December 1, 1913.] 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



149 



appreciate the many uses of recording instruments. The extent 

 of the field covered by the company may be understood from 

 the fact that a partial list of firms using Bristol gauges includes 

 over 2,000 leading concerns in the United States. This standard 

 line is made by The Bristol Co., Waterbury, Connecticut. 



IF A TIRE COULD SPEAK. 



The Hood Rubber Co., of Watertown, Massachusetts, has 

 just issued a little brochure entitled "If a Tire Could Speak," 

 which gives in entertaining form the autobiography of an auto- 

 mobile tire. This particular tire, because of its attractive ap- 

 pearance, was put by the dealer in his sliow window, where it 

 stood day after day in the blazing sun. I^'ortunately, how- 

 ever, this experience was a short one, as a motorist who had 

 had a disastrous experience with a skidding tire pulled up in 

 front of the dealer's store and demanded this particular window 

 tire. It was put on his machine, and it relates in its own way 

 its further experiences. The book is quickly read, is humor- 

 ously illustrated and gives the user of tires some excellent 

 advice. 



ON THE CARE OF AUTOMOBILE BRAKES. 



An interesting booklet, recently published by the H. W. 

 Johns-Manville Co. of New York, contains much valuable in- 

 formation on the construction and care of automobile brake 

 linings. This booklet also describes the new J-M electric lamp, 

 the body of which is made entirely of hard rubber ; the J-M 

 radiator shield, fire extinguishers, valve packing and a large 

 number of other asbestos products. 



A TYPICAL ENGLISH RUBBER CO. 



In an artistically illustrated catalog recently issued, the India 

 Rubber, Gutta Percha & Telegraph Works Co., Ltd., Silvertown, 

 London, has told the story of its varied production. 



First is shown the power-plant, with a 700 k. w. generating 

 set, followed by a motor-driven rubber-washing machine, a direct- 

 driven rubber warmer as well as mixing and calendering ma- 

 chinery. These first processes deal with the rubber in an un- 

 finished state, while, for the rubber-covered or impregnated 

 fabrics there are the "Waterproof," "Belting," "Tire," "Hose" 

 and "General Mechanical" departments. 



An interesting specialty of this company is the "Palmer Cord 

 Motor Tire." The fundamental diflference between this and all 

 other motor tires is that instead of four, five, or more layers 

 of canvas, the foundation consists of only two layers of cotton 

 cord, impregnated and coated with the finest rubber. The illus- 

 trations comprise: The high-pressure solutioning apparatus for 

 expelling air from between the fibres of the threads in the 

 cords; tire shop and cord laying machines: tire molding shop; 

 tire vulcanizing plant, and other features of the tire department. 



Ebonite is another specialty of the company's make, in which. 

 as the catalog recalls, the prolongation of the vulcanizing process 

 causes the use of a greater proportion of sulphur than is the case 

 with soft rubber goods. Surgical appliances, testing instruments 

 and an infinite number of other articles are made of ebonite. 

 Adhering well to metals, it finds a useful sphere for mechanical 

 purposes. 



GUTTA PERCHA DEPARTMENT. 



Gutta percha has always taken a prominent part in the manu- 

 factures of the company, and the processes for its treatment are 

 described in the catalog. On their arrival at Silvertown the 

 blocks are first softened in warm w-ater tanks and are washed 

 for the removal of the grosser impurities. They are then worked 

 up in masticators and the remaining impurities eliijiinatcQ by 

 means of fine sieves, through which the material is forced at a 

 pressure exceeding 100 tons. The mass is then passed through 

 cyHnders. which roll it into sheets of any desired width and 

 thickness, being then ready for application to any form of manu- 

 facture. 



While the extent of its application is secondary to that of 

 rubber, there are many cases in which it cannot be replaced by 

 any other known material. Among its chief uses is the core of 

 submarine cables, for which purpose it is generally employed in 

 preference to India rubber as the insulating material. This is 

 due to the greater facility of application to conductors arising 

 from its plasticity. Moreover, faults or imperfections can be 

 more easily localized during manufacture or in service. A con- 

 siderable portion of the Silvertown works is devoted to the 

 manufacture and maintenance of this gutta percha core. 



Other important applications of gutta percha are the manu- 



Grovp of .Articles M.\de of Gutta Percha. 



faclure of bosses for cotton spinning machinery, acid test 

 bottles and tubes for use in breweries, for hospital purposes 

 and in dentistry. 



Golf balls form one of the best known applications of gutia 

 percha, in which manufacture a considerable change has occurred 

 (if late years, solid balls having been replaced by those with 

 cores of rubber thread. The catalog finally deals with the 

 electrical department, the various machines being effectively 

 illustrated. 



GOODRICH CONVEYOR BELTS. 



The B. F. Goodrich Co. of Akron, Ohio, has issued a small 

 eight-page folder, attractively printed in three colors, descriptive 

 of three conveyor belts which the company is now marketing. 

 They are the "Long Life," "Grainbelt" and "Maxecon." 



The "Longlife" is adapted to general service involving hard 

 usage likely to wear out an ordinary quality; while the "Grain- 

 belt" is particularly intended for grain. Having no extra thick- 

 ness of cover, it cannot, however, be used where there is much 

 surface abrasion. For the higher class of service, where the 

 belt is not run continuously, the "Maxecon" is a reliable and 

 economical grade. At the same time, it is not recommended 

 for hard wear as a cheap substitute for the "Longlife." 



Goodrich conveyor belts, it is claimed by the makers, carry 

 more tons per dollar than any other quality, this being the only 

 correct standard for comparing difTerent installations. Such a 

 degree of excellence is only obtainable through careful selection 

 of material and attention to the necessary thickness of cover. 



With the attractive title, "The Reason Why," a separate 

 catalog deals with the answer so far as regards the "Long- 

 life" belt. 



AN ENGLISH TIEE CATALOG. 



A very complete catalog on tires has been recently sent us 

 by The Shrewsbury & Challiner Tire Co., of Manchester, Eng- 

 land. This booklet gives a large number of illustrations of 

 "Giant" and "World" endless band, solid rubber tires in their 

 actual sizes, which allows the construction of the tires and 

 their manner of fastening to the rims to be shown to good ad- 

 vantage. A page is devoted to illustrations and an explanation 

 of the proper method of testing for alignment of wheels. This 

 is an important subject, since poor alignment, caused by bent 

 axles or steering arms, is responsible for much undue wear in 

 both solid and pneumatic tires. 



