a Motor-Sled 



Fifty miles an hour on the ice 



By Clifford A. Butterworth 



FOR those who like to make things, 

 there is nothing better to construct 

 than a motor-sled, and there is 

 nothing from which more pleasure can 

 be derived. The one shown in the illus- 

 tration is capable of making from 40 to 

 50 miles an hour with a 9-horsepower 

 engine. A 4 or 5-horsepower single cylin- 

 der engine will do, but of course it will 

 not be possible to obtain as great a speed 

 as with a twin cylinder engine. The few 

 parts which require forgings can be 

 made by the builder if he has a shop of 

 his own. In case a blacksmith does the 

 work the cost should not be very great. 

 If the builder has a motorcycle he can 

 save the cost of the engine, which is the 

 largest expense. If the sled is well built 

 it should last for years. The following is 

 a list of materials required: 



1 Motorcycle engine with ignition and oiling 



system 

 1 Motorcycle rear wheel with brake and chain 



1 Gasoline tank 



2 Pieces of pine 14 ft. long, 4 in. wide and 2 in. 

 thick 



2 Ash planks 12 ft. long, 8 in. wide and 1)^ in. 

 thick 



3 Matched boards 12 ft. long, 6 in. wide 

 1 Board 2 ft. long and 8 in. wide 



1 Piece of iron pipe 6 in. long and 1 in. in diameter 



2 Flange couplings 



2 Pieces of 3^-in. pipe 4 in. long 



Number and Size of Bolts Required 



4 Bolts 8 



1 Piece 

 1 Piece 



5 

 4 



IH 



by y% in- 



" 3^ " 



22 Bolts 7 

 4 " 5 

 9 " 3 



18 " 21^ 

 6 " 1 



by Vi in. 



" 3^ " 



2 Bolts 1 by M in. 



Number of Iron Pieces 



6 ft. long, \]/2 in. wide and }/2 in. thick 

 4 ft. long, 1 in. wide and J^ in. thick 



1 Piece 7 ft. long, 1 H in- wide and ^ in. thick 

 1 Piece 11 ft. long, 1 J^ in. wide and Y^ in. thick 

 1 Piece 24 ft. long, 1 in. wide and Y\va.. thick 

 1 Piece 3 ft. long and 1 in. in diameter 

 1 Piece 18 ft. long and % in. in diameter 

 1 Piece 8 ft. long and Y2 in. in diameter 



Screws, Rivets and Wire 



Yi, Gross oWYi in. screws 

 10 Screws 3 in. long 



3 Dozen rivets 1 by J^ in. 



8 Ft. of No. 6 wire 



Begiji the work by cutting the frame 

 pieces A from one of the 14-ft. lengths 

 of pine; then cut the pieces, B, C andD, 

 from the ash plank, making them 3 ft. 

 2 in., 2 ft., and 2 ft. 4 in. long respectively. 

 Bolt them to the frame pieces with the 

 7-in. bolts. Cut the two 4-ft. pieces, 

 E, E, and bolt them in position; then cut 

 another piece, E, 2 ft. 11 in. long and 

 bolt it to the underside of B as shown 

 in Fig. 1, with three 5-in. bolts. These 

 last three pieces are cut from the other 

 14-ft. length of pine. 



Cut the runners from the ash plank 

 and make a V-shaped groove on the 

 edge. This is used to receive the shoe 

 iron for the bottom. Make the groove ^ 

 in. wide and % in. deep. The shoes are 

 made from the ^-in. round iron, flattened 

 at the end to 34 in. and fastened to 

 the runners with three screws in each 

 end. Fasten the rear runners in place 

 with five 3-in. screws through the piece 

 B and four iron braces G. The steering 

 knuckles are next assembled, as shown 

 in Fig. 2, page 137. The pieces H are 

 6-in. blocks of 2 by 4-in. material fast- 

 ened to D with 8-in. bolts. Bolt the 

 runners on and put the steering rods / in 

 place. Washers should be placed under 



135 



