606 



THE INDIA RUBBER WORLD 



[AwaisT 1, 1!)16. 



Demountable Motor Trucks. 



T' 



lUuiiiC wllcfls and steel llaiiKe.s litleil over regu- 

 i. lu-rmittiiig a motor truck to travel on railroad 



There were, however, only tv\o such devices worthy of atten- 

 tion and their valne is limited, owing to the time and trouble 

 necessary to clianue a truck over from solid tires to flanges. 



One of lliese ikviees is a llangc wheel, made similar to a regular 

 railroad wheel, u hich rei)laces the regular truck wheel. A truck 

 so ei|ii.|i| nl must cl!an.i>e wheels every time it leaves the rails or 

 leaves the r..a.l for (he rails. 



The other is an endless flange rim, made to fit over the S. A. E. 

 baud, aiul is apiilied l)y hydraulic pressure the same as the pressed- 



on type tire. To use this 



ange it is necessary to re- 

 lovc the tires, and it is also 

 L'cessary to employ hydraulic 

 ressurc of not less than 2.S 

 >ns. 



.Xeither of the above men- 

 tioned devices are practical for 

 military ptirposes, and conse- 

 ipiently are of no value to the 

 army. 



In May of th's year l\Ir. 

 Wales of the Riker Motor 

 Truck Co. conceived the idea 

 of niSliing" a flange in two 

 pieces. ?Ie' submitted his idea 

 to Captain J. R. l.ee.^^ho is in 

 charge of motor transporta- 

 lii>n for the' punitive expedi- 

 tion at Columbus, New Mexi- 

 co, and as Captain Lee en- 

 cour?ied*the idea; Mr. 'Wales 

 referred the matter to A. L. 

 Riker, vice-president and gen- 

 eral manager of tiie Locomo- 

 iigned a sufficient number of 

 sciit them to the army base at 

 Colunihus. 



Upon the arriv.il of the flanges Captain Lee equipped a three- 

 ton Hiker truck with them, and ran the truck over the tracks ol 

 the Kl Paso & Southwestern Railroad 

 from Columbus to El Paso and return, 

 a distance of 146 miles, without any 

 trouble whatever. The truck carried a 

 crew of 20 men, each man being 

 equipped with complete field equip- 

 ment, and ran on regular railroad 

 schedule, with a railroad conductor in 

 charge, as an extra train, at an average 

 speed of 18 miles per hour. The gas 

 consumption for the entire trip was 

 practically the same as would have 

 been the case had the truck been 

 driven for the same^ distance over 

 paved streets, and the only noticeable 

 difference in the running of the truck 

 was in the vibration. This vibration 

 was diie entirely to the motor, and 



was sightly in excess of the motor vibration in traveling on the 

 streets. Up to a speed of 19 miles this vibration was harmless 

 but of such force as to' prohibit a greater speed. 



Another noticeable feature was the fact that the truck ran 



truck 



better loaded tlian empty, on account of traction, fur with an 

 empty truck there was considerable slippage. 



Of the illuslrations. Fig. 1 shows one-half of the fliuifie. Fig. 

 2 shows the flange complete, while Fig. 3 shows a truck equipped 

 and ready for service on a railroad. The flange is so constructed 

 as to fit over the tire with the inside edge resting on the steel 

 base or steel fastenings of the tire. In case of a dual wheel the 

 inside edge of this flange rests on the center wedge ring. It does 

 not come in contact with the tire or wdieel at any other point. 

 Two bolts are then fitted at each joint and drawn up tightly, 

 wdiich causes the edge of the flange resting on the center or 

 inside flange of the wheel, to be drawn up with sufficient pres- 

 sure to eliminate all danger 

 of creeping. 



In starting the experiment at 

 Cohmihus. the truck was driven 

 up to the railroad track, the 

 flanges were applied on all four 

 wheels in 30 minutes' time, re- 

 quiring four men. The truck 

 was then driven on the track, 

 and on arrival in El Paso, the 

 truck was stopped at a street 

 intersection and the flanges re- 

 moved in 16 minutes, thrown, 

 on the truck and the truck 

 driven over the streets to the 

 hotel. In the opinion of Cap- 

 tain Lee, who conducted this 

 test, these flan.ges are a com- 

 plete success, their superior- 

 ity over other devices of a 

 like nature being the fact that 

 it is not necessary to remove 

 the wheels nor tires to apply 

 tliem. Their valne to the army 

 cannot yet be estimated, hut the 

 fact that these trucks can be operated over bridges and 

 road-beds where heavy locomotives would break through, 

 and also the fact that on encountering washouts, these flanges 

 can be removed, and the truck driven around the obstruction, 

 all will) a minimum amount of expense and time, prac- 

 tically assures that they will be 

 used by the United States army more 

 extensively than anyone realizes at 

 this time. It is hardly possible that 

 tliey will ever be used on the main 

 lines of any railroad except for rapid 

 transportation of troops on emergency 

 calls. Their chief field of operation will 

 lic on branch lines, or lines constructed 

 hi suit t'le convenience of the army. 

 nf three-ton capacity will 

 n fully equipped for field 



IPPED WITH 



IS Deviik on Tr.'\ck. 



.ick 



oO 



The Fi-.\n-ce CoMn.ETE. 



iic wci.iilil of these flanges is about 

 J.^(J pounds each. They are made of 

 cast steel. In case they were made 

 of pressed or rolled steel this weight 

 would be reduced easily 50 per cent. 



Should be on every rubber man's desk — Polyglot Rubber Trade 

 Directory. 1916; Crude Rubber and Compounding Ingredients; 

 Rubber Countrv of the Amazon. 



