2;.o 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



IJA 



1920. 



INTERESTING LETTERS FROM OUR READERS. 



MAKES THE TIRE PERFECT? 



To The Editor : 



DEAR SIR:— The perfect tire is here, at least 1 think so. 

 That is a rather bold statement to make, but in view of the 

 facts, the writer feels .safe in such aflirmation. 



.Security No-.'Xir Tuiie. 



Arrangement 

 OF Suction Cups. 



With the tire tube shown in the illustration a blow- out is an 

 impossibility for the reason that there is no air in the tube to 

 blow out. Also the construction is perfect. It mechanically 

 embodies the basic principles of the pneumatic tube and elim- 

 inates the objectionable features of the ordinary air tube. 



This tube contains seventy-five per cent pure rubber, coupled 

 with the usual admixture of chemicals. The outside of the tube 

 is recessed by 30 to 40 suction cups which take up and distribute 

 the shock received in running. Anyone who has played basket- 

 ball knows that the suction cups in the soles of his shoes en- 

 able him to come to a quick slop by sticking to the floor. In the 

 same manner do these suction cups cling to the tire casing so 

 that there is no such thing as creeping as often happens with an 

 under-inflated air tire. 



I have sharp ears, and I can hear my readers say "Why, that 

 tube is almost solid and with the casing forms a solid tire." True 

 in part, but this lube through its center channel and suction cups 

 offers room for expansion. It is, of course, much heavier than 

 the pneumatic tire. This weight, however, is an asset rather 

 than a liability for various reasons. It is a well-known fact that 

 a car using air tires is to a degree top-heavy. This fact would 

 mean nothing whatever if all the roads in the world were level 

 and smooth, but the motorist knows how rough roads really are. 

 For instance, let us suppose that you are trying to take a rough 

 hill on high. The speed of the car together with the top-heaviness 

 will cause the rear wheels to leave the ground when they hit a 

 rough spot. Every time the wheels leave the ground there is lost 

 power and lost motion, which in turn means abuse of the engine 

 and the tire casings, and invariably the driver has to shift gears 

 to reach the top of the hill. With this heavier tire, the top- 

 heaviness is eliminated, the car is equally balanced, it runs much 

 more smoothly and consequently does not leave the ground on the 

 least provocation. Incidentally that hill can be taken on high. 



Tests made personally by the Detroit representative of the firm 

 manufacturing these tires, and extending over a period of two 

 years show a total mileage during that period of thirty- 

 six thousand miles on a single set of tubes. In fact, this test is 

 still going on, for he is using the tubes every day. In the latter 

 part of 1918, he replaced the original set of casings because they 

 were so badly worn that the tubes were visible in half a dozen 

 places— not only visible, but actually riding the pavements. This 

 was after a total run of twenty-four thousand miles. 



Another test made by the Detroit Police Department proves 

 quite interesting. In February, 1919, permission was obtained 

 from Captain Kling, then a lieutenant on the Detroit police force, 

 to install a set of tubes on the "minute car" of the department. 

 This car is a general utility Ford touring car which is on the go 

 twenty-four hours a day, and is operated by three shifts of 

 drivers. The tires were installed during an overhaul period and 



none of the drivers knew of the installation. Three months had 

 KOne by before the drivers knew they were using other than pneu- 

 matic tubes, as each thought the other fellow was looking after 

 the tires. These three drivers swear by the tubes and claim that 

 the car is giving better service than ever before. 



Maurice S. Clement. 

 Detroit, Michigan. 



THE EDITOR'S BOOK TABLE. 



■A RUBBER PLANT StJRVEY OF WESTERN NORTH AMERICA." 



By Harvey Monroe Hall and Thomas Harper (;oods|«e(l. University 

 of Cahfornia i'ress, Berkeley, California. 1919. (Paper. 7 .x lO'A 

 inches, 121 pages.) ^' 



I N THIS BOOK THE AUTHORS HAVE REPORTED the results of an ex- 

 tensive survey of the Great Basin region for rubbber-pro- 

 (iucing plants, begun in 1917 as a war-emergency measure. 



During 1918 this broadened into a comprehensive search 

 throughout the West for all species known or suspected to con- 

 tain rubber. The work is to be continued to determine all the 

 possibilities of rubber production in the West. Rubber was 

 found in 25 of the species examined, although in only four was 

 it high enough to warrant the hope for its recovery on a com- 

 mercial scale. 



NEW TRADE PUBLICATIONS. 



T- HE Gillette Rubber Co., Eau Claire, Wisconsin, issue an 

 illustrated catalog of rubber machinery and equipment in 

 a handsome loose-leaf binder. On the covers are views of the 

 exterior and interior of the company's buildings. The catalog 

 contains cuts and descriptions of a mixing mill, inner tube splic- 

 ing press, wrapping lathe, valve nut tightener, tire stripping 

 stand, bead making machine, tire building stand with foot pedal, 

 core puller; tire-buffing machine and stock racks. 



The Link-Beit Co., Chicago, Illinois, has recently issued 

 two handsome illustrated books devoted to its modern labor- 

 saving equipment. Book No. 375 is a profusely illustrated 

 brochure of 108 pages showing the application of link-belt ele- 

 vators, conveyors, and other freight and package handling ma- 

 chinery to many varied industries. Among these applications is 

 included an elevator for conveying tire bands, and a conveyor 

 used in assembling electric storage batteries. Book No. 380, of 

 100 pages, depicts in a similar manner the manifold uses of 

 link-belt hoists and overhead cranes. 



The Bulletin of the Chamber of Commerce of the United 

 States of America in the Argentine Republic, Volume 1, No. 1,. 

 dated August 20, 1919, and two succeeding issues have come 

 to hand. This readable and attractive new publication is de- 

 voted to the foreign trade of the United States with particular 

 reference to the Argentine Republic, and will endeavor to give 

 American exporters accurate and helpful information and sug- 

 gestion for the betterment of commercial relations between the 

 two countries. The rubber and allied industries are identified 

 with the chamber, as seen by consulting the list of officers and 

 members. Among the former may be mentioned the treasurer, 

 Noel F. Tribe, of The First National Bank of Boston, and one 

 of the governors, J. A. Wheatley, of the Ault & Wiborg Co., 

 Cincinnati. Ohio. The 123 active members include the Corn 

 Products Refining Co., Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. of South 

 America, United States Rubber Export Co., Limited, The First 

 National Bank of Boston, Sucursal Buenos Aires, Westing- 

 house Electric Export Co., Brunswick-Balke-Collender Co. of 

 New York, Robbins & Myers Co., and the Firestone Tire & 

 Rubber Co. 



The NederlandscHe Gutta-Percha Ma.\tschappi.t, The 

 Hague, Holland, owning factories at Singapore and plantations 

 in the East, is increasing its issued capital to Fl. 1,675,000 

 ($673,350) by the offer of 250,000 ordinary "A" shares at 20O 

 per cent. 



