MOTOR AND CYCLE

Taranaki Daily News, 9 October 1915, Page 11 (Supplement)

MOTOR AND CYCLE

NEWS AND NOTES. J. Fahey, wkp some we\ks back left Port Darwin for Adelaide on a bicycle, with the intention of endeavoring to reduce F. Reichenbach's transcontinental record of 28 days Train., and subsequently had to abandon his attempt on the record owing to a broken chain-wheel crank, has reached Adelaido safely. Fahey has now enlisted with the Australian forces.

Cyclists will be interested to learn that Lantiuberg, the man who was responsible for Floyd MaeFarlaue's death in America, has been acquitted on a charge of manslaughter. MacFaxlane, who was one of the ablest and cleverest racing cyclists in the world, raced with considerable success in Australia some years back. During later year's he acted as a teams and track manager, and it was in the latter capacity that he met his death. MacFarlane and Lantinberg had a dispute, and during a scuffle the popular American rider was struck on the head with a screw-driver, death supervening. MacFarlane died a wealthy man.

The motor cycle side-car has opened up many fields of usefulness. One of the latest applications in. America is that of applying it to street cleaning. In front of the side-car is a steel brush, which may be depressed to bring it into contact with the pavement. The brush then scrapes and loosens the dirt, 80 that the rotary broom which is immediately behind it can sweep it up. A handle is attached to the side of the driver's seat. When this is raised the broom is lowered into contact with the pavement and caused to rotate. When the handle is lowered, the broom-rotat-ing mechanism is thrown out of operation. A mathine of this type is particularly adapted for use on streets paved with asphalt or with wood. These machines have been tried in Washington, and have proved very efficient, 'An interesting 100 miles challenge motor-car Tace was decided last month on the Chicago speedway (2 miles circuit). Four champions took part in thematch, namely, De Resta (Peugeot), Cooper (Stutzz), Burman ('Peugeot), Oldfield (Delage). De Resta, who has been winning all the big American speed events this year, again proved the victor, and incidentally established a new American record by covering the 100 miles in 58min 52 2-ssec. The match proved a magnificent struggle. De Resta, only won by 52 sec. from Cooper. Burman, who-had two stops for tyre troubles, finished three minutes back, while Oldfield, who was in the running for 00 miles then retired owing to carburetter troubles. Over 20,000 people witnessed the race. Both De Resta and Cooper had tyre troubles, the former stopping for a cover at 74 miles, whilst Cooper had to make a change in the eightieth mile. The average pace was about 104 miles an hour. De Resta's great performance is not a world's record, for faster time has been recorded in England by the late Percy Lambert, who in 1913 covered 103 miles 1407 yards in 60 minutes. The French craek, J. Goux (Peugeot) subsequently raised the figures to 108 miles 387 yards. Later Chassagne, driving a Dunlop-shod 12-cylinder Sunbeam, negotiated 107 miles 1072 yards in the hour, but these performances were put up against time and not in competition.

A comfortable bicycle saddle, like a thing of beauty, i 9 a joy for ever. Every wise cyclist is aware of this fact, yet there are multitudes of pedallers who are not enjoying cycling to the full for the reason that they have not taken sufficient care in the selection of this most important feature of their machines. rpJiey are content to take what is offered with a new machine and to endure discomforts which may easily be avoided. In like manner many cyclists put up with pedals Which, are too narrow to accommodate the full width, of their shoes, and so suffer long before their comrades who are wiser in their generation. Yet comfortable saddles are not, as some would have us believe, as rare as rubies, and it is quite easy to obtain pedals to suit individual requirements at the time a new machine is purchased. Having once obtained a comfortable saddle, however, the wise cyclist regards it as the valuable possession it really is. Even if the machine to which it is attached changes hands, the saddle is not included in the bargain. For a saddle does not become wholly comfortable all at once. Generally it has to be put through a breaking-™ process before it acquires that degree of comfort which makes it too valuable to be parted with lightly. No cyclist can put up easily a decent daily mileage on a saddle which has uncomfortable features, and the practised rider finds his eapaeitly for ciidu.ance m'.lch reduced if misfortune coupels him t? do a journey on a Srddle to wlrch he Is not used. A comfortable saddle, therefore, is peruaps the only th ; ng ti:tli wmii a man flioulo not part when seJing his j;d ■. It is economy to Jet the purchaser have a new saddle in its place.

It is reported that the proposed English duty of 33 1-3 per cent, on imported motor-cars, etc., will result in a revenue of £1,150,000. This may seem a big amount, but recent figures showing imports of American motor goods into England prove that an enormous number of cars and commercial vehicles have been shipped to England. The Motor Trader, England, in touching upon the big increase in the import of American ears into England, says:—Tt should be noted that the bulk of its seemingly large value is due to industrial vehicles, probably at least two-thirds of which are State-purchased, and therefore outside the scope of private cavil. Latest returns, covering 11 months, show an increase at the rate of 2750 per cent, In industrial vehicles exported—not all of them to Britain —while for May last the rate is over 5000 per cent, compared with May, 1914. During last May (ireat Britain imported 4030 of 7247 U.S.A. vehicles of both sorts exported. The proportion of oars is not given separately, but of the gross export—7247 vehicles—2-120 were in the industrial category, and 4521 listed as cars, their monetary values being nearly two to one in favor of the industrial import. For the eleven mouths' period, the gross export figures were: For 1014, 20,324 ears and 094 commercial vehicles: and for 1915, 10,402 cars and 11,000 vehicles. The new tariff will give the English mo- | tor manufacturers a much-needed protection, for whilst most of the large concerns are busy on munitions, and doing work for the war office, the Americans have been taking their trade, thereby leaving them a poor business outlook at the finish of the war. The stiff duty of 33 1-3 per cent, will do much to protect the English motor industry, which is at present incapable of protecting its own interests, being engaged in national work.

A very fine motor-car drive was recently recorded over the mountainous route between Brisbane and Toowoomba, the 95 miles being negotiated by Messrs Adam and Elvery on a Dunlop-shod Studebakcr in 2hrs. 35rain. This performance beat the. previous official record by 42min. The merit of the drive can be judged from the fact that the motor-cycle Tecord for this journey, which includes a great climb over the main range, is 2hra. 55min.

The representative of a big American firm, which is suppling an excellent car at a reasonable price, recently stated that his company did not stand to make any net profit until the output reached close on 100,000 taTS per annum. When people in England (says the Motor News, England), talk about competing with the American makers they fail to realise the great difficulty in the way of doing so. Unless a very large output can be assured, it is useless making the attempt: There are not enough motorists in Great Britain to render such an output possible, but even if there wore they would be up, against another difficulty. The majority of British buyers will not as a rule buy a new car which is more or less an "unknown quantity; they would rather select a make which has proved its worth, and are prepared to pay a higher price for it.

The first annual balance-sheet issued by the Melbourne General Motor 'Bus Co., Ltd., discloses some very interesting figures. First of all, the total distance run by the fleet of 31 'buses during the company's financial year was 1,258,Jl3 miles, making an average for the fleet of 344S miles per day. (The daily milage per 'bus worked out at 1114, miles, and. 40,606 miles per 'bus per year. These figures must bring home to the general public a fair idea of what a tremendous amount of work the up-to-date motor vehicle of. The passengers carried during year prove conclusively the need and popularity of this type of conveyance. All told, 6,794,404 people were carried, or nearly five times the total population of Victoria—over ten times the population of Melbourne and suburbs—and this during a year when traffic has been considerably effected by the war. The takings amounted to £65,319, whilst the garage wages totalled £29,472, Petrol, oil and grease cost £14,997; tyres, £7735, and repairs and renewals £4722.

The war has been a triumph for two kinds of / car types [says the London Daily Mail)—types as far apart as possible—the expensive English car and the cheap American car. The one will stand practically any strain, and the other is so cheap that when it breaks down badly it can be thrown away. At the beginning of the war the French would not requisition the big English makes of cars, even when they were offered. Of the fifty or so Rolls-Royce in Paris at the outbreak of the war, not one, it is said, was taken. But Frem-h admiration for the best type of English car is shown by the fact that General Joffre, (iencral Foch and M. Millerand (the War Minister) now have each two Rolls-Royces, and M. Poincare has used the same English make in his tours to the front. Very large numbers of American lorries are used in France. One contract for 4000 American motor lorries was signed in London by one of the Allies, and the same American firm that made it has supplied to England an average of about 200 cars a week since the war began. * * * *

There is no doubt that the matter of horn-blowing by motorists is one that needs some consideration on tho part of many drivers. The best plan is to sound the horn early and quietly, in order to give ample notke of one's approach. If the horn is blown suddenly at the last moment it La apt to have a demoralising effect on the pedestrian, and cause him to perform involuntary and unexpected movements. It should be realised that many people are still nervous and uncertain in traffic, and to avoid accident no driver should take it for" granted that other road-users will adopt the right and proper course, but should so have his car in hand, so as to be ready for any emergency.

It is now common knowledge that once a magneto is fitted to a car or motor cycle, and accurately timed, the ignition will practically look after itself, and there is really very little in the nature of hints that can bo given us as ne.-cs.sary to its treatment. Tho only part of the magneto that may roquire attention in the shape of adjustment is the make-and-break. It is net an exaggeration to state -that this will not be necessary ol'tener than once in every 1000 miles; many motorists only attend to this once during 4000 to 5000 miles. The adjustment is quite a simple operation, viz., that of loosening a tiny nut with a special spanner supplied by the makers of the magneto and giving a platinum-tipped screw a half-turn.

Petrol is giving the white life-blood of the armies now engaged in the titanic struggle in Europe. From the north of Scotland to the Dardanelles the whole country is studded with military motorcars. The greatest congestion of them is in Flanders. Here are some of the many uses to which the motor-car is being put iu France:—Supply cars: Stores, including automobile meat-safes, for which former Paris motor-omnibuses are chiefly used; munitions. Ambulance cars: Transport of wounded; travelling motor X-ray sets. Searchlight cars: Usually with a second motor in the car to drive the dynamo. Fighting motorcars: Heavy armored cars with machine guns; light unprotected machine-gun tars for scouting; heavy motor lorries mounting a Sin field gun for use against aeroplane. Air Service cars: Heavy motor lonics for spare parts with trailers for carrying wings and fuselage; fast cars for taking airmen from place to place; workshop cars; flying stations are entirely independent of railways and can move their whole installation by road. Passenger cars: (lenerals and staff; despatch bearers; roads near the front are full of despatch-carrying ears; the English use them very considerably; ears for rushing troops to points of the front where they are needed; "billet omnibuses," the converted London omnibuses which take men on leave up and down from billets to the coast base. Postal cars: Every morning mail cars start from Paris to the various French armies on the front with the letters (you see English cars marked "Royal mail" on the roads in the north of France). Motor repair shops: For repairing tho other cars in the Army Service; they travel about the roads, and one of the sides lets down, so that they form an open workshop with a lathe and dynamo inside. MotoT field kitchens; motor filters; wireless telegraphy cars.