MORE HINTS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 639, 16 April 1929, Page 6

MORE HINTS

The Care of the Car Plunger Pumps It is not uncommon for the leather washer in a plunger pump to become hard, preventing the development of a desired pressure. A few drops of warm neatsfoot oil placed in the pump cylinder. and thoroughly worked into the leather washer itself, will soften the washer and overcome the trouble. This remedy will also apply to hand pumps. In no circumstances should a mineral oil be used as a leather dressing. “Canaries” in the Brakes When the brakes squeak it is usually due to dirt forced in the lining fabric when pressed against the drum. Often this dirt can be washed out with kerosene. When the lining is thoroughly impregnated with dirt, however, kerosene will not prove adequate. In these cases a small amount of resin and castor oil mixed as a fluid and applied to the brake bands will put an end to the noise. Painting the Spare The handiest way of painting a spare tyre without trying to work out some scheme for doing the whole thing in one operation is to put the spare on a front wheel that has been jacked up. Both sides and the tread of the tyre can be painted quickly and thoroughly. The tyre should dry in a very short while, particularly if the wheel is kept spinning a little. Lamp Voltages When you go into the accessory store for new bulbs for your lights you will be asked what voltage you require. It you are not sure, the best thing to do is to take a look at the storage battery and count the number of cells. Figure two volts to the cell. Thus, if your battery is composed of three cells, your electric system is a six-volt typo and the bulbs should be of that voltage. It is important to get the right kind. Loosening Wheel Nuts When unscrewing the nuts holding the wheel in position, the initial tightness can be overcome more easily if the brace be applied and the nuts loosened before jacking up. This makes it considerably easier, especially when dealing with the front wheels. Do not remove them completely, however, until the wheel is jacked up. The final tightening when the wheel has been changed is best carried out after lowering the car, when the contact with the road will hold the wheel stationary.

Spark Up One of the most common causes of overheating in a motor engine is driving with a retarded spark. A late spark gives rise to overheating because combustion takes place so late that the gases have not had opportunity to be cooled by expansions before the exhaust opens. The result is that the engine runs much hotter than it would if the explosion occurred near upper dead centre, as it is supposed to do.

When a Cover Creeps Car owners who are advised to fit oversize tyres very frequently experience after a few punctures have been encountered, in that the tyre creeps, thereby causing damage to the valve and sometimes pulling it away from the tube. A useful and simple method of overcoming this tendency is to obtain a band of rubber, preferably smaller in circumference than the inside of the rim of the wheel, from an old tube. The inside of the rim should then be painted with a quick-drying enamel, the rubber band being stretched on before the enamel has dried; this will hold it firmly.