St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1919-08-30
OUR AUTOMOBILE PAGE CONTAINS ITEMS OF INTEREST
AND USEFUL KNOWLEDGE FOR AUTOMOBILE OWNERS
CRAZY ENGINES
(By Foster Cunningham

4
and then take spells and no one can
tell what is the matter?" l have
had this question put to me many
times and / general answer, That
goes with the gas engine" Some
owners think that certain amount
of trouble is an allotment, Or luck,
something that cannot be avoided,
while N fact little care and atten-
ton coupled with an understanding
of the machine will reduce if not
entirely eliminate the troubles that
terrorize the motorist.
Many times have / been called to
some stranded machines and discon-
solate drivers, whose imaginations
had been forming around an anticl-
pated, inflated, garage bill, and what
look OF rcliet when told that only
a short circuit had been cauesd by a
little insulation bein worn off the
magnetic wire and that piece of
tape or a rag wrapped around the
naked wir2 would remedy the
trouble. | was recently called to a
neighbours place whose Ford refused
to be cranked. He had called the
village blacksmith, who did some
auto work, and after a few hours
threw up the white flag.
/ told the owner over the wire be-
fore l left home that l would have
it going in ten minutes, but it only
took one minute! What was it that
caused TIL owner who had been driV-
ing a car for three vars and this ex-
To foI n
the trouble? Failure to eliminate.
The first thing l did was to discon-
meet the light and horn wires from
the magnetic terminal, and the en-
CINE seemed to want to run ere i took
hold tn ecrank. When the light wire
was placed against the magnetic post
the motor would stop. We found
the insulation worn from the wire
near the push button on the steer
ing post.
A few nights ago / overlook a
Ford that refused to go any further.
| offered my services, much to the
satisfaction OF the occupants of the
car. We disconnected all wires ex-
cept the ignition and the first turn
of the crank started the motor. l
told he driver it was too dark to
trace the wiring, but as he did not
live far away and the moon was shin
ing, he could drive home without
any lights
1t is bad business to keep old,
troublesome wires on machine for
trouble will come sooner or later,
and it may be in the night time. 1t
is indeed a dangerous thing to have
old, unclad wires running to the
timer. Wherever the insulation is
worn off and the raw wire touching
some part of the engine contact is
formed just the same as the contact
in the timer, but the contact is on all
the time and premature explosion
occurs in the cylinders just the same
as if the spark lever were advanced.
Result, broken arm!
There are other things that will
cause a motor to stop. / was called
one rainy night to go to neighhor
who was stranded seven miles from
home. | tried to tell him what to
do befire l went, but I finally went
to the rescue and with a half turn OF
the carburator needle the old two
cylinder chugged along its journey.
1t is the little things that cause
ninety per cent of the trouble. A
few suggestions if remembered will
help many times in starting balky
motor. When the engine refuses to
start, try the elimination method.
Know that everything is right but
one hel fix that. Know that every
plug is good and clean, while the
plugs will rot cause motor to go
dead, If some are, good, a bad plug
will cause jerky running OF the
car. Trace al wires to the timer
and see that the do not touch any
metal if they are worn and old and
sometimes a wire is severed and the
insulation cover conceals the break.
Disconnect the light and horn wires
if they get their current from the
same source a sthe ignition, like the
Ford.
Drain the carburator of any water
an dsediment and let it run quite a
bit to see if there is a ffVR sufficient
to keep the engine going. If the
gasoline does not run from the car
burator in a steady flow the gasoline
line is choked. l ran Ford for a
year an congratulated myself for
the absence C trouble, but suddenly
| stalled. IStested Immediately for
choked gasoline line, but when the
tube was removed from the tank the
gasoline would not flow from the
tank and as there is screen at the
outlet L wire could not be inserted.
| took the pump and placed teh
connection at the opening Of the tank
and blew whatever obstruction there
was into the sediment bulb and the
trouble was over. The sediment
bulb and carburator should be drain
ed frequently. It is a good idea to
open the adjusting needle few
turns when the motor fails to start
and this would assist in removing
any foreign matter that might be
obstructing the needle opening.
The best way that have found to
tell if there is a spark going to or
through the plugs, especially If the
motor cam be started, is to take
a piece of wire and fasten one end to
the coil where the timer wire is con-
nected and lay the other end on the
engine any place so it touches metal,
any kind of wire will do and need
not be insulated, then remove the
corresponding plug with the wire
still fastened to it and lay it on the
engine and turn the motor over with
a little speed. A continuous flame