The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-01-09

l F D, in the automobile industry and is all ready recognized as factor in air ship construction at the present time by the English naval constructors at Barrow. The value of the alloy for aeroplanes and automobiles lies in the fact that while it is slightly heavier than pure aluminium it is as strong as steel and two-thirds as light. 1t does not .corrode easily and is only one-third the weight of brass and by it's use it will be possible to reduce 1 the weight of automobiles fully one half without sacrificing strength or durability. It's use for fittings and other parts in the motor car indus try opens a large field for the produc- tion of "Duralumin'' and will tend to cheapen its cost. Just think of the possibility of replacing the weight of steel by "Duralumin'' in automobile construction. It would mean the weight, allows the use of lighter tires and yet give much larger mileage as the strain upon the air inflated tubes would be consequently much lighter We await the result of the exhaustive experiments We are conducting with the new alloy with a great deal of in terest.
 From the short light horse buggy to the long heavy, speedy, powerful modern auto is but short step in time but long step in practice. The early auto builders knew not the ad- vantage of long bases and built an average of perhaps 60 inches. But as speeds and powers increased, the grey hound effect came in naturally and heightened both chassis and body. Long and low instead of short and high became the order of the modern auto. But, how long, is the question. Year after year the inches were ad- l-l 4f f44-- |, <xrx< 1-<x arisen .'have we reached the limit of length ?'' Have we gone beyond prac-, tica1 1engths?" It is clear that a long chassis must be made heavier to have sufficient strength than if made short, The long vehicle requires more room to turn around and to stable. In many ways it is not so handy but it rides better and safer. It is therefore best. But the question ''llow long?" is still unanswered The many splen- did vehicles shown at the Palace show now in progress in New York offer the curious observer an answer. The bases run from "A inches in a three wheeler, to 128. The average seems to be very close to 100 inches and the indications are that as peo- pie get over the speed madness and use the auto more for daily duties, this rational average will be ap- preached more closely.
 y leather faced cone clutch has held it's popularity as a means of gradually and sweetly picking up the power of the engine and transmitting it to the transmission and to the vehicle wheels But of later years the multiple disk clutch has been working it's way into public favor and has caused many a close observer to wonder whether or not the cone clutch will in time give way. The big automobile show at New York presents the latest designs of the goodly number of new entrants into the automobile business and therefore reflects the latest and best in auto practice. Out of 6S cars in- cluded in fairly comprehensive list 32 have cone clutches. The multiple disk clutch has a following of thirty A number of cars use dry plate clutches. r.early every car in the show uses band brakes.
 Probably no problem of the auto mobile has been fought so stubborn ly as the tire problem. How to get comfort, reliability and service on the one hand at weight and price with in the reach of the average buyer, on the other hand has presented an un- usual difficulty. With most problems the question of material for construc- ton hardly enters. A few ounces more or less Or even pounds of steel or wood makes so little difference in the cost that 1t is not considered as against any gain that may be derived