The COUNTESS and the EMPEROR
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Vulcan's New Passenger Vehicles
'First Details of the 28-seater and the Double-saloon51 seater ; Ingenious Body Construction on the Latter. An Entirely New Range of Vulcan Engines for the Passenger Models.
GOOD news issues from the works of the Vulcan Motor and Engineering Co. (1906), Ltd., at Crossens, near Southport in Lancashire. The company is now making all its own passenger-chassis engines, a range of new power units having been designed, a new 28-seater forward-control machine has been added to the single-decker series and a very powerful double-deck bus chassis and body have been put into production.
The 1930 range of passenger-carrying machines will comprise the Duke 20-seater and Duchess 26-seater .(with Vulcan four-cylindered engines of different sizes), the new ilimmenammemmik. aan Countess 28-seater (similar to the Duchess but having forward control), the Prince 32-seater and Princess 36 seater (each having the n e w four cylindered Ricardohead engine) and, finally, the new Emperor 51-seater bus, driven by a striking and entirely new sixcylindered engine.
The goods-carrying Vulcans remain practically unchanged, these having recently been completely modernized.A modification of the 30-cwt. chassis has,
Q21101111111111111 however, been added, namely, the Shaftesbury f o rward-control, 35cwt. low loader, type 3 XR. The range thus consists of 30-cwt., 2i-ton and 3-ton four-wheelers and 30-40cwt. and 3-4-ton six-wheelers.
Dealing first with the new single-decker chassis, the Countess is virtually the Duchess model equipped for forward control and is powered by the new Vulcan four-cylindered engine, of which we will give details.
It is a monobloc, detachable-head unit of 110 mm. bore and 140 mm. stroke and a capacity of 5,321 c.c. With an R.A.C. rating of 30 h.p. it develops, 40 b.h.p. at 1,000 r.p.m and 60 b.h.p. at 2,000 r.p.m. F011OWillg modern practice, main-bearing bolts .etend Upwards to hold down the cylinder block. The 1,2-in.
c30 The wide and low platform and enclosed stairway of the Vulcan Emperor, showing the housing of the spare wheel. side valves are operated by. roller tappets. Aluminiumallay pistons are used. Camshaft, magneto and 12-volt dynamo are chain driven, fan and water impeller being operated by belt. The Duchess engine has a horizontal carburetter but the Countess model has a vertical carburetter and
water -jacketed induction pipe. The sprung engine mounting is a feature.
The pressure lubrication system inconporates a suction filter which may be withdrawn for cleaning without loss of the crank case oil, also a pressure filter with removable gauze. There is a cone-type clutch and the fourspeed gearbox is separately mounted, carrying a mechanical tyre pump.
The Duke engine is similar in design but smaller, the bore and stroke being 100 mm. and 130 mm. and the output 49 b.h.p. at 2,000 r.p.m.
In both Prince and Princess chassis a Ricardo-head engine of 110 mm. bore and 140 mm stroke is -fitted. Whilst of the same capacity as the power unit of the Duchess and Countess chassis it develops 47 b.h.p. at 1,000 r.p.m. and 75 b.h.p. at 2,000 r.p.m.
The inlet-valve seats are of the Ricardopatent masked design giving sudden valve closing with slow. seating—a desirable combination. Tappets are detachable. A hot spot is arranged between exhaust and inlet manifolds. , Apart from these characteristics the engine follows Vulcan practice in its layout. The water pump, however, is driven in line with the magneto. The cylinder block is cast as a jacket, centrifugally cast liners being pressed in, a
practice which engineers are now favouring. , This brings us to the machine which is at present the centre of Interest and enthusiasm at the Vulcan works—the Emperor double-saloon bus, chassis and body of which have been designed and built at Crossens. It is sure to attract much attention at the Show.
Full details of the extremely powerful engine are
not yet available for publication, but every feature of the outfit is noteworthy. It is a four-wheeler with a frame height of 1 ft. 10f ins., the frame being upswept at front and over the rear axle, dropping at the tail to a height of only 1 ft. 11 in. The conductor's platform is but 1 ft. 7 ins, above the ground, a step being mounted 61 ins. lower.
The main frame, braced by four 4-in. cross-tubes (in addition to engine and tail cross-members), has a maximum depth of 11 ins., the flange being 3/ ins. and the thickness I in. The front springs are flat under load and measure 4 ft. by 3 ins., those at the rear being of reverse camber 5 ft. long and 4 ins.
wide. Standard tyre equipment is 34-in. by 7-in. pneumatics (twin rear tyres), but the chassis is suitable for a wide range of tyre sizes.
Brakes and steering are well studied, the latter being of Manes pattern, extremely light. The rear wheels have dual brake drnms, the smaller pair (1611 ins. by 21 ins.) being served by the hand lever. The larger pair {17 ins. by 31 ins.) and the 17-in. by 3-in, front-wheel drums are served by a footactuated Dewandre cylinder.
An open-tube, Spicer-jointed propeller shaft conveys the drive to the offset underslung-worm-drive differential case, drive and torque stresses being taken by the reverse-camber springs.
The wheelbase is 16 ft. 6 ins., overall length 25 ft. 61 ins., mean rear track 5 ft. 101 ins., and front track 6 ft. 4fk ins., the frame width being 3 ft. 11 ins. and narrowing to 3 ft. 0/ in. at the dumbirons. The unladen chassis weighs about 3 tons 15 cwt.
Turning now to the body, -this is of the coveredstairway kind having an arched upper-saloon floor with 24 seats arranged in eight banks of three, a gangway being provided on each side. The arrangement gives excellent headroom (more than 6 ft.) over the central aisle of the lower saloon.
The body framing is a happy combination of wood and T-section duralumin, five such duralumin arches forming the basis for the upper-deck floor. They are braced longitudinally by a long wood sideboard, or riser, 101 ins, in depth. The thickness of the 9-ply floor is, thanks to the section of the arches, but 1 in.
overall. Roof and side panels are of aluminium,
pillars being duralumin-flitched and nickel-steel gussetted.
It is to be hoped Mr. Edge, the -Vulcan company's body designer, will be able, at the Exhibition, to explain to visitors his constructional method, for a superficial appreciation of this body is not sufficient— it merits closer study.