MOTORS & MOTORING

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2958, 22 December 1916, Page 11

MOTORS & MOTORING

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The Use of Crease for Waterproofing a Car. Projecting portions of a bolt soon rust, and, although the nut may be forced off with a spanner, ihere is the risk of a breakage, and if the nut is removed fairly often wear takes place on the thread and a loose nut results. After screwing up the. nut the bolt should bo smeared with grease; it is a second spent that will ultimately save many. A rusty split pin 4s a perfect nuisance, often resisting all moderate efforts to remove it, gets burred up with hammering by the exasperated individual, and finally needs filing and punching out. The split pin should be smeared with.grease before putting it in, and after it is in place. Another grease tip. I saw a brand new 1f.15 car —it certainly had not been-out. more than two or three .times—and I doubt if the masses of brilliant plating had had or required anything more than a soft polishing cloth in the way of leaning. One of the first tilings that caught my eyo was the. rusty edges of the plated nuts on the wheels. Sharp edges do not tako or .'keep their plating long. The car was almost spotless, but the damp air had done its work, and the excellent condition of the other' plating made the plated nuts look all the more conspicuous. Now a' little grease oh these, parts is certainly preferable to rust; it is hot nearly so unsightly, and is simple to apply. Grease is also' useful as a • waterproofer on the mudguard nuts. These have to withstand the streams of water and grit thrown up by the front, wheels, and speedilyi rust. If, however, the bolts are greased before knei nuts are applied it will be far easier to remove them when necessary. Punctured Float. v Punctured carburetter floats are ifvt unknown as a source of trouble, and in certain cases where the leak is extremely small it may take seme time to detect the trouble. The symptoms are had running of the engine, with misfiring, overheating, and flooding of the carburetter. Once the trouble is suspected, it is an easy matter to verify one's suspicions, as on removing the float and shaking it the petrol will be heard moving about. The first place to look for a leak is round the scldered joints, but an easy way of .finding it immediately is to immerse the float in boiling water, when a stream of bubbles will indicate the hole. The position of this should be: carefully.noted and.a small hold drilled there to allow, the petrol to be shaken out.- It is.frequently that the petrol, should be boiled out, but this will be found to take much longer than is anticipated. Having emptied the floattho hole must be carefully closed by soldering,_ but care must be taken to use the minimum of solder, any that is superfluous.being carefully removed with a file, end if much has.been used it may be necessary to adjust the .petrol level. Should the trouble arise on tho road, miles from any place where a solderinc outfit could be' obtained, it is possible to utilise a large cork as a temporary float. If even this is not forthcoming it is still possible to proceed by. starting the. engine up and only opening the petrol tap sufficiently to supply it without floodng. ' : . ; Replenishing the Cenerator. . The messy and lengthy process of cleaning out an exhausted carbide, chamber on a long journey at' night can bo overcome by carrying a spare container which ■ fits -the particular • generator .in use. A lid made of tin ■ and held on.by a rubber ring cut from- ■ an old tube can ' easily ' be < contrived, and will serve to keep tho carbido in •. ,tho container till it is required. _ A diso' of' rubber solutioned on the inside of the lid will mako a damp-proof joint. Another . idea that commends itself is to make detachable liners. to fit inside the container.;' Ono or more of these.can be carried as spares, and replenishment can then be carried out promptly . and in a cleanly' manner. Should only ono container bo relied on, it is a good plan to carry an old file or screwdriver, with which to clear out the spent carbide. If something of this nuturc is not'kept handy some time is invariably lost when in a strange' garage in looking round for a suitable instrument.. It is inadvisable to.use tho ftlo or.screwdriver from tho tool-kit, as it would not improve them, and it would also result in a very dirty tool roll. .When starting on a long night journey, when it is likely that the generator will need replenishing,' it is advisable to carry a supply of i.water as well as carbide.Cas Leakage. Leakage of jjas from acetylene generators is somewhat-- common. Washers will wear out, but with care'they last a long time. • A l rubber washer is a very accommodating thing, hut it should be given the best possible opportunity of doing its work. Itswork is arduous, and therefore the jointing 'surface, should not be spoilt by allowing'grit or pieces of carbide to be forced into it by the carbide-container. More important "still, tho edgo of the container should not be knocked to remove the waste' carbide. Many a gastight joint has been spoilt by the .small deents made this way in the soft metal. Ai examination of tho container'would expose "this brutality of many an owner. Care of Springs. Many of the most careful ownerdrivers never think of giving attention to springs beyond the mere oiling of the shackle pins, "hut.the leaves themselves occasionally demand lubrication. If they aro neglected, they become rusty,'and .tho friction between them is too great, tho result being a loss in officiency and in comfort. They are also very apt to causo annoyance through "the squeaking' that they will set up if allowed to get into bad condition, and for many reasons the owner will be well advised to give a few minutes attention to them. The leaves should be separated by means of ono of tho special tools for that purpose, and "the leaves may then be oiled. A feather will be found very useful, as it may bo dipped m oil and then introduced between, the spring leaves. A rather more effective method is to introduce between the leaves special plates which are drilled or cut for the purpose of retaining grease, but this involves the complete taking down of" the spring, which is not a job for the amateur, as it is a somewhat difficult task to reassemble a leaf spring without proper tools and appliances. Here and There. If the clutch is a leather cone, it should be dressed with collan or castor oil two or three times in the first 500 miles, and afterwards, whenever it shows signs of slip or fierceness, and after every thousand miles in any case. Metal and plate clutches may, if lubricated, lie washed out and new lubricant inserted about every 1500-2000 ■ miles. Tho makers give directions as to what lubricant is to bo employed. All small joints should have a spot or two of oil occasionally. In even the. most simple of light car chassis I there aro a largo number of small joints, such as thoso on brakework, on control levers, and so on. All those places should have lubrication, of course, from time to time, and fairly ] frequently if they aro exposed to the weather. Other parts are the starting handle, the pedals where they work on

the rod that goes across the frame, the- mechanism—usually :i fork —that withdraws the clutch, etc.

_ It has been admitted for a very long timo that the engine of tlio modern motor-cycle is in an extremely exposed position. It is nearly always inijwssible" to obtain a positively oil-tight crank case, which, although perhaps possible when the engine is now, soon, when wear sets in, permits oil to exude from the' engino, covering it externally with an oil film, which in turn traps dust and mud, causing undue wear. Now, if It were possible thoroughly to enclose the'power unit whilst not deducting from its efficiency, wo think that it would bo certainly a 6tep in the right direction. It is argued that such protection would be unsightly, but if wo take the instanco "of a motor-car engine, we say that if the engine were, not covered up it would certainly bo unsightly. Ttiere is proof indeed in. tne uncouth appearance of a ir.o;tor-car being driven without a bonnet. On these lines, therefore, we may reasonably expect, says' "Motor Cyclist," to find the power unit of the future encased in neat aluminium guards, easily detachable, but yet weatherproof enough to permit the entire machine being washed down by the application of the garden hose. ' Lighting-u'p time: —To-day, 7.38 p.m.; next Friday, 7.41 p.nC