ANY COMPLAINTS P
Page 62
Page 63
Page 64
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
By P. A.C. Brockington, A.M.1.114ech.E.
NINETY goods vehicles are jointly operated by Bassetts Roadways Ltd., Tittensor, Stoke-on-Trent; Grayswood Transport Ltd.; H. Mason Transport (Stafford) Ltd. and R. G. Bassett, Mr. it G. Bassett being managing director of the four companies. The combined fleet consists of eightwheeled, six-wheeled and four-wheeled flats and tippers, a number of vans, a bulk tanker fitted with a pneumatic blower and 25 articulated units with trailers of various types, which include vans, tippers, flats and extendible vehicles. Fleet operations mainly comprise the carriage of general goods, longdistance and local tipper work and bulk transport in a radius of 200 miles; storage and distribution facilities also being available.
Symptomatic of the high incidence of new vehicle deficiencies, basic design faults and the difficulty of obtaining spare parts,
the cost of maintaining the fleet has, it estimated by Mr. Bassett, increased by at least 50 per cent Over the past six or seven years. The direct and indirect cost of reduced vehicle availability is, moreover, far greater, and Mr. Bassett considers that the availability of vehicles built to the average standard of the immediate post-war era would enable him to reduce his fleet by at least five vehicles without sacrificing traffic. On average about six vehicles are off the road for urgent repairs at any one time. In
the heavier category several 20-year-old vehicles have a more consistent earning capacity than their modern counterparts. with reduced overheads.
In the opinion of Mr. Bassett and his foreman mechanic, Mr. J. Bell, modern vehicles are unnecessarily heavy by virtue of unprofitable weight being added in the wrong places and useful weight (that would only give a marginal total increment) skimped at essential places. Vehicles should be getting lighter, not heavier, they claim.
Mr. Bassett would welcome plating as a means of discouraging cut-throat competition, mainly in tipping-vehicle operations, by the use of light vehicles for heavy work for which they are unsuitable. He does not approve of " conversions " for the carriage of heavy loads, because brakes and steering gear are often not good enough for the job, and he considers that if plating were introduced, conversions should also be rated and approved by the chassis makers.
The susceptibility to corrosiort by winter salt of various exposed parts is a general shortcoming common to the majority B28 of vehicles in the fleet, and this is particularly applicable the internal connections of side, tail and headlights, wiri connections, steel brake pipes and some types of brat; actuation gear. The lights have inadequate sealing, and sa laden rain water penetrates to the interior. Corroded sk brake pipes are replaced by heavy-duty copper pipes whi have an indefinitely long life and are easy to fit because of fill flexibility. The pipes are not work-hardened by vibration (th are expertly annealed by the suppliers) and do not fracture.
Last winter newer vehicles were "stuck all over the countr) because they could not be started, but all the older vehic could be started easily. The main culprit was a six-cylinc engine, fitted with a starter originally designed for a fot cylinder unit. Fitting one of the vehicles with a heavy-dt starter gave instant starting in all weathers, but the Cast AA too high to justify replacement in every case.
Twenty years ago, speedometer heads normally lasted t life of the vehicle. In the past 12 months, 31 new heads a five cables have been fitted to one manufacturer's vehicles. unsatisfactory cog in the mileage recorder is the main cat of failure, which often occurs within a day or two of delive The cost of a new head is more than E9.
Handbrakes again provide the saddest story of all. T brake efficiencies of new vehicles are sometimes below t required Ministry of Transport standard and to obtain a cc sistent 25 per cent it is necessary that vehicles are docked week for adjustment, which is economically and functionally imp sible. Mr. Bassett recalls that 25 years ago handbrakes im far more efficient and that they retained their efficiency. T transmission disc brake is not favoured, despite its improv efficiency, because of the high stresses it imposes on t propeller shaft and final drive.
The efficiency of foot brakes is generally satisfactory, 1there have been glaring instances of slipshod design, notat a brake warning light switch mounted on the hydraulic mas cylinder (or adjacent three-way junction piece), the fractc of which (on a number of occasions) early in the life of t vehicle permitted free escape of the fluid and resulted complete brake failure. Twin-line air brakes are preferr to the direct vacuum type because they are more reliab easier to maintain and are more progressive in action, whi gives better control on slippery road surfaces. They also ha the advantage that the onset of fade is more readily appare Mr. Bassett severely criticizes road springs, particularly t springs of heavy vehicles, which are too light for the job a frequently fracture, and he is mindful of the time that sprit normally continued in service until they were removed 1 setting up. Their characteristics are also at fault in sot cases, notably the springs of the second steering axle of eight-wheeler, which allow the wheels to patter continuou when the lorry is running light.
In Mr. Bassett's view, all vehicles should be fitted w temperature and oil gauges and an ammeter, in addition any warning lights that are supplied as original equipme Mr. Bell observes that fading out of a warning light does necessarily indicate an acceptable condition. Windscreen wit blades have a short life and their plastics ends are liable lisintegrate, which results in tilting of the blades and scratching ■ f the glass. Rapid wear of the motor spindles by the grubcrew of the blade attachment hub (the screw easily gets loose) lecessitates shortening of the spindle and attachment close to he screen, which enables the unit to be kept in service until he spindle is again worn by the screw. This exercise cannot repeated and the frequent replacements are a costb, item. On the credit side both Mr. Bassett and Mr. Bell pay tribute a improvements in engine design over the years.
itabilizers Needed
Managing director. Mr. A. R. Butt, of the Morris Transport o. Ltd,, 63 Church Road, Boldmere, Sutton Coldfield, operates 3 vehicles, including 21 artics, which are used in conjunction /Rh 32 trailers, all the tractive units and trailers being interhangeable. Carrying capacities of the trailers vary between 0 and 25 tons, a number of low loaders and special types with 5 ft. platforms being included in the fleet. About 40 per cent I the traffic comprises the carriage of goods for the motor '.ade, and low-loader operations represent a major part of le remainder, which also includes some general traffic. Regular ans are made to London, Manchester and Liverpool.
Despite his considered opinion that a well-maintained articutied outfit, handled by an experienced driver, is no more prone " skidding troubles" than a heavy rigid vehicle, Mr. Butt rould employ stabilizers as an extra precaution against jacknifing if a system was available, the fitting of which did not tcrease the work of the driver when coupling and uncoupling, or eliminate (or complicate) interchangeability. A suitable unit would be progressively applied to the outfits.
The makers of tractive units, observes Mr. Butt, are not as a rule interested in the trailer or trailers to which they will be coupled, and there are many serious unsequences of this laxity. Responsibility for the whole out
should be vested in the tractive-unit maker, which would liminate brake-matching troubles and give many other dvantitees, including certainty regarding overall length, and 3 on. Although the mechanics of the Morris company have o difficulty in obtaining a hand-brake efficiency of 25 per cent t 20 m.p.h. in a typical case, it is normal for a brake to become irtually useless above a critical speed between 20 m.p.h. and ()m.p.h., and this is cited by Mr. Butt as a grave deficiency. In one make of tractive unit, acute bends in the cable casing ause rapid wear and the mechanism is liable to failure. Direct air operation of the foot brakes is favoured by Mr. iutt, who is reasonably satisfied with the efficiencies obtainble, but he is critical of the twin air-line system on the ;ore that the fracture of a pipe to the rear of the emergency tnk results in complete loss of all braking power. This has ccurred, fortunately without serious results, and the makers f the system stated they could suggest no modification that ,ould obviate the danger. Mr. Butt is, therefore, interested t the spring-loaded safety system, in which the brakes are utomatically applied by the springs in the event of air-pressure tilure.
Starters and generators give reasonably reliable service, but
one ease. frequent fracture. is experienced of the light-alloy nd plate of the generator, which is the result of mis-matching ither than faulty design, identical units on other makes of chicle being free from this trouble.
Mr. Butt agrees with Mr. Neely (last week) that accessories re manufactured to a lower standard than the engine and tajor components of a typical chassis. He considers that :reen washers and heaters should be standard equipment in every vehicle and that a radiator-temperature gauge should be fitted (in conjunction with a warning light), so that the driver can verify that the thermostat is working. This is regarded as a priority function because non-operation of the thermostat, particularly on shorter hauls, results in accelerated cylinder wear.
Iii recommending the use of more powerful engines, Mr. Butt points out that the increased speed they provide on gradients is often disproportionately higher than the percentage increase in output, because they often enable the engagement of the crawler gear to be avoided. They also afford great latitude in terms of wear before excessive smoke is emitted and give comparable, if not reduced, fuel consumption. A governor limiting maximum speed in top gear would be regarded as a valuable asset because it would eliminate speeding with a powerful engine.
In general, the standard of vehicle design and production has, Mr. Butt considers, been improved over the years.
Operators as Guinea Pigs' Twenty-nine 6 to 153-ton milk tankers with capacities of 1,200 to 3,500 gal. are included in the 55-vehicle fleet of Miers Transport Ltd., Bradmore, Wolverhampton, and operations cover an area south of a line from Liverpool to Hull and west of a line from Weston-super-Mare to Weymouth, extending to districts in London and the Home Counties. Local distribution of petroleum products is undertaken in two oil tankers, and flat-base vehicles in the 6-7-8-ton category are employed for general work in the locality, with a preponderance of. agricultural traffic, but with some long-distance runs, as required, to centres in England and Wales. Two light vans are also included in the fleet.
Area chairman of the Road Haulage Association and a director of the company, Mr. D. R. .Miers criticizes vehicle makers for substituting operators for guinea pigs in the test programme of a new chassis. What, he asks, is the good of the M.I.R.A. proving ground if the eventual users have to hear the brunt of the teething troubles? And things are made worse by the non-availability, or limited availability, of spare parts, notably accessories but also transmission components, oil seals. and so on. In one case wheel wobble of a new model could not be rectified by the distributors and it was necessary to incorporate a " self-evolved " modification in the king-pin assemblies to cure the trouble.
Corrosion of vital parts has greatly increased in recent years. and Mr. Miers considers that makers should pay much more attention to associated problems, particularly with regard to brake gear by employing corrosion-resistant metals or by affording greater protection against salt-laden slush and spray, It is pathetic, Mr. Miers observes, that the U-bolts of leaf springs have to be burnt out (often after nine months' operating time) when making a spring change. Other parts that corrode rapidly include silencers (location in the front of the vehicle reduces corrosion, because this avoids spraying by the front wheels), windscreen wiper blades (tilting of the blade and scratching of the windscreen often result from this fault) and the terminal blocks of electrical wiring used on one make, which can cause shorting between adjacent wires. In general, wiring is "routed badly ".
Shown here surveying the area of operation of Miers Transport Ltd. are Mr. D. R. Miers (left), and Mr. R. P. Miers.
• _ •Handbrakes are described by •Mr. Miers as "completely useless ", apart from the disc transmission type. Whilst tribute is paid to advances made in footbrake. efficiency, insufficient reserve is provided and brakes tend to fade.
Starters and generators are, in Mr. Miers', view, getting smaller and worse, and an increasing amount of trouble is experienced with voltage regulators. Misaligned contact points and reduced voltageare blamed for many of the starter troubles.
As a'tanker operator, Mr. Miers would welcome the general introduction of air suspension (at the right cost) and observes that running light is improved by fitting shock absorbers. More efficient control of engine temperatures would, it is considered, pay dividends in terms of improved fuel consumption and longer life, and experiments are being made with automatic rftdiator shutters.
Too Much Weight Saving Mr. W. R. Rogers is fleet engineer of the West Midland area of British Road Services, in which some 1,000 vehicles are operated by the State undertaking, ranging from 25-cwt. vans to 24-ton-gross eight-wheelers, on parcels traffic, contract work and general haulage, use being made, of the motorways on many of the runs.
In Mr. Rogers' personal view, overall running costs have been unnecessarily increased by weight saving on cabs and chassis, the increased payload provided by the reduced unladen weight of the vehicle being more than offset by higher repair costs, and of more serious consequence, by periodic loss of vehicle availability. In particular, Mr. Rogers emphasizes the shortcomings of pressed-steel and composite plastics-metal cabs, both of which types require far More attention in service than the coachbuilt cab because the whole structure tends to distort (and part at the seams) in service.'
In In iine with his plea for more robust vehicles, Mr. Rogers -advocates plating by the vehicle makers, as this would provide a much needed increase ,in driving safety in the case of lighter vehicles, as well as improved reliability., changes in weight distribution on account of a shifting load and' high -cornering loads being factors that should be taken into account. Securing the load is frequently a major problem, and more robust headboards would be welcomed.
The necessity to interchange drivers between vehicles and the shortage of skilled maintenance personnel are important factors in Mr. Rogers' assessment of desirable chassis features. Because a driver may _handle many vehicle types in the course of a few weeks, similarity of control and simplicity promotes good driving, and simplicity is also regarded as a major merit of chassis design, the availability ot factory-built unit replacements at an
acceptable cost being of even greater importance. It pertinent that the normal service life of heavier vehicles is 12 years (in which time a mileage up to 500,000 may be covered) whilst the life of smaller vehicles is about six years.
Repeated trouble with starters has been experienced over the years, which is attributed to the use of undersize units. Generators have operated with acceptable reliability apart from the units of two or three models which are liable to contamination by fuel oil by virtue of their proximity to the fuel pump.
Corrosion by winter salt is a common occurrence, the junction boxes of the wiring system being the chief offenders. Wheelbrake cylinders, brake-adjusting mechanisms and the internal connections of lights are also liable to repeated corrosion.
n30 Visual or audible warning devices for oil-pressure, generatt current and radiator temperature, should, Mr. Rogers consider be fitted in addition to gauges. Paper element oil filters ai not regarded favourably, partly because they can becoff clogged' too easily and partly because they remove the fin, particles of carbon which aid lubrication.
Improve Temperature Control
The majority of the fleet of 153 petrol-engined vans, operate by The Birmingham Post and Mail Ltd., are.I0-12-eWt. vehicli (about 80 per cent are of' one make) and the vans are normal replaced after three years, or 50,00,0 miles. Newspapers ai distributed from Birmingham and 14 branch offices in a radii of about 30 miles of the cif and operations also incltu long-distance runs to Brist and London.
Oil changes at intervals I 1,000 miles normally obvia the need for engine replac ments Or rebores in the life 1 the vehicles, but renewal I piston rings is general required. Transport manager of the company, Mr. J. Jennings, is well satisfied with the wearing properties of tl engines, but points out that the bore wear of the short-distan vans is many times greater than that of the long-distan, vehicles, which is attributed to overcooling. Mr. Jennings co siders that improved temperature control would give bett bore life.
Corrosion is described as "the electricians' nightmare Because of faulty sealing, all interior light fittings' behind ti front and rear wheels are liable to fail through rapid corrosit by, the action of salt-laden spray in the. winter months, at this also applies to starter solenoids, the Bendix gear of start units that are not adequately shielded and to the select. mechanism of gearboxes, which is now packed with grea to obviate the trouble. The life of silencers and exhaust pip is also relatively short because of corrosion and it is considen that the mounting of silencers and their. structtral rigidi
could be improved. .
The penetration of water to boxed-in body panels, or t] formation of moisture by condensation in these are frequently causes corrosion before the terniination. of the thre year period, in spite of measures to reduce corrosion by. drillir ventilating holes and the intreduction of lanoline with a spn gun. In a later type of vehicle, double panels are employ for the upper sections and single panels for the lower sectior and Mr. Jennings is hopeful that this will eliminate or redu. corrosion Newvehicles are ordered from the makers " finished colour ", despite subsequent applicatiOn of the Pc and Mail livery, the practice of the makers of dipping bodi prior to painting giving added prdtection against corrosic Fatigue cracks often develop in door panels near the locks ai spread across the panels.
Whilst the low efficiency of handbrakes is of less. conce to Mr. Jennings than to operators of heavier vehicles, deplores the fact that they are designed as parking brakes al do not provide adequate stopping power in emergencies. Rap deterioration of performance in service is also criticized.
Whilst radiators and fan belts are reasonably reliable, radiat hoses give frequent trouble because they are not reinforced cater (apparently) for pressurized systems; the only functii of the " stockingette " covering being to create difficulty locating a leak, Although speedometer cables have improv in recent years. the incidence of failure is relatively high. T replacement of petrol gauges is frequently necessary becau of their inaccuracy.