Self-adjusting brakes

And Other Technical Items

Probably no point in the routine attention to a car is more irksome to the average motorist than that of brake adjustment and consequently the S.B.R. brake regulator, which has been placed on the market recently, should be of particular interest. As can be seen from the accompanying illustrations it consists of a form of lever (incorporating a ratchet device) which takes the place of the orthodox brake cam lever. The whole is pivotally mounted upon a spigot on the inner boss of the ratchet wheel, which is keyed to the camshaft. As wear in the brake linings occurs, the lever moves the ratchet so that a tooth is taken up by the pawl, this action giving the whole just sufficient travel in the ” off ” direction to maintain the right clearance between the brake shoes and drums. The retention of a correct adjustment is, therefore, entirely automatic. The makers are : S.B.R. Patents, Ltd., Marcol House, 293, Regent Street, London, W.

Servo Brakes for Motorcycles.

Whereas servo brakes of one type or another are almost universal on high-class cars, there are no motorcycles at present standardised with them ; and whereas, again, almost every car has its front and rear brakes interconnected, very few motorcycles embody this design, the most notable exception being the Rudge-Whitworth. It is therefore interesting to note that the Bendix Brake Co., manufacturers of the well-known car brakes, have gone very closely into the matter of servo brakes for motorcycles and have evolved a system which has been fully tested and has proved to be most effective, The mechanism is of exactly the same type as that employed for cars and the arrangement is such that the brakes can be either interconnected or independent.

Several leading manufacturers, are experimenting with these duo-servo brakes and important developments may be expected in the near future.

Hydraulic Shock Absorbers and °F.

Some experienced motorists have viewed with misgiving the general adoption of hydraulic shock absorbers.

As the name implies, these depend upon the free flow of a liquid, such as oil. Obviously in a climate like that of this country, where the temperature varies between very wide limits, the action of the absorber would vary according to the fluidity of the liquid.

Some adjustment could be provided, in fact, is provided on some makes, but it is quite certain that the average owner driver is not going to study the thermometer every day and dive under the axles to adjust his shock absorbers.

Amongst the first to adopt hydraulic shock absorbers were the Singer Company. Their solution of the problem of temperature variation is in the liquid used.

It is an emulsion, i.e., a compound of liquids (such as oil and water) which do not ordinarily mix, but which can be made to do so to a certain extent by forcible treatment in a special machine. Alcohol is one of the ingredients, so that the free-flowing properties of the final mixture are unaffected by cold.