The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-08-31
GOOD BRAKES BEST
OF LIFE INSURANCE
Expert Explains Their Func-
lions and Their Proper
Care.
BY H. CLIFFORD BRoKAw,
Technical Director West Side Y. NJ. O. A.
AtLtotnobi GchooLa- Nean York Citn

Technical Director West Side Y. NJ. O. A.
Automobile Schools, Ncp York CITY,
Good brakes on the old boat are about
the best form Of life insurance the auto
driver can have. In fact, they are about
the most important part of the auto. A
pretty poor sort of motor will run the
car, but to stop 1t requires the best
there is to be had; pretty good will not
do in an emergency. You need a motor
to get there, but without good brakes
you may get too far. Like the orator,
| you need good terminal facilities.
There In nothing the matter with the
brakes on most cars when they come
from the factory. There will be little
the matter with them at any time II
they are given proper care; II oil is
put on where It Is needed and kept of
where II Is not needed, and IL worn
parts are renewed in time to prevent an
accident The brakes will hold the car
as long as they are in condition; they
are sufficient for all needs 50 long az
they are in order. It is the drivers
business TO see that they are kept In this
condition before going out, even II he
cannot take time to look after the motor.
1t may be a matter of life and death
before the garage is reached again.
Every car has two sets Of brakes. OPP
Grating independently of each other, and
either one should be in shape to hold
the car at a standstill; or In chauffeu,
phrasng "slide the wheels" There are
other means of braking on the car. which
will be mentioned further on. But the
jverage owner is careless about the
brakes. Recently rode in a car where
the driver was afraid to trust either set.
The foot brake held under ordinary con-
. iitions but was no good for sudden
emergent stop. The hand brake would
cold the car as long as you held the
lever, but could not be set, as the
ratchet was worn. and every time we
stopped on a grade I held the lever I'M
less there was a convenient curb to run
he wheel against.
Some time ago, out in the country. I
came across a smashed new Ford which
on long hill had burned out the brake
lining because the driver did not know
Or forgot that there was another set of
brakes which he could use. He might
have cut off the ignition and pressed the
first speed pedal, which would have kept
him at moderate speed by engine com
preston. or, with this particular car,
might have pushed the reverse pedal.
which would have been better still.
Drivers should learn to use first the
foot and then the emergency brake on
long hills. This alienation allows each
in turn to cool of. for where there is so
much friction heat cannot be avoided,
and only by alternating the brakes is
there safety from burned out Innings.
But also the driver should learn how to
use the motor as a brake. BY engaging
a lower gear and cutting off the ignition
the engine. under compression, Will re
| tard the speed sufficiently so that mod
crate use of the foot brake is enough for
safety. Likewise safety calls for slow
speed in descending a long hill as less
heat is developed. or at least 1t is de-
veloped more slowly.
Brake Innings nowadays do not ac-
tually burn out. being made of an ashes
'os composition. But they char and lose
frictional qualities and the fabric is likely
10 crumble away from the wire woven
within It.
Another serious cause OF brake failure
| Is oil. AS a rule this comes from the
differential. leaking through the axle
housing to the hub and then overlooking
to the brake drums. This may be the
result of enthusiasm in fabrication which
prompts a too liberal quantity in the
differential. Then when the ear turns
of the crown of the road the oil over
flows the casing and the only outlet is
the axle housing. And sometimes the
play of the parts acts like a pump and
sends the oil out along the axle. The
remedy is using less oil. and II that does
not remedy 1t, put a felt washer in the
axle housing.
This consists of a long thin strip OF
hard felt wound around the shaft. Wind
II, beginning at the wheel end, In a di-
rection opposite TO the forward motion
of the shaft. II should be fastened to
the shaft with shellac and bound with
T,,.I L., x1fn
more than six or eight inches of the
shaft.
A rather unusual case came to my at