MOTORING NOTES.

Digger (Invercargill RSA), Issue 24, 27 August 1920, Page 14

MOTORING NOTES.

HOW TO OIL GElNERATOR. A generator requires a drop of light oil at each end of the armature shaft frequently. Care must be exercised not to over-lubricate the shaft, as oil may work its way through and cause the generator winding-s to become short-circuited. Ihe oil leads to the shaft bearings have caps which automatically close to prevent dirt from entering and lodging on the main bearings of the armature shaft, so it is best to note t-hat these are in working order. CLEANENG DRIVING CHAINS. It is impossible to clean motor-cycle driving chains propeily without taking them off. They should be scrubbed in paraffin or petrol until all the foreign matter is r.emoved. To clean them thoroughly they should be boiled, in order to remove the dirt from the various bearings. When thoroughly cleaned and dried, they should be boiled in a mixture of tallow and graphite. When this is done and the chains are allowed to dry, each small bearing in the chain should receive a coating of lubricant. After replacing the chains it is somelimes advisable to put on an additional graphite compound in order to reduce the noise of the chains working on the sprocket-s. ALUMINIUM IN ENGINES. In engines, aluminium, of course, has been used to a great extent, not only for pistons and corinecting rods, but for blocks, heads, crank-cases, gear case covers, etc. Some engine makers are experimenting with aluminium heads wherein the valve seats are steel inlays. Other engines are made with aluminium blocks and steel cylinder bores or sleeves. One of the new engines at the shows this year had an aluminium head with but a partial water packet, leaving only a flat plate, so to speak, over the cylinder bones. The idea here evidently is to incorporate a hot-spot directly in the combustion chamber, probably a step in the future towards the use of fuel decreasing in gravity. LIGHTER C'ARS. As a consequence of the present acute shortage of benzine, newspapers and moloring journals in Ajnerica are taking up the question of a lighter type of automobile. Articles with such headlines as "Reduce weight of cars and get more miles per gallon" take up large spaces. Through the abolition of the water -cooling system, it is said, the average passenger automobile can be constructed so much lighter that a considerable sa-ving in operating costs will result from this factor alone. In addition the increased thermal efficieney of the aircooled engine substantially reduces fuel consumption. Data shows that the average water-cooled passenger automobile runs about 12 miles on a gallon of gasoline, compared with 18 miles a gallon fcxr the average air-cooled car. TRUCK HAULS LARGE BOILER, When a firm of big auto-trucking and moving contractors of Toledo, Ohio, were called upon recently to move a 16,2001b boiler, they chose a truck for the task. The eight-ton boiler had to be hauled to Toledo from DunSirk, a distanee of 70 miles. It was at first questioned whether it was advisable to move ihe boiler by truck on account of its weight. The truckers finally secured the job on their promise that they would get the truck to Toledo without mishap. The huge boiler was rolled along to its destination as though it were an ordinrfy, everyday load. The truck that performed ihe tas.'c was not a new one. It had been used for three years, in the hard ki'nd of wock that usually falls to a general trucking eompany, but it handled this ruthier severe contract without a hitch. 0 VERHEATIN G. One of the commonest causes : I everheating is due to a slipping fan beu. It is absolutely necessary for the frm to cause sufficient air draft to cool the water as it flows through the -nliator. A slipping belt reduces the fan spued and thus cuts down the draft. The belts should be taut but not too tight. Tight belts usually wear fast and break, and they also wear the pulley bearings. it the engine should overheat the soo- ei it is stopped the better. After stoppiag the engine allow it to cool for about 10 or 15 minutes ; it depends upon how hot it is. Then add cold water slowly until the system is full. Then start the engine again, noting through the radiator filler

if there is circulation. Poke a wire through the radiator drain to make sure the drain itself is free. You then can go over the car to see that the spark advances with lever movement, that the mixture is not too rich, as indicated ty pungent exhaust, and by noting if the fan belt slips.