, the general standard was not high, and there were many retirements. However, the experience gained proved valuable to those taking part, and should improve their performances in future events.

The winner was H. J. Stewart (490 c.c. Norton), who lost 83 points, and second place was filled by J. Chapman (246 c.c. Excelsior),- who lost JOS points. Chapman lost points on fewer sections than did the winner, but his individual losses were heavy and resulted in a larger total of deductions than did Stewart's losses. The other riders were: —A. R. Cannichael (172 c.c. Sun), R. King (250 c.c. 8.5.A.), J. A. McCauley (499 c.c. Rudge), M. Mellhuish (348 c.c. Velpcette), E. J. Dodds (348 c.c. Rex Acme), B. Strickett (148 c.c. Royal Enfield), A. Gore (248 c.c. Coventry Eagle), 6. Higgs (498 c.c. A.J.S.), J. Hutchings (346 c.c. Douglas), F. Hammond (498 c.c. A.J.S.), D. Smith (348 c.c. A.J.S.). The event was open to all riders who had not previously won 'i reliability trial conducted by the club. The course covered a distance of 62 miles, and included Waikowhai, Titirangi, Nihotupu and Swanson. Although the roads were slushy in parts, the treacherous greasiness so distressing to motor-cyclists was absent and conditions on the whole were good. A suggestion to be considered by the club officials shortly is the limiting of machines of under 3cwt. to standard equipment, thus debarring the use of competition tyres or chains on the lighter machines. The heavier machines, which are more difficult to handle in mud, will probably be allowed to use competition tyres or chains. AUCKLAND CLUB EVENTS A short one-day trial will be held by the Auckland Motor-cycle Club in about three weeks' time for the Ixion Cup. The course will be through Clevedon, Miranda, New Brighton and Ngatea, and will be easier than that used for this event last year, when a difficult route was followed in the Waitakere Ranges. Arrangements are well in hand also for the John Bull Cup trial, which will be held on October 6 and 7. Several alterations have been made for this event, the most notable being that a short course will bo employed and covered several times. This will save trouble in the event of breakdowns, as riders will be close to Auckland, instead of in the Bay of Plenty or some equally distant area. CHOOSING A MACHINE The choice of a machine is a matter that frequently causes a prospective purchaser considerable anxiety, as so many different types, each with its own merits, are available. It is essential that the mount chosen should be of the best type to undertake satisfactorily the work its owner will require it to do, while questions of purchase price and running costs also demand serious consideration. The following paragraph is the fifst of a series that will appear weekly, dealing with the most popular types offered on the local market: — The two-stroke engine is undoubtedly the simplest type of internal-combus-tion motor yet devised, having only three moving parts, the piston, con-necting-rod and small fly-wheel. The most popular sizes of two-stroke are those ranging from 150 to 250 c.c., although both smaller and larger motors are available. To many people the operation of a two-stroke motor is a mystery, since there are no valves. Actually, the charge of explosive mixture is compressed in the crank-case, and reaches the combustion-chamber by way of a transfer port in the cylinder wall, which is uncovered by the piston on its downward travel.

Lubrication is almost invariably by means of the "petroil" system, the requisite amount of oil being added to the petrol in the tank. An outstanding advantage of this system is that the greater the throttle opening, the greater the amount of oil reaching the engine. No oil-pipes or pump are necessary. For the rider who requires general reliability with a minimum of maintenance, the two-stroke is an attractive proposition. TWO-STROKE ENGINES There are indications of a renewal of interest in engines of the two-stroke type in motor-cars. From the early days onward the fact that the orthodox engine produces power on only one stroke in four has worried inventors, but, so far, the alternative two-stroke cycle has been but little used for motor-car work. Strangely enough, the two-stroke principle is popular for two very different kinds of internal-combustion engine—the diminutive air-cooled "single" used in low-powered motorcycles and the huge compressionignition engines employed in ships and in stationary power plants. A HINT FOR NEW DRIVERS New drivers are often Shy of reversing. When you have taken the wrong road, do not turn into the nearest side road, and then reserve back into the main road, but rather proceed past the side road, or, better still, find a gateway, and reverse into it. There is obviously much niorp danger from traffic iii the main road than there is in the side road. It may so happen that you have to reverse in a narrow road at a dangerous place on a hillside, with a sharp fall-away on the road at one side. If this should occur, always keep the car's radiator facing the danger, and that should be a general rule of reversing.