Cycling & Motor Notes

Otago Witness, Issue 3330, 9 January 1918, Page 44

Cycling & Motor Notes

BY .DEMON

F. Birtles has put up a fine cardrive from Fremantle to Adelaide—a distance of 1753 miles. Birtles, aboard a Maxwell car, left Fremantle on Friday, December 14. and arrived in Adelaide on Wednesday' (19th), his full time being 5d 6hr. The previous' best for this trip was 5d &£OX by Messrs Fraser and Armstrong; but their performance was only an intermediate one, inasmuch as they were intent on the Fremantle to Sydney record (2959 miles), which they succeeded in reducing to the remarkable time of 8d 23hr 35min. At this time of the year when the temperature usually runs high motorists should carefully check the air-pressure m their tyres. Many car-owners are under the impression that hot weather has only a very slight . ~--ct in increasing tyrepressure; but a few tests with a reliable air gaugo- will surprise them, and at the same time bring home the nc-rssity of allowing for expansion during very hot spells. A well-known motorist recently tested his tyrepressure before a short run into the country. The air gauge showed 751 bin eacn of the driving tyres, and at the end of a 30-mile run—at ordinary touring pace—the gauge showed 971 bin each cover—an increase of nearly 30 per cent. The day was certainly a hot one—94deg in the shade. The following morning the pressure in the same two covers was back to the. original 751 b. It can easily be imagined what would have happened to the cover had there been any sign of casing-weakness. In view of the fact that it has often been published in print that the pressure in a tyre can increase-only about 10 per cent., tlio many " blow-outs" that occur during our spelLs of hot weather pan bo easily understood if the pressure is liable to a 30 per cent, increase. Motorists themselves should carry out tests for their own information, and the kndwledgc gained will probably bo the means of saving many a halfworn out cover through the precaution of letting the pressure down on very hot days. There are some 30,000 motor ambulances in use with the French army, and it has now been announced that a further 10.000 are to be procured immediately. In the French Chamber recently, in addition to the present- allowance, 76 million francs was demanded for the ambulance service for 1918.

latter-day motor cyclists (says 'the Irish Motor Cyclist), who only know of the Triumph Motor Co. as the leaders of the English motor cycle trade to learn that they were by no means enthusiastic about the motor bicycle in its early days. It was not that they were in a state of affluence—the worst state a manufacturer can bo in if anything new is presented to him; — they were suffering from the effects of the disastrous slump that followed the cycle boom of a few years previously, and which left tho whole trade with an oA'orload of capital, mostly represented by goodwill, as a result of tho inflation of their capital on the

basis of the profits of the fat years in 1895, 1896, and 1897. The Triumph Co. were paying 2 per cent, dividend, and their 20s shares were about 2s. At this juncture a Mr ■ E\ G. Wallen brought along a motor cycle built up with a Belgian-made Minerva engine by Bayliss, Thomas, and Co., and asked tho Triumph Co. to build ICO motor cycles to hi 3 specifications. They told him that they did not like his motor cycle, and would rather he would order ICO cycles than 100 motor bicycles. It is but fair to tho Triumph Cycle Co. to say that they did not retain that frame of mind for long. They put the best of their braina and energies into the now machine. When tho slump in the motor bicycle trade came olong a few years afterwards they stuck to their guns manfully, improving their products and pushing the sale of them with a firm conviction that the slump was only a passing phase. The way they stood firm may be said to have saved the motor cyole trade for Great Britain. They have profited by their pertinacity and persever-

ance, for today the Triumph Co. is one of the most successful firms in the cycle or motor industry, earning over £60,000 !a year in profits. ——Now that so much'attention is being focused on coal gas as a motor fuel in England, it is interesting to note that practical progress is l)eing made by many big manufacturing concerns with fairly convenient and serviceable retainers. Thousands of cars are now being run on "gas" in Great Britain at the present time, no other fuel being obtainable. > One of the : most practicable containers is made for j attachment to the running board. It is cylinder-shaped, s±ft long by 14in external i J diameter. When fully charged to 18001 b j pressure, it carries 500 cubic feet —the : equivalent of two gallons of petrol. The ; container is made of rubber and fabric, and, ; j all told, weighs 60lb. It is interesting to . | note that at the present price of petrol in • England it costs about £SO to run a light i j oar© 5000 miles for that item alone. On coal • j gas the cost, at 3s 6d per 100 cubic feet, is

about £6 6s—truly a wry important saving, which soon covers the cost of the installation.

lb is estimated that the groat American centre of motor industry, tho State of Detroit, will produce/ over one million and a-quarter ears this year. '- The use of ball-bearings in crankshafts is a comparatively modern innovation. The remarkable advance in-tho uso of ball-bearings for motor and general engineering work is undoubtedly due to the researches made by the designers and manufacturers of bicycles, and has had a very wide effect all over the world. Tho call for more Fiats —one of tho best-known makes of Italian cars—has been such that from 5000 employees in their works in 1914 the total number now employed exceeds 23,000. Had America not joined in the war, a Fiat racing team would havo appeared on the American tracks this year. Immediately after tho French Grand Prix at Lyons, the last automobile race held in Europe, the Fiat factory began the reconstruction of their racing cars, and had completed them before Italy became a combatant. Early last year, acting on the pressing invitation of American track managers, 'the Fiat directors decided to send two of these cars across the Atlantic to participate in the whole of tho speed events of tho season. In tho interval America throw in her lot with the Allies, and on tho day tho cars should havo sailed from Genoa a telegram was received announcing tho abandonment of tho Indianapolis race, tho most important event of the American season. Although many of tho other American tracks continued racing, tho Fiat directors approved the deeisicW of tho Indianapolis management, and recalled their cars from the port of departure. The new speed Fiats wero tested out to 114 miles an hour on the road.

Some remarkable figures relating to America's motor export trade are issued in tho official returns of tho trade by the United States for the year ended June 30, 1917, which have recently come to hand, and not the least remarkable are those relating to the exports of motor cars from that country. During the year in question nearly 81,000 motor cars, valued at £19,000,000, were exported from the United States, as compared with about 25,000, worth some £5,500,000, in the last pre-war year. Of the total last year some 65,000 were passenger cars and 16,000 commercial cars. The following statement gives tho actual figures for the last five years: Year ended Passenger Commercial June 30. cars. cars. Total. 1913 .. .. 24,293 993 25,286 1914 .. .. 23,306 784 29,093 1915 .. .. 23,880 13,999 37,876 1916 .. .. 56,234 21,265 77,499 1917 ... .. 65,834 15,977 81,811 It will be noticed that there was a considerable decrease in tho number of commercial cars exported last year as compared with the previous year. This is accunted for by the fact that the sales of motor lorries for military purposes to tho Allies were extremely heavy during 191519ro, but that latterly there has been a. falling off in tho shipments of this class of car. As regards values, the total valuo of tho cars exported last year was £18.950,000, as compared with £20,305,000 in tho previous year, and only £5,536,000 in 1913-14. The average valuo per car m 1916-17 was £156 for passenger cars and £552 for commercial cars, as compared with £l5O and £556 respectively in 1915-16 and £lB7 and £314 in 1913-14. -—At this time of the year motorists should remember that rubber in almost any form deteriorates quickly when subjected continuously to execesively strong

light and high temperatures. This is particularly true of an inflated tyre, for the heat, besides being injurious to the rubber, will sometimes melt or soften vulcanised spots or patches v on the inner tube. A simple precaution in protecting tyres from the sun and preventing what often results in serious injury is to throw robes, canvas, dusters, or almost anything over them. Neither should spare tyres over be exposed. * < Some American local bodies have adopted a practice which is particularly commendable from the point of view of the motorist. This is to paint white all bridges and- fences defining approaches to them. The result is to greatly reduce the dangers which arise from the difficulty of distinguishing the narrowing of roadway at bridges and culverts. In Newton County, Indiana, not only are bridges and fences at either end painted white, but the ends of small culverts are defined by a stout white rail on each side. Thus the motorist cannot get into difficulties by running one wheel off the end of the culvert. THE TANKS. An interesting item, of news sent by Router from the Correspondents' Headquarters, French army, is to the effect that the Germans are now experimenting with an armoured tank moving on caterpillars and armed with one 3in gun and two machine guns. It is fitted /with a sort of beak forward to assist it in crossing jtrenches, and a small conning tower for observation purposes projects from tho : roof. The armour , comes well down over the lower parts of the machine, so as to protect the caterpillars, which are said | to be completely hidden by armour. The | jiews causes no surprise: indeed, the suri prise, if any, is that the # enemy should have been so long in copying the example of tho Allies, it being now well over a year since the travelling fortress, which quickly became known as the "tank," made its first appearance to the holy fear of tho Hun soldiers who had to face the onslaught of the new monster. It is hardly likely, however, that the news that the enemy has now a " tank" on the way will disturb the peace of mind of either the .French or British Commanders-in-Chief, for tanks avo rather instruments of attack than of defence, and are consequently not likely to render such service to the Huns as they have done to the Allies. In any case, we have more than a year's start over the enemy, not only in tho construction, but also in tho use of these machines, an advance which should enable us to more than, maintain our supremacy in the "tank" world. Furthermore, another item of news is one which will hardly prove pleasant reading for tho German military auihorities. It is to the efiecS that, following the British nnd French examples, tho United States War Department has secured an appropriation for, and is about to commence, the construction of from 2000 to 3000 tanks for use in connection with the American army.