328 



THE INDIA RUBBEH WORLD 



[July i, 1906. 



SOME NEW TIRE FEATURES. 



'^T^lII', latest departure in pneumatics has been the con- 

 -*• struction of a set for a motor omnibus, the new type 

 of vehicle which recently has become so popular in Lonilon. 

 I'ntil now it has been considered impracticable to produce 

 pneumatics of such large size, but the demand exists — at 

 least in the desire of the omnibus owners for whatever 



efjuipment will tend to decrease 

 the wear and tear of their ve- 

 hicles. The most notable thing 

 about the new tires, apart from 

 their size, is the number of 

 plies of canvas used in the 

 treads. The size is 40', V 6;4 

 inches, and the weight of the 

 cover alone is 85 pounds. The 

 latter, by the way, is fitted with 

 case hardened studs on the 

 tread. It remains to be seen 

 whether the results attained 

 DA_iuA irt£-\D W'ill be commensurate with the 



heavy cost of these tires — a figure which has not yet been 



made ])ublic. 



« * * 



Amonc. the devices which have been brought out latelj^ in 

 the French trade in the line of tire protectors is the 

 " Neron," which consists of a layer of light steel chains, 

 laid parallel and touching, between the inner tube and the 

 siioe. These chains are laid in rubber, and enclosed be- 

 tween layers of canvas, and the whole then vulcanized, 

 making a smooth, endless band, which is also fle.xiblc. Be- 

 sides protecting the tube from puncture, this shield also 

 tends to prevent blow outs, unless the shoe is torn wide 

 open. 



Tlie French tire protector known as the " Cronnvel " is of 

 the anti skidding type. It is made of numerous cross strips 

 or segments of rubber, plentifully studded, the ends bear- 

 ing hooks which grip the tire rim. The tread, when 

 mounted, presents an odd appearance, the overlapping cross 



strips having been compared to 

 the scales on the underside of a 

 snake. The tread is mentioned 

 as being easily attached or de- 



V~ ^ tached, when the tire is inflat- 



,' ed. The rivets penetrating both 

 f^^^ thicknesses of the rubber, where 

 i^H^ the lap occurs, the separate 

 pieces are firmly joined into 

 one whole. 



The "Genard" is another 

 French tire tread made of over- 

 lapping strips, but in this case 

 CHAMEROY TREAD the Strips are made of leather 



and riveted upon a leather band. The projecting rivet 

 heads prevent skidding. The flap of each strip extends well 

 forward, so as to prevent the entrance of water about the 

 tire. The tread covers the whole tire and, being laced on, 

 presents a neat appearance. 



The "Dalila " is al.so a skid tread, consisting of a spec- 

 ially prepared overshoe of strong chrome leather, around 

 the tread of which is riveted a sole of extra strong chrome 



leather, steel studded. The tread is held on by the custom- 

 ary clips, which grip the clinches, put on when the tire is 

 deflated. 



In the " Chameroy " tread, a flexible steel band encircles 

 the tire two or three times, and is riveted to the tire. Upon 

 this band are fastened cross strips of tempered steel, near 

 enough to each other 

 to touch, and with the 

 ends bent up and tuck- 

 ed under the steel band. 

 Uetween the shoe and 

 the tube is a double 

 layer of cloth, to pro- 

 tect the tube from heat 

 and rivet chafing. 

 * « « 



To turn now from 

 F'rench productions, 

 mention will be made 

 of the " Eyre " anti 

 skid, which is of luig- 

 lish origin. This con- the eyre anti smd. 



sists of an ingenious arrangement of springs which are ad- 

 justed to the outer surfaces of the driving wheels of motor 

 cars. These springs are adjustable, and can be put into or 

 out of operation almost in a moment. An accompanying 

 cut will show how the springs are attached, and how they 

 appear when in use. 



# * * 



Cushion tires are still in demand in not a few places, 

 chiefly because of their being less liable to puncture than 

 pneumatics, while possessing more resilienc}- than solid 

 tires. The illustration herewith of Kretzschmar's cushion 

 tire, made by a leading German rubber firm, relates to a 

 t3'pe which is used e.xtensively on the postmen's tricjxles in 

 vogue in that country. It is recommended also for militar}' 

 cycles and might be used by tourists on hard trips. The 

 tire is made with either round or pointed tread, and is 

 said to be more elastic than the cushion tire of circular .sec- 

 tion. 



* * * 



Thiv "twin " form of .solid tire, first introduced in Eng- 

 land, is making headway wherever tires are demanded for 

 specially heavy vehicles. Of late they have been applied 

 to a number of the observation cars, or "sight seeing " 

 'buses of which so many are 

 employed on the streets of 

 New York, and with such re- 

 sults as to point to the ulti- 

 mate use of "twin " tires ex- 

 clusively where the weight of 

 the vehicle calis for tires of 

 more than a certain width — say 

 5 inches. 



In this connection may be mentioned the Wire Mesh Base 

 Endless Tire, made by The Diamond Rubber Co. (Akron, 

 Ohio), a twin tire in which the base is made of much stifl'er 

 rubber than the tread. In this base the wire mesh or woven 

 wire is embedded, encircling the tire several times, adding 

 greatly to its retaining power. The tire being slightly wider 

 than the rim, the stiff base is tightly clamped in the channel, 

 which serves to preclude creeping. 



A GERMAN CUSHION TIRE. 



